Each year we look for a new coffee for this season’s Strangelove Espresso. We seek out interesting single-origin coffees for coffee lovers to enjoy in cafes or at home, with milk, alt milk or black.
Our quest for this year’s Strangelove has taken us to the small town of Santa Maria de Dota in the heart of Costa Rica’s coffee-growing region, Terrazu. Here you’ll find the coffee processing mill of Coope Dota. We absolutely love this juicy espresso with flavours of Bakewell Tart with milk.
Each coffee cherry is carefully hand-picked and then undergoes a meticulous washing process. This involves removing the outer skin and pulp, followed by fermentation and washing to separate the beans. The result is a coffee with a clean and vibrant flavour profile.
Why we love this season's Strangelove Espresso
Coope Dota proudly holds the title of being the world’s pioneer carbon-neutral coffee processor, championing sustainability in every aspect of its operations. Representing around 900 devoted small holders focused on growing three coffee varietals, mainly Caturra and Catuai.
The cooperative ensures that every step, from the transportation of coffee to the ports, to waste management, is environmentally conscientious. They even convert their waste into nutrient-rich compost, further adding to their eco-friendly practices.
In the rare event of exceeding their carbon-neutral goal, they purchase carbon credits to maintain their environmental balance. Coope Dota’s commitment to sustainability goes beyond its immediate operations. As well as running its own roastery and shop, it also reinvests additional funds back into the community.
How to brew Strangelove Espresso
As an espresso try 18g coffee in for 34g out and a shot time of 30-34 seconds.
Strangelove is also great as a cafetiere using 35g coffee for 500ml water, brew for 4 minutes then plunge.
Meet the Roasters
Strangelove is always roasted on Bertha, a 30 year old 120kg Probat coffee roaster which we rescued from Bosnia in 2012.
When we found Bertha she was completely decommissioned, a pile of parts destined for scrap. Over four years we rebuilt this machine, retro-fitting an afterburner to eliminate VOCs from it’s emissions and drastically improving fuel efficiency. Today, Bertha runs on just 40% of her original fuel consumption - a beautiful and efficient machine.
