Black Apron Exclusive: Organic Lomas Al Rio

I just picked up a half-pound of Starbucks’ latest Black Apron Exclusive, Organic Lomas Al Rio (Central Valley, Costa Rica), and after pressing the first cup I must say it is quite good.

I’m going to use this as an opportunity to practice cupping, and fine-tune my descriptions of fragrance, aroma and flavor. As with anything on this site, I will share the details of each step so you can learn along with me or, more importantly, so those that know better can correct me if I go awry. However, I can tell you now that this coffee has wonderful, sweet floral notes and a very silky mouth-feel.

Concerning the estate itself, Lomas Al Rio was the first in Costa Rica to receive its SMBC-certification (in addition to its organic certification).

The U.S. has two separate shade certification systems intended to ensure that Latin American shade-grown coffee is produced under a set of scientific guidelines. One is Eco-OK program development by the Rainforest Alliance and a network of Latin America environmental organizations, and the other is the Smithsonian Migratory Bird Center (SMBC) criteria. Both systems’ standards require a minimum of 40 percent shade coverage, as well as specified tree heights and numbers of non-deciduous native tree species.

Francisco Mena, a general manager of the Lomas Al Rio coffee farm, recently went through this new certification process, making Lomas Al Rio the first SMBC-certified farm in Costa Rica. He explains that an organic inspector visiting his farm had completed one of the SMBC workshops, so during his inspection for organic, he recommended that he also inspect for SMBC standards. Mena approved his idea, and the total cost for certification was around $320.

I must admit that I didn’t know much about “shade grown” coffee until I read this article (by April Pojman from Fresh Cup Magazine). According to the back of the Black Apron box:

The Lomas al Rio coffee mill is a beacon encouraging small farms to grow organic coffee in ways that help protect the Central Valley’s lush biodiversity and use it to good advantage. In fact, birds and insects play integral roles in the coffee-growing process here.

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