Costa Rica Las Lajas "Alma Negra" Black Soul

Natural coffees can be wonderful, if only they were done right.

The Alma Negra from Las Lajas Micromill is an example of a well managed natural processed coffee, even though it is slow dried! This is particularly hard because slow drying a coffee cherry in whole (including flesh and skins) risks not only over-fermentation but also mold and rots at worst. That also shows how it was meticulously cared for by the producers!

Proudly run by Francisca and Oscar Chacon in the Sabanilla de Alajuela region of Costa Rica, Las Lajas is a certified organic farm who is also one of the first micro-mill in Central America to produce high-quality naturals and honeys - started with water cuts following an earthquake incident back in 2008, which forced the Chacon family to be creative about coffee processing.

Seeing that their care and efforts were appreciated by worldwide specialty coffee community, Las Lajas upgraded their micromill in 2020 with even better quality control facilities such as a corkscrew conveyor belt that transports depulped coffee to a custom trailer, which transports it to their drying facility. 

At The Crackpots, we always try to help beginners and advanced drinkers alike to understand more about coffees. One of our efforts is to explain the various cryptic names of coffees which could be confusing.

Here’s a breakdown of this coffee:

Costa Rica

A rugged Central American country teeming with rainforest and wildlife.

Las Lajas

A farm cum micro-mill run by the Chacon family - popular for their prestigious natural process coffes: Perla Negra (Black Pearl), Diamante and Alma Negra (Black Soul).

"Alma Negra"

A natural processing method nailed by Las Lajas where the cherries are often turned around during the day and amassed during the night, with the aim of obtaining a particularly intense, sweet, and fruity aromatic profile.

Black Soul

English Translation of Alma Negra.