Costa Rica — Alejo Castro SL28

Tastes Like — 🍷 Mulled Red Wine • 🫐 Date • 🌸 Floral

DETAILS

• Producer: Alejo Castro
• Farm: Volcán Azul
• Region: West Valley, Costa Rica
• Varietal: SL28
• Process: Anaerobic Natural
• Altitude: 1500 masl
• Size: 227g

INTRO — Five Generations of Costa Rican Coffee Excellence

Alejo Castro represents the fifth generation of a family that helped define Costa Rican specialty coffee. His ancestors—Alejo C. Jiménez and Wilhelm Kahle—planted some of the first specialty coffee plantations in the early 1900s with the audacious aim of producing the best coffee in the world. Over 200 years of family tradition in trading specialty coffee has culminated in Volcán Azul, a farm exclusively focused on improving quality whilst making a positive environmental impact.

This SL28 lot showcases both the farm's exceptional terroir and Alejo's willingness to push boundaries. SL28 is a Kenyan variety rarely grown in Costa Rica, and pairing it with anaerobic natural processing creates something genuinely distinctive—mulled red wine complexity, date sweetness, and delicate florals that demonstrate what happens when tradition meets innovation.

THE PRODUCER — Alejo Castro & Volcán Azul's Legacy

Alejo Castro didn't simply inherit a coffee farm—he inherited a legacy. His ancestors were coffee pioneers who established some of Costa Rica's first specialty plantations in the early 1900s. Alejo C. Jiménez and Wilhelm Kahle didn't just want to grow coffee; they wanted to produce the best coffee in the world. That ambition has been passed down through five generations, with each adding their own innovations whilst respecting the foundation laid before them.

Volcán Azul's location in the West Valley benefits from highly fertile volcanic soil—the result of ancient volcanic activity that enriched the earth with minerals essential for coffee cultivation. This natural advantage, combined with impeccable processing methods refined over decades, has produced a history of award-winning Costa Rican coffees.

Alejo's mission continues his ancestors' quality focus whilst adding a contemporary emphasis on environmental sustainability. He understands that producing the best coffee in the world is meaningless if it comes at the expense of the land that makes it possible. This balance between quality obsession and environmental stewardship defines the modern Volcán Azul approach.

The choice to cultivate SL28 demonstrates Alejo's innovative spirit. This Kenyan variety is celebrated for its complex fruit character and wine-like qualities but is notoriously challenging to grow—susceptible to disease, lower yielding than commercial varieties. Growing it successfully at 1,500 metres in Costa Rica's West Valley represents both expertise and calculated risk-taking.

THE PROCESS — Anaerobic Natural Processing

Anaerobic natural processing combines the fruit-forward character of traditional natural processing with the controlled fermentation environment of anaerobic techniques. This creates complexity and intensity whilst maintaining the cleanliness expected from a farm with Volcán Azul's standards:

• 🍒 Peak Ripeness Harvesting — Only fully ripe SL28 cherries selected
• 🔬 Anaerobic Fermentation — Whole cherries ferment in sealed, oxygen-free containers
• ⏱️ Controlled Fermentation Period — Careful monitoring ensures optimal flavour development without over-fermentation
• ☀️ Natural Drying — Cherries dry slowly with the seed inside the intact fruit
• 🔄 Regular Turning — Constant attention prevents defects and ensures even drying

The anaerobic environment during fermentation is crucial. By excluding oxygen, the fermentation proceeds differently than in traditional natural processing—developing different acids, alcohols, and esters that contribute to the wine-like character in the final cup. The sealed containers also allow precise control over temperature and time, preventing the wild, unpredictable fermentation that can produce defects.

After fermentation, the cherries are dried slowly with the seed still inside the fruit. This allows the developed flavours to integrate with the coffee whilst the fruit sugars continue to influence the final profile. The mill's impeccable processing methods—refined over generations—ensure that despite the experimental nature of anaerobic processing, the result remains clean and expressive.

THE CUP — Wine-Like Complexity with Juicy Fruit Character

This SL28 lot delivers exactly what you'd hope for from the variety—complex fruit flavours, wine-like characteristics, and high sweetness—amplified by the anaerobic natural processing. The cup is balanced despite its intensity, with juicy fruit flavours that remain clean and articulate rather than heavy or muddled. This is experimental processing executed with the precision that comes from five generations of coffee expertise.

Flavour Notes

• 🍷 Mulled Red Wine — complex, spiced wine character with warmth and depth
• 🫐 Date — concentrated dried fruit sweetness adding richness
• 🌸 Floral — delicate floral notes providing lift and elegance

The mulled red wine character dominates—there's a spiced, warming quality reminiscent of wine that's been gently heated with cinnamon and clove. This wine-like quality is characteristic of well-processed SL28, amplified here by the anaerobic fermentation. Date sweetness provides structure and concentration, whilst delicate florals prevent the cup from becoming one-dimensional.

The balance is particularly impressive. Despite the intensity of flavour developed through anaerobic processing, the cup never feels heavy or overwhelming. There's a juiciness to the mouthfeel—fruit sugars from the natural process creating body without muddiness, acidity keeping everything lively and bright.

This is Costa Rican coffee at its finest—200 years of family tradition meeting contemporary innovation, exceptional terroir combined with impeccable processing, SL28's genetic potential fully realised through careful cultivation and creative technique. Volcán Azul continues the mission Alejo's ancestors established over a century ago: producing the best coffee in the world.