La Taza Habla

Remembering Bill Kennedy - Mentor, Teacher, Friend, and His Legacy

In this heartfelt tribute episode of La Taza Habla, host Don Cox honors the life and legacy of Bill Kennedy, CEO and founder of San Franciscan Roaster Company, who unexpectedly passed away in December 2024. Over two decades of friendship, Bill transformed specialty coffee through American-made coffee roasting equipment, education programs, and unwavering mentorship.

This deeply personal episode recounts their first conversation in the early 2000s when Bill refurbished Don's 25-pound roaster—his very first customer—sparking a partnership that would impact coffee professionals worldwide. From his background as an educator and principal to becoming a coffee industry pioneer, Bill embodied servant leadership, faith-driven values, and commitment to excellence in coffee roasting. The episode explores Bill's role in creating coffee roasting curriculum, launching the Coffee Roasting Legends podcast, establishing Telegraph Coffee & Tap in Fallon, Nevada, and supporting countless entrepreneurs through equipment sales and personal mentorship.

Bill's legacy lives on through his family, six grown children, and the thousands of roasters whose lives he touched. A moving remembrance for anyone in specialty coffee, entrepreneurship, or small business ownership seeking inspiration from a true industry gentle giant.

I'll add more links as they become available

1. Daily Coffee News Official Obituary (Must-read industry tribute)
   https://dailycoffeenews.com/2025/12/11/bill-kennedy-san-franciscan-roaster-owner-and-educator-dies/

Ep 2: Mexico's Map of Flavor

Discover the intricate flavor map of Mexican Specialty Coffee, a world leader in high-quality, organic coffee. In this episode, your 20-year veteran host of La Taza Habla takes you on an origin journey through Mexico’s "Big Three" growing regions: Chiapas, Veracruz, and Oaxaca. Learn why Chiapas is the "heavyweight champion," producing 40% of the country’s coffee with a chocolate-rich flavor profile and intense citrus acidity, thanks to its high-altitude volcanic soil. We explore Veracruz, the "wise veteran" and Mexico’s oldest coffee roasting region, known for its delicate, approachable cup with cinnamon and soft citrus notes. Finally, we unveil Oaxaca, "the artist," home to the masterpiece Pluma Hidalgo , a unique, lighter-bodied origin with floral complexity. Most importantly, understand that choosing Mexican coffee means partnering with the small family farms and coffee cooperatives that cultivate the world's highest rate of USDA certified organic coffee.

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5 Takeways

1. Mexico is the global leader in Organic Coffee: 25% of the world's USDA certified organic coffee comes from Mexico, the highest rate on the planet.
2. Altitude is a "Slow Cooker" for Flavor: Higher elevations, particularly in Chiapas, slow down the ripening process, allowing sugars and acids in the cherry to fully develop a deeper, more complex flavor profile (like a vine-ripened tomato).
3. The "Big Three" are Distinct: Chiapas is powerful and chocolate-forward; Veracruz is delicate and approachable with cinnamon notes; Oaxaca is elegant, floral, and lighter-bodied.
4. Pluma Hidalgo is Protected: This Oaxacan coffee has earned a Denomination of Origin—a protected status ensuring that only beans from that specific region meeting quality standards can use the Pluma name.
5. Shade-Grown = Sustainability: The widespread return to traditional, shade-grown and organic methods preserves forests, protects biodiversity, and keeps carbon in the ground, making your cup an act of environmental partnership.

A Glossary of Key Terms from La Taza Habla

Altura Spanish word for "height," used to designate premium, high-grown coffees, such as the "Altura beans" from the highlands of Veracruz.

Altitude The elevation at which coffee is grown. High altitudes (e.g., 2,600 to 6,000 feet) are said to act as a "slow cooker for flavor" by providing cool nights and warm days that extend the ripening period, allowing sugars and acids to fully develop.

Chiapas Known as the "heavyweight champion" of Mexican coffee, this state sits near the Guatemalan border and produces 40% of all Mexican coffee. Its coffee is characterized by a chocolate-rich, deep flavor with a bright citrus acidity.

Coffee Co-operatives Groups formed by small, multi-generational family farms in Mexico that collectively returned to traditional, shade-grown, organic methods to preserve their ancestors' knowledge and empower their communities.

Denomination of Origin (Protected Status) A certified designation, similar to a protected status, given to Pluma Hidalgo coffee. This ensures that only coffee sourced from that specific region and meeting high quality standards can use the name.

Flavor Profile The set of sensory characteristics (taste, aroma, body) unique to a coffee. For example, the Chiapas profile is chocolate-forward, while Oaxaca's is lighter-bodied and floral.

Gesha Variety An acclaimed, high-quality coffee varietal. When grown in the Soconusco subregion of Chiapas, a Gesha lot scored 93 out of 100 points in the Cup of Excellence, showcasing flavors like jasmine, bergamot, and vanilla.

Oaxaca Described as the "artist" among Mexico’s coffee regions. Located between Chiapas and Veracruz, its coffee is notably lighter-bodied, with floral aromatics, a wine-like complexity, and a robust chocolate backbone.

Pluma Hidalgo The "masterpiece" or "crown jewel" subregion in Oaxaca. Its name, Pluma, means "feather" in Spanish.

Shade-Grown A traditional, environmentally-conscious farming method where coffee plants are grown under a canopy of larger trees. This preserves forests, protects local ecosystems, and is a key component of sustainability efforts by Mexican farmers.

Soconusco A subregion within Chiapas where many coffee artisans work, known for producing balanced beans with clear finishes.

USDA Certified Organic Coffee Coffee certified to meet strict organic production standards. Mexico produces 25% of the world's USDA certified organic coffee, which is the highest rate on the planet.

Veracruz The "wise veteran" and Mexico's oldest coffee region, where beans have been grown since the late 1700s. Its Gulf Coast location contributes to a more delicate, medium-bodied cup with softer citrus and cinnamon undertones.

 

Ep 1: Mexican Coffee - Why Organic Was an Accident

How is it that the number one producer of organic coffee in the world has hungry coffee farmers?  In this episode of La Taza Habla, we unpack the Paradox of Fragility that defines Mexican Coffee. Unlike other origins, Mexico’s coffee culture was built from the bottom up by smallholder farmers and indigenous communities—an "accident of history" caused by the Spanish obsession with gold over agriculture .

We begin with the sensory ritual of Café de Olla—brewed in clay pots with piloncillo (raw cane sugar) and cinnamon—before diving into the economic devastation of 1989. That year, the government agency INMECAFE vanished overnight, leaving half a million farmers exposed to predatory "coyotes" and the  free market . You’ll discover how this collapse forced farmers to adopt organic coffee farming not as an environmental trend, but as a survival strategy because they simply couldn't afford chemicals . Join us for a story of resilience, from the Mexican Revolution to the 90+ point scores in today's Cup of Excellence.

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5 Takeaways

1. Context Over Purity: While specialty coffee often obsesses over clean cups, the Mexican ritual of Café de Olla prioritizes context. The clay pot imparts an ancient, mineral quality, while spices like cinnamon and star anise create a "sensory time machine" .

2. Indigenous Roots: Unlike other regions dominated by European plantations, Mexican coffee was largely preserved by indigenous communities in Chiapas and Oaxaca because colonial Spain viewed agriculture as a "side hustle" to mining .

3. The Vacuum of Power: The rapid dissolution of INMECAFE in 1989 serves as a cautionary tale. Without a transition plan, farmers lost access to credit and transport instantly, forcing them to abandon farms or sell to predatory middlemen .

4. Accidental Organic Leaders: Mexico became the global leader in organic coffee out of necessity, not ideology. When government credit vanished, farmers couldn't afford fertilizers, making organic certification their only viable market differentiation .

5. Resilience is Quality: Despite the devastation of the La Roya (Leaf Rust) virus in 2012, cooperatives rebuilt their industry. Today, Mexican coffees from Veracruz and Puebla rank 10th globally and consistently hit top-tier quality scores.

3 Questions

1. The host describes Café de Olla as a "sensory time machine." What specific coffee ritual transports you to a different time or place?
2. We learned that Mexico's organic dominance was born from poverty. Does understanding this economic reality change how you view the "Organic" label on store shelves?
3. "Como México no hay dos" (There is no other like Mexico). How does the history of indigenous smallholders make Mexican coffee distinct from plantation-heavy origins like Brazil?

Glossary

1. Café de Olla Literally "Coffee of the pot." A traditional Mexican coffee ritual brewed in a clay pot with cinnamon, piloncillo (sugar), star anise, and sometimes cloves. It dates back to the Mexican Revolution of 1910.
2. Como México no hay dos A saying unique to Mexico that translates to "There is not two of them" or "There is no other like Mexico." It is a declaration of uniqueness and national pride, which also applies to the distinctiveness of Mexican coffee.
3. Cooperatives Collective groups formed by farmers after the 1989 government crash. These groups pooled resources to buy processing equipment, share transportation, and negotiate with buyers to survive without state support.
4. Coyotes Predatory middlemen who appeared after the dissolution of INMECAFE. They exploited farmers by buying beans for "pennies on the pound" and reselling them at a profit when farmers had no other way to reach the market.
5. Cup of Excellence A prestigious global coffee competition that held events in Mexico in 2024 and 2025, highlighting the country's resurgence with multiple coffees scoring above 90 points.
6. INMECAFE (Instituto Mexicano del Café) A government agency created in 1973 that acted as a safety net for farmers, providing technical support, credit, and guaranteed purchases. It was dissolved overnight by President Salinas in 1989, leading to a crisis for smallholders.
7. La Roya The "coffee leaf rust" virus that devastated crops across the Americas, including Mexico, starting in 2012. It attacks the root system and causes leaves to fall off, preventing the plant from producing berries.
8. Organic Certification In the context of Mexican history, this was adopted as a "survival strategy" rather than an environmental ideology. Following the economic crash, farmers could not afford chemical fertilizers, so they marketed their coffee as organic to differentiate themselves and survive.
9. Paradox of Fragility The central theme of the episode describing Mexico's coffee industry. It contrasts with Colombia's "Paradox of Plenty," highlighting the contradiction of being the world's number one producer of organic coffee while the farmers themselves experience seasonal hunger.
10. Piloncillo Raw, earthy cane sugar used in Café de Olla. It resembles a "hardened brick of molasses" and dissolves into boiling water to sweeten the coffee.

Lumber Grades and Great Coffee: How a 2x4 Explains Specialty Coffee

Join Don Cox as he revisits the question: "What is quality in coffee?" by introducing the Lumber Analogy. We break down why the score system—even for high-value Specialty Coffee—is, at its core, a Structural Inspection. We explore Commodity Coffee (70-79 points) as "Grade 3 lumber" riddled with Defects. The 88 Poins of a Kenyan AA I am considering for the holidays guarantee a flawless structure, but Subjective Pleasure dictates the final decision. Discover why your palate matters more than the label, and how the Objective Quality score ultimately validates your personal taste. Find out what the "rare air" 88-point Kenyan AA tastes like and how to get your hands on a bag.

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5 Takeaways 

1. The Score is Structural, Not Aesthetic: The Q Grader system and the high scores (80+ points) primarily function as a Structural Inspection to guarantee the absence of defects (like a 2x4 with no crook or shake), not that you will prefer the flavor.
2. Commodity Coffee is "Grade 3 Lumber": Coffee scoring 70–79 points is deemed commodity coffee because it contains defects that impact flavor and structural integrity, resulting in a less complex, "blah" flavor profile.
3. Find Your "Species": Specialty coffee flavor profiles are like different wood species (Black Walnut vs. Spalted Maple)—all are structurally flawless (Grade 1 lumber), but your pleasure dictates which species (flavor) you prefer.
4. The Score Validates Your Pleasure: The score doesn't dictate that you must like a coffee; it simply confirms that the pleasure you find in a high-scoring cup is structurally sound and not accidental.
5. Q Grader Language is Descriptive: High-level terms like Acidity, Body, and Balance are the "highest vocabulary" used to describe the coffee's unique species and beauty, not to judge your personal taste.

3 Discussion Questions for Community Engagement

1. Which coffee that you've tasted embodies the "Grade 3 lumber" or "blah" flavor experience?
2. Do you agree that a score of 88-points (Objective Quality) guarantees the coffee is structurally sound, leaving the final choice to Subjective Pleasure?
3. What's one common coffee score or technical term you used to find intimidating before listening to this episode?

Ep 2: Colombia's Mountain Map of Flavor

Why does one bag of Colombian Coffee taste like sweet chocolate and another like lime? In this episode of La Taza Habla, we unlock the secret to Coffee Flavor by revealing Colombia’s "mountain map". Moving beyond the economics of Part 1 (The Paradox of Plenty ), we dive into Coffee Terroir and how the three Cordillera mountain ranges create hundreds of distinct microclimates.

Host Don Cox takes you on a tour of five key Coffee Origin regions —from the juicy citrus of Huila (home to the Cadefihuila Coffee Cooperatives ) to the electric brightness of Nariño. We confront the ongoing Coffee Crisis as climate change threatens these unique microclimates , underscoring why co-ops are vital safety nets. Finally, we share a surprising family story: the traditional Colombian ritual of Queso en el Café—adding soft cheese to your cup. This episode is essential for any Specialty Coffee drinker ready to taste place and culture.

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5 Takeaways

1. Map Flavor by Mountain Range: Colombian coffee flavor is defined by its three Cordilleras (Western, Central, Eastern), which create hundreds of microclimates. Use this geographic map to predict the flavor profile in the bag.
2. Huila is Your Citrus Anchor: Huila coffee, grown in mineral-rich volcanic soil, is the quintessential "Colombian" taste, offering balanced notes of green apple, apricot, and citrus.
3. Altitude Equals Brightness: Regions like Nariño grow coffee above 2,100 meters, where cool temperatures slow ripening, producing bright, expressive flavors like jasmine and lime.
4. Queso en el Café is Culture: The tradition of dropping soft queso campesino into coffee (or hot chocolate) is a Colombian comfort ritual. The salty contrast cuts bitterness and adds a rich, velvety body.
5. Co-ops Preserve the Future: Cooperatives like Cadefihuila are essential safety nets. They invest in infrastructure and training to combat climate change threats and economic pressure that discourage replanting.

3 Questions 

1. Have you ever tried queso en el café or do you have a similar unexpected family food ritual that sounds strange but tastes amazing? 
2. How does knowing about the work of Coffee Cooperatives (like Cadefihuila ) change how you value the price of your Specialty Coffee?
3. The three Cordilleras create unique microclimates. What other product (wine, chocolate, etc.) do you think is most affected by Terroir?

Related Episode Recommendations
Episode 1 - The Paradox of Plenty: Why is Colombian Coffee so expensive? We cover the intensive labor required, the cost of quality control (like floating ), and the economic irony of the Coffee Crisis

This glossary is formatted as a simple list to be easily integrated into your Podbean show notes, providing definitions and context for the episode's key terms.

Glossary of Terms

• Antioquia: Colombia’s historic coffee heartland, known for a quiet transformation toward higher-altitude farming and typically offering flavors of milk chocolate and nutty sweetness.
• Arabica: The species of coffee grown in Colombia, favored for its high quality and complexity. Tolima's volcanic soils are ideal for its production.
• Cadefihuila Cooperative: A cooperative in the Huila region established in 1963. It unites smallholder farmers and acts as a support system to invest in drying facilities and improve quality.
• Castillo & Caturra: Common coffee varieties grown primarily in the Huila region.
• Cordilleras: The three major north-south mountain ranges—Western, Central, and Eastern—that carve Colombia's landscape and create hundreds of distinct microclimates.
• Huila: A southern region framed by volcanoes along the Central Cordillera. Its coffees are known for a balanced, juicy, clean cup with notes of green apple, citrus, and chocolate.
• Microclimates: The hundreds of distinct, highly localized climate areas created by Colombia's mountain ranges. They diversify the land and influence everything from harvest cycles to cup profiles.
• Nariño: A southern region known for its high elevations (often above 2,100 meters). The cool temperatures here extend the ripening period, resulting in bright, expressive flavors like jasmine, lime, and stone fruit.
• Panela: A nutty sweetness often found in Antioquia coffees.
• Queso Campesino: A soft, salty white farmer’s cheese that is traditionally dropped into hot coffee or chocolate in rural Colombian areas.
• Queso en el Café: The traditional Colombian practice of adding queso campesino to coffee. The saltiness and melting cheese create a "surprising but luxurious contrast," lending a rich, velvety body to the drink.
• Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta: An isolated mountain range rising from the Caribbean coast where Indigenous communities grow mellow, meditative, shade-grown coffees that lean soft and herbal.
• Terroir: The concept that a product's flavors reflect the natural environment and land characteristics.
• Tolima: A region that has stepped into the specialty coffee spotlight, known for its volcanic soils. It offers bold, characterful coffees with notes of red berries, caramel, and warm spice.

 

 

 

 

Ep 1: Colombia - The Paradox of Plenty

Welcome to La Taza Habla, where 20 years of specialty coffee stories reveal the hidden truths in your cup. In this deep-dive, we explore the precarious state of Colombian Coffee—a global icon that’s now teetering on the brink of crisis. We trace its fascinating origin story, from 18th-century "penance planting" by Jesuit priests that spurred expansion across regions like Santander, to the current model dominated by small holder farms.

You’ll discover the "Paradox of Plenty," a term that explains why the intensive, meticulous coffee picking labor—including the crucial "floating process" used to guarantee the high quality of Washed Arabica—is both necessary and unsustainable. We tackle the biggest threats to future coffee supply: how climate change and pests like Broca complicate harvests, and the stunning irony that record-high prices are discouraging the investment and replanting needed to sustain the farm. Finally, we discuss the iconic Juan Valdez and what his image truly represents. This episode is essential listening for anyone who wants to understand why their cup of specialty Colombian coffee is more precious and fragile than ever.

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5 Takeaways

1. High Prices Threaten Future Supply: Record prices are paradoxically discouraging farmers from investing in replanting and renovation, eroding the foundation for future coffee volume and setting the stage for scarcity.

2. Quality Requires Intensive Labor: The smooth, balanced taste of high-quality Colombian Coffee is guaranteed by intensive, multi-pass coffee picking and quality checks like the "floating process," which are often unsustainable for the smallholder farm model.

3. The Origin Story is Unique: Unlike other origins dominated by large estates, Colombia's production model was historically shifted by social pressure toward small holder farms, establishing its reputation for consistency and volume.

4. Climate Change is Real: Climate variability, including water stress and mucked-up harvest planning, is a significant factor contributing to the current coffee supply crisis and adding to the cost of production.

5. The Juan Valdez Icon is Only Half the Story: The iconic image of Juan Valdez represents the proud, authentic nature of Colombian producers, but it hides the intense economic and climate pressures they currently face.

3 Questions 

1. Prior to this episode, what did the Juan Valdez icon mean to you? Has that perception changed?

2. Did you know about the "Paradox of Plenty?" What other industries do you see facing a similar quality vs. volume challenge?

3. What is the most memorable cup of Colombian Coffee you've ever had, and do the notes of chocolate/caramel/nuts still hold true for you?

📚 Episode Glossary

• Arabica Coffee - The most common and highest quality species of coffee plant, known for its smooth, aromatic, and complex flavor profile, dominating Colombian Coffee production.
• Broca - A highly destructive insect pest (the coffee berry borer, Hypothenemus hampei) that burrows into coffee cherries, compromising quality and yield, and contributing to the challenges faced by the farm.
• Coffee Picking - The labor-intensive harvest process. For specialty coffee, this requires multiple passes to select only perfectly ripe, red cherries, which is the source of the "Paradox of Plenty."
• Floating Process - A quality control technique where freshly harvested coffee cherries are placed in water. Defective or underdeveloped beans (which float) are separated from the denser, higher-quality beans (which sink) to ensure a premium product.
• Huila - A major coffee-producing region (Origin) in Colombia known for highly sought-after specialty coffee with distinct bright acidity and intense fruit or floral notes.
• Juan Valdez - The iconic, fictional character created by the National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia (FNC) to represent the authentic Colombian small holder farm producer and promote Colombian Coffee internationally.
• Paradox of Plenty - A core concept describing the irony that in high-volume, quality-focused coffee production (like Colombia’s), the high quality is directly dependent on labor-intensive, multi-pass coffee picking and quality control, which makes the product economically fragile.
• Penance Planting - The legendary (and possibly apocryphal) historical strategy used by Jesuit priests in the 18th century, where planting coffee trees was prescribed as a spiritual punishment or mandate, helping to spark the rapid expansion of coffee cultivation in Colombia.
• Santander - One of the historical Origin regions in Colombia, central to the early expansion of coffee cultivation, often linked to the initial spread from Venezuela and the "penance planting" strategy.
• Small Holder Farms - The dominant production model in Colombia, characterized by small, family-run plots of land. This model is crucial to Colombian quality but is highly vulnerable to economic pressures and climate change.
• Specialty Coffee - A segment of the highest quality coffee beans, scoring 80 points or above on a 100-point scale. It requires meticulous standards throughout the entire bean to cup process, from farm to preparation.
• Washed Arabica - The processing method common in Colombia where the fruit (pulp) is removed from the coffee seed (bean) shortly after harvest, using fermentation and water before drying. This method typically results in a clean, bright, and consistent cup profile.

 

EP 2: Liquid Geography: Costa Rica’s Coffee in the Clouds

Discover the liquid geography of your morning cup! In this intimate episode of La Taza Habla, your host takes you on a sensory four-sip journey through a rare Costa Rica coffee from the high-altitude Chirripó origin. We explore why this region produces beans unlike any other, beginning with the geographical shock that the coffee was grown at an elevation equivalent to thirteen Empire State Buildings stacked. Learn how microclimates and the strictly hard bean (SHB) classification create a flavor profile of dark sugar, nougat, and cocoa. More than just specialty coffee, this cup tells a 125-year-old story of ethical support. We detail the powerful CoopeAgri cooperative, which sustains generational farmers with interest-free loans and even runs a medical clinic. Finally, we connect the tranquil, resilient mountain culture of Chirripó back to the Blue Ridge, proving that when you really listen, your farm to cup ritual is truly a global story.

• Check out the Bald Guy Brew Youtube Channel
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• Fresh Roasted Coffee delivered to your door: Bald Guy Brew Coffee Roasting Co.

5 Takeaways 

1. High Altitude = High Quality (SHB): Coffee grown at the extreme altitude of Chirripó matures slower, leading to a denser, sweeter strictly hard bean (SHB) that absorbs more nutrients.
2. Microclimates Cause Chaos (Good Chaos!): Even two farms a mile apart can produce completely different tasting coffee because hills, rivers, and wind create unique tiny weather systems, or microclimates.
3. Ethics in Your Cup: The CoopeAgri cooperative is a powerful model for sustainable coffee; they use coffee revenue to run a medical clinic and provide interest-free loans to help farmers survive between harvests.
4. Know Your Scale: The altitude of this region (3,820 meters above sea level) is so extreme it would take thirteen Empire State Buildings stacked end-to-end to reach the elevation where the beans are grown.
5. Coffee is a Cultural Story: In Costa Rica, coffee is not just an export, it's a way of life—a rhythm tied to the Pura Vida philosophy and the culture of the Boruca tribe.

3 Takeaways 

1. Can you think of any other product that is as much "liquid geography" as coffee?

2. What's a piece of unexpected "insider knowledge" (like the microclimates fact) that changed how you view coffee?

3. Where is your ideal "rocking chair moment" (peaceful coffee spot)?

Glossary

• La Taza Habla: A Spanish phrase meaning "The Cup Speaks." It is the name of the podcast and represents the idea that every cup of coffee carries a rich story of its origin, people, and process.
• masl (Meters Above Sea Level): The metric used to measure the high altitude where the coffee was grown. 
• SHB (Strictly Hard Bean): A classification for specialty coffee grown at very high altitudes. The high elevation causes the coffee cherries to mature slowly, resulting in a denser, sweeter, and harder bean.
• Microclimates: Small, distinct weather systems created by the chaotic topography, hills, valleys, and rivers of the mountain landscape⁴. These slight variations mean that two farms just a mile apart can produce coffee that tastes completely different.
• Mouthfeel: The physical sensation or weight of the coffee in your mouth, often described in terms of body or texture. The Chirripó coffee has a heavy mouthfeel, "almost like chocolate milk".
• Fincas: The Spanish term for farms
• Geographical & Cultural Terms
• Cerro Chirripó: The mountain in Costa Rica that rises 3,820 meters above sea level⁹. It is so tall that it would take thirteen Empire State Buildings stacked on top of each other to reach the altitude where the coffee was grown.
• Brunca Region: The specific coffee-growing region of Costa Rica where the Chirripó mountain is located, known for its distinct, high-altitude coffee
• CoopeAgri Cooperative: The cooperative that processes the coffee. Founded in 1962, it has over 6,000 active members and provides a robust infrastructure for quality and sustainability. They also run a medical clinic, a community store, and offer interest-free loans to farmers

   

EP 1: Costa Rica - The Country That Banned Bad Beans

Ever grabbed a bag of Costa Rican coffee at the store and assumed you knew what you were getting? In Part 1 of this two-part journey, we shatter that myth. We explore the incredible coffee history of Costa Rica, a nation that literally bet its future on a single plant and used coffee to build its entire infrastructure. Discover the story behind the radical 1989 Robusta ban—a national commitment to coffee quality that made mediocrity illegal—and what that bold move has in common with the American craft beer revolution and Sierra Nevada Pale Ale.

We'll map out the country's eight distinct coffee regions below along with a glossary - putting the legendary Tarrazú in context against its overlooked southern neighbor, Brunca. This is the essential first step in understanding the true coffee origin story hiding in your cup, setting the stage for our trip to the Chirripó highlands.

• Check out the Bald Guy Brew Youtube Channel
• Stay Connected: Get exclusive coffee stories & tips delivered to your inbox
• Fresh Roasted Coffee delivered to your door: Bald Guy Brew Coffee Roasting Co.

5 Takeaways

1. "Costa Rican Coffee" Isn't a Monolith: The country has eight distinct growing regions with unique microclimates and flavor profiles, making the single label on a bag often misleading.
2. Coffee Is Costa Rica's DNA: From the 1800s, coffee wasn't just an export; it was the economic engine that funded the nation's railroads, hospitals, and even the National Theater.
3. Quality Was a National Policy: Costa Rica is the only country in the world to make it illegal to grow low-quality Robusta coffee, a bold bet that prioritized flavor and reputation over mass production.
4. Famous Isn't Everything: While a region like Tarrazú sets a world-class standard for quality, it doesn't represent the full spectrum of flavors Costa Rica has to offer. Overlooked regions like Brunca have their own unique story to tell.
5. Read the Bag: The first step to understanding what's in your cup is to look for more information. The region, farm, and processing method tell a much deeper story than just the country of origin.

3 Questions:

1. Before this episode, what was your perception of Costa Rican coffee?
2. Does the Sierra Nevada craft beer analogy resonate with your own experiences with coffee, wine, or food?
3. Have you ever been surprised by a coffee from a well-known country that tasted completely different than you expected?

Glossary

• Arabica: The premium species of coffee bean. It accounts for about 60% of world production and is prized for its complex, aromatic, and less bitter flavor. It's the only species legally grown in Costa Rica.

• Robusta: The second most popular species of coffee bean. It contains more caffeine and is more resilient to disease, but it has a harsher, rubbery, and more bitter flavor. Its cultivation has been banned in Costa Rica since 1989.

• Coffee Origin: The specific geographic location where a coffee bean is grown, often used to describe the flavor profile and history associated with that area (e.g., "Costa Rica is an important coffee origin").

• Specialty Coffee: A term for the highest quality green coffee beans roasted to their greatest flavor potential by true artisans. This segment of the industry focuses on quality, ethical sourcing, and transparency.

Eight Regions: Costa Rica's Coffee Flavor Map

1. Tarrazú

• Primary Coffee Notes: Bright, clean, citrus acidity; full body; chocolate and stone fruit.

• Key Characteristic: The most famous and highest-altitude region, setting the global benchmark for classic Costa Rican coffee.

2. Brunca

• Primary Coffee Notes: Medium-low acidity; deep, often spicy body; cocoa and tropical fruit.

• Key Characteristic: The southernmost, rebellious region—the "underdog" that this episode focuses on alongside Tarrazú.

3. West Valley

• Primary Coffee Notes: Complex, diverse profiles; medium body; notes of honey, peach, and vanilla.

• Key Characteristic: Known for being progressive and winning the most Cup of Excellence awards.

4. Tres Ríos

• Primary Coffee Notes: Fine, mild acidity; full, balanced body; sweet aroma.

• Key Characteristic: Often called the "Bordeaux" of Costa Rican coffee for its mild, elegant profile.

5. Central Valley

• Primary Coffee Notes: Well-balanced, medium body; sweet, delicate flavor.

• Key Characteristic: The first region where coffee was commercially planted in the early 1800s.

6. Orosi

• Primary Coffee Notes: Less intense acidity; round body; herbal and earthy notes.

• Key Characteristic: The smallest region, nestled within a historic valley known for its lush, green landscape.

7. Turrialba-Aquiares

• Primary Coffee Notes: Mild, softer body; subtle notes of caramel and walnut.

• Key Characteristic: The lowest altitude region; coffees here are generally harvested earlier.

8. Guanacaste

• Primary Coffee Notes: Light body; delicate flavor; low acidity with a touch of pepper.

• Key Characteristic: The driest region, known for producing a pleasant, mild cup.