Brazil Fazenda Rio Verde

Fazenda Rio Verde, a coffee that never goes wrong for us. We’ve worked with coffees from this farm and region of Brazil before, and they are TIP TOP. Quite stoked for this particular offer, for it’s our first Red Mundo Novo varietal!

Rio Verde is one of the smaller farms nestled in the wider estate. Founded in 1887, it is the oldest of the company's farms. Located in the heart of the Mantiqueira de Minas Mountains, this 1,566-hectare farm is a true natural sanctuary, where coffees are grown at elevations of up to 1,300 meters above sea level, surrounded by virgin forests, waterfalls, springs and hiking trails. In fact, the farm is home to 52 catalogued springs, all of which are protected. Only 626 hectares of the farm are given over to coffee production, with a full 773 hectares being devoted to conservation. To this end, Ipanema has created the Environment Monitoring Centre (EMC), which has been installed in an old henhouse on the farm. The Centre monitors farm management practices relating to water use, soil fertility and erosion, vegetation and climate.

The farm was already established before the newly married Antonio Fachardo Junqueira and Gabriella Augusta inherited the farm as a dowry. However, it was the couple who first established coffee here in 1887. In 1920, their grandson, Antenor, took over management of the farm and began implementing incredibly innovative processes for the time, separating lots by quality and color and constructing brick patios to improve the drying process.

Natural coffees such as this one are subject to meticulous standards from harvest through to resting. Coffee is selectively harvested either mechanically or by hand and then delivered to dry for up to 9 days on raised beds or patios. The coffee may also be finished in one of the farm’s 48 mechanical driers, where they are slowly dried at an even and soft heat for around 48 hours. Bean quality is monitored in each dryer, carefully evaluating the appearance and taste profile of each 20-bag batch. After drying, the coffee is then placed in wooden bins to rest for at least for 60 days in order to homogenize internal moisture and improve the taste profile. At every step of the process, until exportation, Ipanema’s team evaluates the quality of the lots.

She’s got a beautiful acidity, that of yellow stonefruits. The vibrancy then leads to the refined and classy body and sweetness of caramel. She finishes well, with the lingering complexity that reminds us of praline. Very beautiful everyday driver!