Costa Rica
West Valley
Aguilera Brothers
Dago
Villa Sarchí
Honey
December-March
Round, Floral, Blueberries
1400 meters
N/A
69kg GrainPro
SOLD OUT
All 12 of the Aguilera siblings are involved in the coffee, taking after their parents. As a team they manage the mill, planting, pruning, fertilizations, and processing themselves and hire seasonal labor for harvest. The majority of the coffee the Aguilera family grows is Villa Sarchi and Villa Lobos, two varieties unique to the Naranjo area of Costa Rica. Villa Sarchi is a mutation of the Bourbon varietal that was first found on a nearby farm in Naranjo. The trees are compact and usually have less space between the nodes of cherries along the branches, meaning higher yields per tree, but still maintaining excellent cup quality. Villa Sarchi and Villa Lobos coffees present notes of passion fruit with intense acidity and pleasant floral aromas. The Aguileras understand both farm techniques and sensory quality, making them ideal partners for specialty production.
The West Valley, or Valle Occidental, seems to have been created especially for coffee growing, with altitudes of 800-1400 meters above sea level, humidity consistently near 81%, and an average temperature of 21°C, all factors that promote a plentiful, healthy crop. Valle Occidental typically experiences rain for about 160 days each year. The start of the dry season in November coincides with the coffee harvest, which continues until February, often with festive atmosphere during the Christmas holidays. Most local growers have small plantations and use sustainable agriculture and processing methods to produce Arabica beans with the balanced acidity and body for which West Valley coffee is world famous.
