From source to sip
The story behind your next cup.
South of San Jose, the mountains of Tarrazu climb into cool, mist-fed ridgelines that grow some of Costa Rica's most coveted coffee. On a small micro mill named Montano, a careful experiment in fermentation turns ripe cherry into something layered and wild.
Tarrazu sits in the rugged Los Santos zone, where volcanic soil, steep slopes, and a long, dry harvest season combine to concentrate sweetness in the cherry. It is widely considered Costa Rica's most prestigious growing name, and nearly all of its coffee carries the Strictly Hard Bean grade, the country's highest, earned through slow maturation at high elevation .
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The Coffee Story
The SourceThe Highlands of Tarrazu
Tarrazu sits in the rugged Los Santos zone, where volcanic soil, steep slopes, and a long, dry harvest season combine to concentrate sweetness in the cherry. It is widely considered Costa Rica's most prestigious growing name, and nearly all of its coffee carries the Strictly Hard Bean grade, the country's highest, earned through slow maturation at high elevation .
This lot comes from the Montano Micro Mill, a small family operation that processes its own cherry rather than sending it to a large central mill. That control, from picking through drying, lets a producer chase clarity and consistency in a way large-scale processing rarely allows. Montano has built a reputation in Tarrazu as a place willing to experiment, and a portion of each sale supports jaguar conservation in Costa Rica.
The CraftThe Jaguar Anaerobic Method
Hand-picked ripe cherries are sealed in oxygen-deprived tanks, where fermentation runs without air. In that closed environment the fruit develops lactic and malic acids that ordinary processing never produces, building the wine-like depth and tropical intensity this coffee is known for. The mucilage stays on the bean as it dries, so the sweetness of the fruit presses directly into the cup. For more on how method shapes flavor, see our guide to natural and washed processing .
We roast this lot to City+, a level chosen to hold its experimental character in check while letting the sugars caramelize. Push it darker and the delicate fruit acids flatten into roast. Kept here, the cup stays bright, layered, and unmistakably anaerobic, with the warm spice of Costa Rican coffee anchoring the wilder notes.
The CupLayered and Lingering
The first sip opens with ripe tropical fruit and a wine-like sweetness, the signature of a long anaerobic ferment. Underneath sits a warm thread of cinnamon and a deeper note of dark cherry, all carried by a full, syrupy body. As the cup cools the fruit softens and the spice steps forward, finishing long and smooth with a lingering warmth.
