Roble Negro Costa Rica
Roast Date30/11/23
Roble Negro Costa Rica
FARM INFORMATION
Roble Negro coffee is processed in the Roble Negro region of Jorge Vasquéz Ureña. The coffee mill and farm, Finca Cedral Alto, is located in the town of Aserrí in the Tarrazú region of Costa Rica, about 45 minutes outside the capital of San José. The name Roble Negro means “black oak”. The name signifies the importance of trees, forests and environmental conservation to Jorge and his coffee production. Cedral Alto is 22.5 hectares, with 12 hectares of primary forest, 6.5 hectares of reforestation and pasture and 3 hectares of coffee cultivation.
The farm is full of natural springs and freshwater springs, which the forested areas protect and keep clean, and is located in the transition between the Pacific side of the country and the Central Valley region, which lies at an altitude of 1750–2000 meters above sea level of the sea.
Jorge grew up playing soccer with his cousins on the farms around Asseri, where their parents worked picking coffee. He graduated from college with a degree in accounting and worked for Banco Nacional of Costa Rica for 21 years, as a branch manager for the last 11 years of his life there. Jorge now has a recycling company, Compañía de Reciclaje Ecológico, which he founded in response to the country’s pollution levels. This particular batch of Catuai coffee was naturally processed in Roble Negro.
The harvested cherries are dried for 20-30 days to reach 11% moisture. During drying, the cherries are rotated every three hours to ensure even drying. The dried cherries rest in the mill’s warehouse for at least two months before being milled and prepared for export!
The Tarrazú region is high in the mountains of the South Pacific region, south of Costa Rica’s capital, San Jose. This area is one of the most densely planted high-altitude areas in Central America, with many farms over 2000 meters above sea level.
