our meticulous coffee process

Café Della Sera is a 

specialty and single-origin Arabica coffee grown under the shade of native trees in the border mountains between Panama and Costa Rica at an altitude of 1050m above sea level.  This sustainable farming method allows:

• Improve grain quality: Shade prevents coffee beans from ripening too quickly; thus allowing slower and more uniform bean development, resulting in more complex flavors and bright acidity.
• Protect the soil: Shade helps maintain soil moisture and reduces erosion, which in turn benefits the coffee.
• Promotes biodiversity: Shaded coffee plantations are richer ecosystems, home to various species of birds, insects and plants.

Café Della Sera is the result of a meticulous process that begins with the hand harvesting of its precious fruits. This traditional practice, which requires great skill and dedication, is essential to guarantee the exceptional quality of our coffee.

Why harvest by hand?

Harvesting by hand allows each coffee cherry to be carefully selected at its optimal point of ripeness. By doing so, it is ensured that only the tastiest and most aromatic fruits reach the production process. This careful selection is key to obtaining a coffee with a complex and balanced flavor profile, characteristic of Della Sera coffee.

Benefits of hand harvesting:

• Higher quality: By selecting only the ripe fruits, you obtain a coffee with a higher concentration of natural sugars and a more balanced acidity.
• Less damage to fruits: Manual harvesting avoids damaging the beans, which prevents the release of enzymes that could negatively affect the flavor.
• Adaptability to terrain: Harvesters can access hard-to-reach areas, ensuring that all available coffee is harvested.
• Sustainability: Harvesting by hand generates a lower environmental impact, since it does not require the use of heavy machinery.
• Preservation of tradition: This ancestral practice connects producers with the roots of coffee cultivation.

In short, hand-harvesting Della Sera coffee is a commitment to excellence and quality. By carefully selecting each fruit, a unique and memorable coffee experience is guaranteed for our customers.

Once harvested, the Cafe Della Sera beans are carefully pulped and subsequently placed in fermentation tanks for 18 hours.  Fermentation is a biochemical process in which natural microorganisms break down the coffee cherry pulp surrounding the bean. This process is essential to separate the beans from the pulp and prepare them for drying.  Fermentation influences the development of aromatic and flavor compounds in the grain, such as fruits, flowers, spices and chocolate. Once the fermentation period is over, the grains are washed with pure rainwater.

Once washed, the beans are placed on elevated racks to dry under the sun for 8 days. Sun drying is a traditional and valued method in the production of specialty coffee, as it provides unique characteristics to the flavor of the bean and offers a series of benefits.

Benefits for Coffee:

• Development of complex flavors: Direct contact with sun and air allows a wide range of aromatic and flavor compounds to develop in the grain, such as fruits, nuts, chocolate and spices.
• Higher concentration of sugars: The slow evaporation of water during drying concentrates the natural sugars of the bean, resulting in a sweeter and more balanced coffee.
• Acidity reduction: Sun drying can help reduce the natural acidity of coffee, offering a smoother, more palatable cup.
• Greater body: Sun-dried beans tend to have a denser body and a smoother texture in the cup.
• Cleaner, more natural flavor: By avoiding the use of mechanical equipment and high temperatures, the risk of introducing foreign flavors or contaminants into the coffee is reduced.

Roasting is a crucial factor in the final quality of the coffee. Roast that is too dark can make the coffee bitter, while roasting that is too light can result in an acidic, bodyless cup. Medium roasting, for its part, offers an optimal balance between acidity, body and intensity of flavors.

In short, the medium roast of our Café Della Sera is the result of careful selection and processing of the beans, as well as precise roasting that allows the best essential oils to be extracted and develop a complex and balanced flavor profile.