The 'Premier Cru' range is a selection of handcrafted small-batch lots from the highest altitudes of Rio Verde, Ipanema's oldest farm. The project began in 2014, and first harvests are in 2018, where these coffees are packed in nitrogen-flushed vacuum packed 20kg cartons. Though nitrogen flushing is a common method when it comes to roasted coffee, taking such care with green coffee is practically unheard of, even in specialty.
Annually, a new collection is released under a unique brand name, with the most recent Colina D'Oro in 2023. Under the four edition groups, the micro lots are categorised based on the taste complexity and rarity. These grades, similar to whiskey, are Black, Gold, Blue and Diamond editions.
Harvests are done by hand, and all of the coffees are processed using one of the five processing methods based on the lot and a variety of factors. This is meant to highlight the maximum quality of the cherries.
Harvested just last year, the cherries for Ipanema B19 are hand-picked, and traditionally processed through the natural process, in addition to being anaerobically fermented for 83 hours. Once done, the cherries were then dried on a conventional patio for 100 hours and undergo drying once more through vertical dryers for 105 hours. Finally, the coffees are rested in bags before being hulled and exported.
This brings a compact and dense sweetness similar to black grapes in the coffee, with a full mouthfeel of biting into dried fruit completely coated in chocolate.
Recommended to rest beans for 7-10 days from roast date before consuming.
