Plot Costa Rica Carlos Montero Whole Bean 2.2lb / 1kg
2.2lb / 1kg Whole Bean
Notes: Black Cherries, Cocoa Powder, Almonds
Region: Los Santos
Producer: Carlos Montero
Varietal: Milenio
Process: Natural
Elevation: 1500 - 1700 m
From Plot:
"This super-rich and unctuous natural comes from one of our favourite producers in Costa Rica. The Milenio hybrid shines through their expert processing, creating a profile that’s like cake in a cup—full of fruit character with notes of black cherries, cocoa powder, and almonds.
Story
Carlos’ farm is named Temática which means “subjects” or “topics” in Spanish. Carlos envisioned creating a place where he could practice and share various disciplines—focusing on environment, coffee, sustainable agriculture, and the exchange of ideas. His dream became reality in the early 2010s when he secured a loan to purchase land just across the Pirrís River from his home. After years of hard work and dedication, the farm now houses the Don Eli wet mill, visitor accommodations for events, and an organic farm for research and demonstration. The area where coffee is grown organically and bio-dynamically is called the Chamaco Lot, named after its previous owner who left the land undisturbed since purchasing it in the 1970s.
Unlike typical farms in the area, the Chamaco Lot’s forest remained intact rather than being cleared for coffee plantations. Instead, coffee grows among the native vegetation that has always been there. Many coffee trees on this farm were planted nearly 100 years ago. The Typica variety—also known as Café Arábigo—was popular at the time. Today, these tall, strong, low-yielding plants still thrive under the natural forest canopy. Over time, Carlos has carefully added new plants throughout the woods, experimenting with varieties such as Catuai, Villa Sarchi, Mundo Novo, Yellow Bourbon, and Ethiopian lineages.
These plantings were designed to test how different varieties perform in this shaded, dense, and organically managed environment. Carlos’s commitment to avoiding synthetic products on this farm is remarkable for a productive field. All materials used come from the property itself, created from its own byproducts. While not Carlos’s most productive farm, it generates significant interest and produces coffee with a distinct quality that reflects its sustainable practices. This natural coffee farm stands as a family pride point, having educated and inspired many coffee enthusiasts while producing exceptional coffee.
Producer
The Montero Family has been visionary, pioneering, and transformative in the Micro Mill Revolution in Tarrazú, Costa Rica. Carlos Montero, a lifelong coffee grower from a multi-generational farming family, envisioned processing their own coffee and working directly with consumers. This led to constructing Don Eli—named after his father—in 2014. Carlos played a crucial role in inspiring other coffee growers in the Tarrazú region to follow suit and build direct relationships with roasters. Over the years, Jacob has taken charge of the wet mill, developing his passion for processing their fruit. Recently, they added a modest dry mill station to prepare their parchment for export, continuously expanding their capabilities while improving quality and strengthening their direct relationships.
Cultivar
Milenio is a first-generation (F1) hybrid originating from a cross between rust-resistant T5296 and Ethiopian landrace Rume Sudan. The variety emerged from the first wave of F1 hybrid varieties, developed by a consortium of CIRAD (French research institute), PROMECAFE (a network of Central American coffee institutes), and CATIE. F1 hybrid varieties remain relatively new in coffee agriculture, with only a handful becoming commercially available to farmers in select countries over the past 15 years. Notably, this variety stunned the coffee community when it placed 3rd in Cup of Excellence, representing the Brunca growing region."