Whether you’re just beginning your exploration of specialty coffee or you’re a seasoned coffee aficionado, you’ve almost certainly come across a coffee from Brazil. As the world’s largest producer of coffee, Brazil is a huge player in the global coffee trade, and as we’ve seen this year, what happens in Brazil can dramatically affect the markets worldwide. Even though much of the coffee Brazil produces isn’t considered specialty-grade, every once in a while we come across a coffee that really demonstrates what Brazilian coffees are capable of.

We love sharing coffees we enjoy, so we decided to create a rotating single-origin concept that would allow us to showcase these special offerings when we find them. The first coffee we’re offering as ‘Serenade’, our name for this concept, is Tropicana from Fazenda Rio Brilhante in Minas Gerais. This large estate sits within a micro-region called Pântano, which is known for its well-defined seasons, consistent seasonal rain, and overall favorable climate for coffee production. Specifically, these conditions are ideal for producing naturally processed coffees, which represents on average 80% of the production of the farm. After picking, the cherries pass through a station that sorts by density – the denser and higher quality cherries are separated in order to create pulped natural and natural processed coffees that will receive more detailed focus during fermentation and drying.

Rio Brilhante is run by Inácio Urban and his children Erika and Fernando. In the 80’s, Inácio foresaw a giant opportunity in the Cerrado Mineiro region. At the time, land in this region was considered undesirable and, as a result, was very cheap. To start Inácio planted 20 hectares of coffee, as he says, “to learn what it is like to grow coffee”. In 2017, Fazenda Rio Brilhante placed 2nd in the Imaflora – Rainforest Alliance and 3rd in the Cerrado Mineiro regional competition. In 2020 the farm was awarded first place in the Ethics and Traceability Award given to farms for their commitment and development of programs to develop people, preserve the environment, and promote responsible agribusiness.

Natural and pulped natural Brazilian coffees are known for very their very distinct flavor profiles, which typically represent a unique combination of modern and traditional elements. Good Brazilian coffees combine notes of dark fruit and deep sweetness, a product of the natural processing, with a slight nuttiness and chocolate on the finish due to slightly longer development during roasting. We consistently get notes of cherries, milk chocolate, and graham crackers, and each coffee will bring its own character to the table making this a nice showcase of what Brazil has to offer. We hope you love these unique coffees as much as we do.

Cheers!