Hacienda La Pradera
TARRAZÚ, Costa Rica
Hacienda La Pradera is a 181 hectare coffee farm in the heart of the Tarrazú region at 1,550 meters above sea level. The bulk of our harvest is from the caturra variety which is well suited to the soil and climate of the area.
Since 2012 we have also been planting and nurturing multiple other coffee varieties at La Pradera. We are studying the health and yields of each variety to determine the best commercialization of the area. We harvest, depulp, and process each variety separately, and cup each lot individually to determine ultimate quality and inform our direction for the future. We also experiment with processing by variety, to taste the impact of each different method and level of mucilage removal and observe which processes perform better for each variety.
Beneficio Río Tarrazú
Beneficio Río Tarrazú is widely regarded as one of the finest coffee mills in the world. This mill combines traditional and modern technologies with one aim — to produce the finest coffees in the world. The separation process is clean because it uses spring water. The mill itself is a world standard for sustainable coffee processing — using hydroelectric power generated on-site and a first-of-its-kind biomass furnace which recycles the by-product of the coffee fruit as a fuel for drying the coffee. This efficiency virtually eliminates the need for wood.
Beneficio Río Tarrazú plays an important role in the community, working with small producers to educate them on fruit standards — only ripe coffee cherries are accepted. Innovative practices include an on-site facility for preventative medical and dental care.
In 1997, Beneficio del Río Tarrazú was awarded the Bandera Blanca by the government of Costa Rica, in recognition for our contribution to ecologically sustainable coffee processing. In addition, the mill was honored by the President of Costa Rica for helping Costa Rican coffee farmers.