Costa Rica Perla Negra Peaberry

The Rare Pearl: Costa Rica Las Lajas Perla Negra Peaberry

The Experience: Some coffees are shaped by tradition. Others are born from necessity. Our Las Lajas Perla Negra Peaberry brings both together in an exceptionally rare coffee from the foothills of Costa Rica’s Poás Volcano, delivering an explosive rush of strawberry and blueberry, layered with ripe peach, wine-like complexity, and a remarkably sweet finish.

The Story: Doña Francisca and her husband, Oscar Chacón, are third-generation coffee producers whose family history at Las Lajas dates back to 1948. After inheriting the farms, they began processing their own coffee at the Las Lajas micro-mill in 2000, becoming especially known for their yellow, red, and black honey-processed coffees.

Everything changed in 2008. After the Cinchona earthquake left the region without drinking water or electricity, Oscar and Francisca needed a way to process their harvest without relying on traditional washed or honey methods. Their solution was to dry the coffee naturally in its fruit, creating what would become their famous Perla Negra process and helping introduce Las Lajas to an entirely new specialty coffee market.

The Perla Negra Process: Only the ripest coffee cherries are selected for this natural process. After harvesting, the cherries are washed and moved to patios, where they are carefully turned throughout the morning before being heaped and covered during the afternoon and evening. This deliberate drying process continues for approximately 22 to 27 days, allowing the coffee to develop remarkable sweetness, concentrated fruit character, and the vivid berry expression that defines this lot.

The Peaberry Difference: In less than 10% of a typical coffee harvest, a natural variation occurs inside the coffee cherry. Instead of developing two flat-sided beans, the cherry produces a single small, rounded bean known as a peaberry.

Because the cherry develops only one seed, the peaberry receives the nutrients that would normally be shared between two beans. The result is an unusually concentrated expression of flavor with exceptional sweetness and intensity. Paired with the Perla Negra natural process, it produces a coffee bursting with ripe fruit while remaining remarkably balanced and well rounded.

The Las Lajas Difference: Oscar and Francisca approach coffee production with extraordinary attention to detail. During harvest, the Brix level of the cherries is measured to determine their sugar content and identify the ideal moment for picking, helping produce the sweetest and most fruit-forward coffee possible.

Their processing methods also dramatically reduce water usage. Because Las Lajas specializes in natural and honey processing rather than traditional washed coffees, the mill is able to minimize the amount of water required during production while continuing to pursue exceptional specialty-grade quality.

The Profile:

• Primary Notes: Strawberry, Blueberry, Wine, Peach

• Body: A light, fluttery body that allows its vivid fruit character to remain bright and expressive.

• Finish: Exceptionally sweet and beautifully balanced, with ripe berry and peach character carrying through the final sip.

• Acidity: Medium-low acidity keeps the cup smooth and approachable while allowing the fruit sweetness to remain front and center.

• Mouthfeel: Explosive and fruit-forward, with powerful berry flavors that seem to burst across the palate despite the coffee’s lighter body.

• Origin: The Rare Pearl (Costa Rica)

The Versatility: Perla Negra Peaberry rewards brewing methods that allow its extraordinary fruit intensity and sweetness to shine. Pour-over and Chemex highlight the strawberry, blueberry, peach, and wine-like complexity with greater clarity, while a traditional drip brewer brings out its balance and exceptionally sweet finish. However you prepare it, this is a rare expression of Costa Rican coffee—vibrant, intensely fruity, and remarkably well rounded.

LIMITED RELEASE | WHOLE BEAN ONLY