by Rod Hughes
Acosta, a scenic mountainous region south of the capital populated by small farmers, provides much of the produce in the metropolitan farmers’ markets. Although its citrus fruits, bananas and plantains are of high quality, it is not particularly famous even in Costa Rica and certainly not for gourmet coffee, pretty much the domain of the Tarrazú coffee from the Los Santos region of the country. That low profile may change as a result of last week’s international judging of 80 groups of Costa Rican coffee producers.
This Cinderella region won the “Cup of Excellence” award in a competition organized by the international institute bearing that name and the Association of Fine Coffee of Costa Rica, enchanting tasting experts from the United States, Norway, Germany, The Netherlands, Lithuania, Britain, Japan, Canada, Taiwan and Costa Rica. The samples submitted by Acosta’s Association of Agricultural Producers of Acosta and Aserrí garnered 92.42 points out of a hundred, edging out Cafetelera Los Nacientes of San Ramon with 91.37. Competition was tough and the lowest of the 80 still earned 84.05. But only four of the 25 finalists got over 90.
Competition samples were submitted by the association that was formed in 1998 to save the small farmers of the area whose crops had been devastated by Hurricane Mitch in October of that year. Costa Rica did not receive the brunt of the storm but, as happens when a tropical disturbance passes close to the Caribbean coast, moist Pacific air was sucked into the country by low pressure in the Atlantic, dumping torrential rains. What the association did was to revive the area and encourage the ruined farmers to diversify, planting citrus trees, timber and other crops in association with coffee. Along with that, a small coffee micro-processing plant.
The coffee farmers are excited now, not only by their win but by their first exports ever. Two weeks ago, containers of coffee beans were shipped to Germany and to Italy.