Costa Rica Coffee Tour 2024

Our Tobias traveled to Costa Rica in February. The organizers of the trip, our partners Marion & Peter Scheiber from El.Kaffee, took Tobias to coffee plantations whose owners they know personally and visit regularly. This allowed Tobias to experience the excellent coffee quality firsthand.

With many wonderful experiences and impressions back from the distant land of coffee, here is his personal travel report:

My journey began on February 11, 2024, with a flight via Madrid to San Jose, the capital of Costa Rica. The country is considered the most progressive in Latin America, having abolished the military in 1948 in favor of promoting education and health programs.

On the first day of the trip we visited the Finca La Hilda which is one of the largest plantations in the country. The owner, Mariano, and his employee guided us through the plantation and showed us their coffee production. From planting, to cultivation, to harvesting, to the coffee mill, they gave us a fantastic insight.

During the harvest months, approx. 400 pickers These come almost exclusively from the Neighboring country Nicaragua. They usually come with their entire families. Special accommodations, a school, and a kindergarten have been built on La Hilda for this purpose.

biodiversity is held in very high regard in Costa Rica. We observed this repeatedly throughout our trip. Here, coffee plants are not cultivated in monocultures. Everywhere, care is taken to ensure that the shade-loving plants can thrive under a variety of citrus trees, banana palms, and jungle giants.

Later in the afternoon we visited a very special finca. Las LajasThe Chacón family are true masters in the production of Specialty Coffees. With a High-tech machine They sort the coffee cherries according to quality. Only the best are used for the Fermentation processes used.

Day two started with a visit to the Cafeoteca. This establishment is a blend of coffee shop and roastery. Every year, the owner selects the best coffee beans from Costa Rica's seven coffee-growing regions, roasts them himself, and offers them here.

The next stop brought some highlights of this trip. After a long drive, we reached the Finca AquiaresThis little paradise lies below the second largest active volcano, dem Turri Alba.

In this "Land between rivers"The colors, sounds, and smells were impressive. So, in the early evening, we took a horseback tour through the plantation. Our destination was a 30-meter-high waterfall on the Jesus Maria River.

We spent the night in the colonial house from 1906. After a delicious breakfast, we visited the church imported from Europe in 1900, and then the coffee production

A 150-year-old Ceiba tree towers above the mill, offering a panoramic view of the entire area.

After this very informative tour there was of course a Cupping (tasting) of the current harvest.

On day five, it wasn't about coffee. After breakfast, we drove to a hidden gem of Peter's. We followed a small river in the middle of the jungle to a waterfall. Of course, we couldn't resist going for a swim there.

On the way back, we stopped briefly at Peter's friends' place. The two Italians run the Mystica Lodge on the northern shore of Lake Arneal. Here you can walk along a narrow path through the jungle to reach approximately 400-year-old Ceiba tree admired.

The perfect end to this wonderful day was our homemade dinner at the Scheibers' home.

On day six, we faced another long drive to the last coffee finca. Here, we took a small detour just so I could stand in the Pacific Ocean.

The last finca was something special! Los Papillos is a small family business. Don Miguel and his two sons manage a 1500 meters above sea level We were taken to the coffee plants in the back of their pickup truck. There, we were each allowed to plant a coffee plant ourselves.

Due to the high altitude, the coffee cherries ripen more slowly here. Therefore, we were able to marvel at the fully packed plants. The quality was truly exceptional.

On the last day of our coffee trip, the three of us went on a sightseeing tour of the capital, as the other half was already on its way to Colombia.

On Sunday, February 18, I returned to Europe. With me in my luggage: many, many wonderful memories from the land of...

In the roastery, you can enjoy a cup of CultCaffè while browsing through the photo book of the coffee trip and let Tobias tell you more about the coffee plantations.