Costa Rican Coffee Processing

After our Costa Rican coffee cherries arrive at the beneficios, they are measured and washed with spring water to remove soil and debris. The ripe cherries are then pulped. Pulping entails removing the coffee cherry’s tough skin and soft pulp. The pulped coffee is fed into large tumble dryers, called guardiolas. The beans are tumbled in these hot-air barrel dryers until their humidity content is reduced to approximately 11.5%. The parchment hull and thin silver skin is then milled off. The coffee beans now proceed to vibrating tables where they are bounced, cleaned, sorted and graded according to size, shape and weight.