Costa Rica Sol Naciente White Honey

Blind Assessment: Subtly complex, sweetly nut-toned. Almond, caramel, gardenia, tangerine zest, roasted cacao nib in aroma and cup. Lively sweet-tart acidity; satiny mouthfeel. The resonant finish consolidates around caramel and almond tones.

Notes: Produced by Aguero Cedral entirely from trees of the Catuai variety of Arabica. Processed by the white honey method. With all honey processing methods, some sweet pulp or fruit flesh (“honey”) is allowed to adhere to the beans during drying. In the white honey variation, an extremely thin layer of pulp is allowed to dry on the beans, less than with yellow honey, and much less than is the case with red or black honey. This coffee tied for the third-highest rating in a cupping of Costa Rica coffees for Coffee Review‘s October 2016 tasting report. Reunion Island Coffee is a quality-oriented roasting company founded by Canadian specialty coffee veteran Peter Pesce. Visit www.reunionislandcoffee.com or call 800-565-5950 for more information.

The Bottom Line : An elegant, balanced cup with particularly compelling acidity: bright, lively, juicy. We would have rated this vivacious coffee one point higher had the cups not been slightly uneven.