King's Gambit Coffee

Costa Rica: Finca La Julia Black Honey | Limited Reserve

Limited Reserve Microlot

A Black Honey processed coffee with the kind of depth that keeps changing as it cools. Guava brings a bright, tropical edge before giving way to rich fudge, dark black cherry, and the warm, spiced character of mulled wine.

Sweet, layered, and a little unexpected, this is a coffee that balances fruit-forward complexity with a deeper, almost confectionary richness. Roasted light-medium to let both sides of the cup show up.

Coffee Details:

Roast Level: Light-Medium
Tasting Notes: Fudge, Guava, Black Cherry, Mulled Wine, Pineapple
Origin: Sabanilla de Alajuela, Central Valley, Costa Rica
Elevation: 1400-1600 MASL
Varietals: San Isidro
Process: Black Honey

Farm & Producer Notes:

Oscar and Francisca Chacón are third-generation coffee producers behind Las Lajas Micromill in Sabanilla de Alajuela, Costa Rica. Their family has been in coffee for generations, and Las Lajas became known for experimenting early with Honey and Natural processing at a time when washed coffees still dominated Costa Rica. Finca La Julia is one of their farms, sitting between roughly 1,400–1,600 meters above sea level.

This lot uses a Black Honey process, which means much of the sticky fruit layer (called mucilage) is left on the seed after the cherry is depulped and remains there while the coffee dries. Black Honey typically leaves more of that fruit intact and dries more slowly than lighter Honey styles, which can create deeper sweetness, heavier fruit character, and more body in the cup. It takes more attention during drying, but that extra work is part of what gives these coffees their layered, distinctive profile.

Signature Selection: The Story Behind Each Bean

This was another one of those “ask forgiveness later” purchases from our green buyer...me. We’ve had some phenomenal Black Honey coffees over the years, which is exactly why I bring them in sparingly. The bar was set pretty high by the last Costa Rican Black Honey we carried, and I wasn’t interested in bringing in another just for the sake of having one.

Then this one showed up. It caught my attention enough that I bought the last few pounds available from the micromill and figured I’d explain myself later. We’ve spent more than a month roasting, cupping, tweaking, and going back again before we were ready to release it. One final cupping was supposed to be the finish line, then I got sick and everything stopped. So this coffee took a little longer to get here to all of your than planned. But with guava, fudge, black cherry and mulled wine showing up in our final cup, I think it was beyond worth the wait.

$16.50

Sale Sold out