How does coffee processing shape Sarchimor beans?

Sarchimor is a disease-resistant variety developed by a Portuguese breeding institution, with resistance inherited from Timor and flavor from Villa Sarchi. It is grown in Costa Rica and Brazil. Costa Rica's honey processing, which sits between natural and washed methods, keeps the cup clean while raising sweetness and caramel notes. Front Street Coffee sells it at 95 yuan per 227g, about 6 yuan per cup.

In honey processing, cherries are dried with mucilage still attached after pulping, and that layer holds most of the sugar. Yellow honey keeps about 60 percent of the mucilage, red honey about 75 percent, and black honey removes almost none. Red honey dries longer, around 12 days, with reduced direct sun. This coffee process determines much of the final sweetness.

Costa Rican coffee is famous for its honey processing method, a technique that falls between natural and washed processing. While preserving a clean cup profile, it significantly enhances sweetness and caramel notes. Sarchimor is a disease-resistant variety originating from a Portuguese breeding institution, with disease resistance inherited from Timor and flavor derived from Villa Sarchi. It has considerable production in both Costa Rica and Brazil. Front Street Coffee focuses on this bean in this issue, breaking down everything from green bean characteristics and roasting curves to cupping performance, and provides specific pour-over recipes along with sweetness, acidity, and bitterness ratings. Also included is a brand recommendation at 95 yuan for 227 grams, costing about 6 yuan per cup, offering outstanding value and suitability for daily drinking.

Front Street Coffee · Introduction to Costa Rican Coffee Variety Sarchimor and Coffee Bean Prices

Costa Rican Coffee Beans

Honey processing is a method that falls between natural and washed processing. It allows coffee to retain the cleanliness of washed processing, and because the beans are dried in the sun together with the mucilage, it greatly increases the sweetness and caramel flavor of the coffee (the mucilage has extremely high sugar content). Honey processing first appeared in Costa Rica in Central America. Initially, it was mainly because some high-altitude areas in Central America lacked water resources, so after using a pulping machine, coffee cherries were sun-dried together with the mucilage.

The mucilage layer is the part of the coffee cherry with the highest sugar content and is also an important component of fermentation during coffee processing. It can be said that this part determines 80% of the nutrient supply during processing. Yellow honey retains 60% of the mucilage, red honey retains 75%, and black honey removes almost no mucilage.

Red honey retains about 75% of the mucilage. Compared to yellow honey, the drying time is longer, and direct sunlight exposure is reduced, sometimes even using shade canopies, lasting about 12 days.

Costa Rican Coffee Beans

Green Bean Analysis

Sarchimor was initially discovered by a Portuguese breeding research institution. After research and breeding, it was distributed to coffee-growing countries in Brazil, Central America, and South America.

Sarchimor and Catimor are currently the two most important mother varieties of disease-resistant beans in the world. Their disease resistance comes from Timor, while their flavor comes from another variety. For example, in Sarchimor, the flavor comes from Villa Sarchi, while in Catimor, the flavor comes from Caturra. Although Sarchimor is not planted as widely as Catimor, it has considerable production in both Costa Rica and Brazil. The disease-resistant varieties derived from Sarchimor are numerous, including Cuscatleco, IAPAR 59, Limani, Marsellesa, Parainema, and others.

Front Street Coffee

Costa Rican Coffee Beans

Roasting Analysis

This Front Street Costa Rican coffee bean is medium in size, medium in density, and medium in bean quality. New crop beans themselves have a relatively high moisture content. During roasting, they absorb heat relatively quickly, and the Maillard reaction also proceeds relatively quickly. The yellowing point is at around 5 minutes. In the first batch of roasting, the drop temperature was relatively high, with a charge temperature of 200°C and the heat also increased relatively. During roasting, the heat was gradually reduced as needed. When the beans reached the yellowing point, completed dehydration, and showed signs before first crack, the heat was reduced respectively to avoid scorching the bean surface. Under this approach, the dehydration time of the coffee was relatively shortened, with a temperature rise rate of 6-8°C every 30 seconds, and first crack was entered earlier to preserve a clean and bright acidity.

Roaster Yangjia 600g semi-direct fire

Charged when the drum temperature reached 200°C, airflow set to 3, after 30s adjusted heat to 160°C, airflow unchanged, turning point at 1'35". Maintained heat. At 5'06", the bean surface turned yellow, the grassy smell completely disappeared, and the dehydration stage began. Heat reduced to 130°C, airflow adjusted to 4;

Dehydration was not completed until 7'50". Heat reduced to 80. At 8'10", ugly wrinkles and dark patches appeared on the bean surface, and the toast smell clearly turned into coffee aroma, which can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this time, it is necessary to listen clearly for the sound of first crack. At 8'26", first crack began. Heat reduced to 50, airflow fully opened to 5 (adjusting heat must be done very carefully, not so low that there is no crack sound). After first crack, developed for 1'30", dropped at 193.2°C.

This Front Street Costa Rican bean has an obvious yet soft sweet-and-sour profile. The front end has lemon acidity and apple flavors, the middle has grapefruit peel flavors, and the back end has caramel sweetness and a sunflower seed finish.

Front Street Coffee recommended brewing method: pour-over

Dripper: Hario V60

Water temperature: 90°C

Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15

Grind size: BG 5R (58% passing rate on Chinese standard No. 20 sieve)

Brewing method: Bloom with 32g water for 32 seconds, pour to 126g in stages, and when the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 228g and stop. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, remove the dripper. (Timing starts at the beginning of blooming.) Total extraction time is about 1 minute 50 seconds.

Sweetness: ☆☆

Acidity: ☆☆

Bitterness: ☆

Front Street Costa Rican Coffee Beans

Brand Recommendation

Front Street Coffee's own-roasted Front Street Costa Rican coffee beans offer full assurance in both brand and quality. More importantly, the value for money is extremely high: a 227-gram bag costs only 95 yuan. Calculating at 15 grams of grounds per cup, one bag can make 15 cups of coffee, costing only about 6 yuan per cup. Compared with the dozens of yuan per cup charged by coffee shops, this can truly be called a conscientious recommendation.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.