Oxalis Reserve

One of the main aspects of plantation coffee concerns its story - its clear point of origin and the individual character of the product. As with wine, customers seek coffees with an explicit origin, which is the result of hard work by each farmer. A new phenomenon in the world of selective coffee is a range of what are called micro-lots. These comprise separately manufactured small quantities of coffee cherries of the highest quality. The resultant taste of such ‘mini-harvests’ can be influenced by the special microclimate of the farm, unique coffee plant varieties, a differing process of manufacture or just careful gathering.

Producing such micro-lots is extremely complex for most farmers and producers, as they have to thoroughly separate this entire manufacturing process from conventional harvesting. Thank goodness that Oxalis’ work is far simpler – tasting and selecting the best that each harvest offers.

This year we are happy to offer you four coffees from such micro-lots purchased directly from farmers in Latin America and Africa. These have been incorporated into our newly established Oxalis Reserve scheme.

Panama Finca Hartmann is one of the most famous organic eco-farms in the world, which was surprisingly set up by a son of a Czech immigrant from Moravia. Finca El Diamante is a traditional Salvadorean coffee farm located in the Apaneca-Ilamatepec mountains. It stands near a picturesque village with a name that is very difficult to pronounce – Juayúa. Ethiopia Sidamo originates, as the name suggests, from the Sidamo region. More than 600 small farmers participate in the annual coffee harvest. Finally, the last coffee in the Oxalis Reserve programme is Costa Rica Hacienda Rio Jorco Yellow Honey. This is of interest principally due to its unique method of manufacture known as ‘Honey Coffee’.