What does red honey processing do to Sarchimor coffee beans?
The red honey process leaves roughly 75 percent of the mucilage on the bean during drying, which raises sweetness and pushes caramel notes forward. This Costa Rican Sarchimor comes from Finca Archemia in the Western Valley region of Grecia, grown at about 1,550 meters and processed at the Cerro San Luis micro-mill near the foothills of Poas Volcano.
Sarchimor is one of the two widely planted disease-resistant varieties, with considerable production in Costa Rica and Brazil, and its cup profile traces back to Villa Sarchi. For pour-over, a medium-fine grind and water near 90 to 92 degrees Celsius let the caramel sweetness come through without flattening the acidity. Roasters who study sergio costa coffee sources tend to watch the mill and lot records closely.
Today, Front Street Coffee would like to share with you a red honey-processed Sarchimor coffee bean from Costa Rica's Western Valley. This bean is produced by Finca Archemia and processed at the Cerro San Luis micro-mill, at an altitude of about 1,550 meters. As one of the two mothers of disease-resistant coffee varieties worldwide, Sarchimor has considerable production in both Costa Rica and Brazil, with its flavor inherited from Villa Sarchi. Red honey processing retains about 75% of the mucilage, giving the coffee higher sweetness and caramel notes. This article will break down this bean's flavor performance and brewing approach in full from the perspectives of the mill's background, the principles of honey processing, the traceability of the green bean variety, roast profile design, and pour-over parameter recommendations, for the reference of fellow coffee enthusiasts.
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【Costa Rica Montebello】
Country: Costa Rica
Region: Grecia, Western Valley
Altitude: 1,550 meters
Farm: Finca Archemia
Processing mill: Cerro San Luis
Processing method: Red honey
Variety: Sarchimor
01| Introduction to the Processing Mill
The Cerro San Luis micro-mill is located in Costa Rica's Western Valley, specifically at the foothills of Poás Volcano. About eight years ago, the mill began cooperating with a fourth-generation coffee-producing family, at a time when the coffee market was sluggish and green bean prices were far from ideal. They poured tremendous effort and passion into growing and producing coffee, hoping to escape this predicament as soon as possible. Producer Alejandro, who took part in the collaboration, said that over these eight years he has continuously learned professional knowledge about coffee cultivation, the coffee quality has improved year by year, and the goal is to bring customers an increasingly better drinking experience.
02| Processing Method
The honey process takes a middle path between natural and washed. It retains the cleanliness brought by the washed method, while, because the beans are sun-dried together with the mucilage, the coffee's sweetness and caramel flavors are greatly enhanced—the mucilage itself has a very high sugar content. This processing method first emerged in Costa Rica in Central America, originating from a lack of water resources in some local high-altitude areas; after the coffee cherries are pulped by a depulper, they are sun-dried directly together with the mucilage.
The mucilage layer is the part of the coffee cherry with the most concentrated sugars, and it is also the key link in the processing and fermentation process; it could be said to determine about eighty percent of the nutritional supply for the entire process. Yellow honey retains 60% of the mucilage, red honey retains about 75%, and black honey removes almost none of the mucilage.
Red honey retains about 75% of the mucilage. Compared with yellow honey, its drying cycle is longer, and the time of direct sunlight exposure is reduced, with shade canopies even being used; the whole process lasts about twelve days.
03| Green Bean Analysis
Sarchimor was first discovered by a breeding research institution in Portugal, and after selection and research, it was distributed to Brazil and various coffee-growing countries in Central and South America.
Sarchimor and Catimor are currently the world's two most important mothers of disease-resistant varieties. Their disease-resistance genes come from Timor, while their flavor is inherited from another variety—Sarchimor's flavor comes from Villa Sarchi, and Catimor's flavor comes from Caturra. Although Sarchimor's planted area is not as widespread as Catimor's, it has considerable production in both Costa Rica and Brazil. The disease-resistant varieties derived from Sarchimor are quite abundant, including Cuscatleco, IAPAR 59, Limani, Marsellesa, Parainema, and others.
04| Roast Analysis
This coffee bean is medium in size, medium in density, and medium in bean quality, and beans from the new crop have a relatively high moisture content. During roasting, it absorbs heat fairly quickly, and the Maillard reaction is also relatively fast, with the yellowing point appearing at about five minutes. The first roast batch used a higher charge temperature, with a charge temperature of 200°C and correspondingly increased gas; during roasting, the gas was gradually lowered as conditions required, reducing the gas in three stages—at the yellowing point, upon completion of dehydration, and just before first crack—to prevent scorching the bean surface. With this approach, the dehydration time is relatively shortened, the temperature rises by about 6 to 8°C every thirty seconds, and first crack is entered earlier, thereby preserving a clean and bright acidity.
Roaster: Yangjia 600g semi-direct fire
The drum temperature is raised to 200°C for charging, the air damper is opened to 3, and after 30 seconds the gas is adjusted to 160°C, with the air damper unchanged; the turning point is at 1'35", and the gas is maintained. At 5'06", the bean surface turns yellow, the grassy smell completely dissipates, and the dehydration stage begins; the gas is lowered to 130°C, and the air damper is adjusted to 4;
At 7'50", dehydration is complete, and the gas is lowered to 80. At 8'10", wrinkles and dark streaks appear on the bean surface, and the toasted-bread smell clearly turns into coffee aroma, which can be regarded as the prelude to first crack. At this point, one must carefully distinguish the sound of the first crack's onset; at 8'26", first crack begins, the gas is turned down to 50, and the air damper is fully opened to 5 (adjusting the gas requires extra caution, and it must not be so low that there is no crackling sound). Develop for 1'30" after first crack , and drop at 193.2°C.
This bean has a prominent yet gentle sweet-and-sour quality: the front section presents lemon acidity and apple flavors, the middle section carries grapefruit peel notes, and the back section offers caramel sweetness with a sunflower-seed finish.
05| Brewing Analysis
Recommended method: Pour-over
Grind size: Little Fuji 3.5 (medium-fine grind)
Dripper: V60
Water temperature: 90°C
Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15
Duration: about 2'05"
Brewing technique:
Bloom with 30 grams of water for 30 seconds, pour to 120 grams in stages, then slowly pour to 225 grams to finish
That is, 30—120—225
Sweetness: ☆☆ ☆
Acidity: ☆☆
Bitterness: ☆
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
