Gesha Beans

A clean example of naturally processed Gesha offering sweetness and pleasant violet aromatics.

Until the late 1990s, most Costa Rican farmers sold coffee cherries to large centralised mills called beneficios. These mills processed coffee from hundreds or thousands of producers. Farmers were typically paid based on cherry weight, with limited reward or incentive to grow exceptional coffee.

Following the collapse of the International Coffee Agreement in 1989 and the subsequent decline in coffee prices, many Costa Rican producers faced severe financial pressure. Farmers were forced to explore alternative strategies to make a living from coffee.

Under these circumstances, many farmers began to build micromills, allowing them to process, dry, sort and sometimes market their own coffee. This provided two main benefits: firstly, it allowed them to retain much more of the final product value. Secondly, it incentivised quality and allowed farmers to showcase their unique terroir.

This Gesha was processed at Don Senel Micromill, founded in 2014 by Senel Campos. Don Senel is a third-generation coffee farmer who works alongside his son, Allan. Each year they invest their profits to develop their mill and farms, continually seeking to improve quality of the coffee they produce.