Costa Rica — Roberto Mata Naranjo Las Nubes Farm Caturra (Lactic Fermentation Natural)

Tastes Like — 🍍 Tropical Fruit Bowl • 🍷 Blackberry Liqueur • 🍫 Dark Chocolate

DETAILS

• Producer: Roberto Mata Naranjo
• Farm: Las Nubes
• Region: Valle de Dota, Tarrazú, Costa Rica
• Varietal: Caturra
• Process: Lactic Fermentation Natural
• Altitude: 1,800 masl
• Roast Profile: Filter
• Importer: Plot

INTRO
Full and complex, tasting like a tropical fruit bowl, blackberry liqueur, and dark chocolate. This coffee is very special to Swerl, produced by the legendary Roberto Mata and sourced through Plot. They first tasted Roberto's coffee in 2021, before they had roasting operations, when they were collaborating with some of the best roasters out there. In the cup: tropical fruit bowl, blackberry liqueur, and dark chocolate.

THE PRODUCER
Roberto has 50 years of experience in coffee cultivation and has focused extensively on processing, continually refining his fermentation recipes. Driven by curiosity, he has long been regarded as a pioneer in sustainable coffee farming. Four years ago, he and his wife Doris and their five children founded a small family business. Directly behind their home is their own washing station, equipped with a water-efficient Ecopulper. All lots dry on raised beds protected from the midday sun with shade nets, and his focus is on producing honey and natural lots.

THE PROCESS
All cherries are hand-picked at peak ripeness on Las Nubes Farm and meticulously sorted to remove underripe or damaged fruit. To initiate fermentation, Roberto adds a measured amount of juice from previously pre-fermented cherries to the freshly harvested whole cherries, inoculating the batch with an active community of lactic acid bacteria and yeasts. The cherries and juice are sealed in stainless steel tanks to create an oxygen-free environment. Over 72 hours, the lactic acid bacteria convert natural sugars into lactic acid, lowering the pH and producing creamy, fruit-forward notes. Once the ideal pH is reached, the cherries are removed and dried in thin layers on raised African beds, turned regularly, until moisture reaches 10–12%.

The juice-inoculated 72-hour lactic fermentation in sealed tanks is the defining step. It's what builds the creamy, fruit-forward sweetness and signature clean lactic finish that mark Roberto Mata's style.

THE CUP
Intensely sweet and vibrant: tropical fruit character leads, with blackberry liqueur depth and dark chocolate, a silky mouthfeel, and a clean lactic finish.

Flavour Notes
🍍 Tropical Fruit Bowl 🍷 Blackberry Liqueur 🍫 Dark Chocolate