Costa Rican coffee, its golden grain.

Costa Rica is a coffee producing country for about three centuries, and its coffee is classified as one of the best coffees in the world. 

Historically Felix Velarde is considered as one of the pioneers in initiating the planting of coffee from a plot of land. According to the story he distributed to the neighbors some plants to be plant; at the same time, encouraged the people to support the planting of coffee.

Costa Rica had a subsistence economy before the arrival of coffee, with the coffee production the Costa Rican mentality initiated a change. Once the independence of the country was consolidated in 1821, the government introduced policies that promoted the coffee industry, such as the granting of land and the delivery of plants for sowing to farmers interested in producing coffee.

Around 1840, the first direct export of coffee from Costa Rica to England took place. In turn, economic, social, and cultural development began around coffee, beginning the construction of the road between San José and Puntarenas, and the operation of railways to the Pacific and Atlantic. In addition, there were hospital services, education, the first state university in 1843, postal services, money issuance in 1836, among many other changes. Coffee was the main and only economic and export activity of Costa Rica at that time, allowing progress and generating an entire coffee elite Because of all that development and turning the economy around coffee was called the "golden grain."

The climate has been from the beginning one of the great allies in achieving high level coffee production, moderate rain for flowering, abundant rain for the growth and formation of the fruit, followed by a low in the rains that allows a dry season for collection. The season to collect the coffee seed goes between November and March, with small variations between some areas.

The coffee is grown in eight producing areas such as: Brunca Region, Turrialba, Tres Rios, Orosi, Tarrazú, Central and Occidental Valleys and Guanacaste, fertile soils of volcanic origin with little acidity. A method of production and manual collection is used. Caturra and catuai varieties of the Arabica species are cultivated, which is a grain of higher quality. A manual selection of the highest quality grains and drying in the sun are methods that guarantee a high-quality coffee.

Since the 1930s, the Costa Rican Coffee Institute (ICAFE), together with other agencies, universities, and research centers, has sought to maintain and improve the quality of the crop. There are plantations with high biological diversity, low applications of agrochemicals, conservation of resources, protection of the environment and as a result we have world-wide competition among the best in the world.

Costa Rica has a program focused on being carbon neutral and coffee is no exception. At present, efforts are being made to ensure that all coffee production is carbon neutral. Currently there is a cooperative of coffee producers in Santa Maria de Dota who have been the first to certify their production of carbon neutral coffee in the world.

Organic coffee is also present in Costa Rica with the small and medium coffee growers sector. Since the 1990s, they have opted for the development of special and gourmet coffees, taking strength in the market with a good acceptance the organic coffee. In addition to this, the sustainable coffee boom is based on the Earth Summit of Rio de Janeiro in 1992, where awareness was raised about the need to protect the environment.

We invite all the travelers of the world to savor a cup of coffee in Costa Rica, with the best flavors and aromas of the world accompanied with a range of unique diversity, good trip with good taste!