Sao Silvestre needs little introduction here at Bailies. We have been working with producers - The Andrade Brothers for almost a decade – purchasing coffees from them which feature across the entirety of our coffee collections. Sao Silvestre is a well-known and established farm in Brazil, and has an incredible reputation for their quality, attention to detail & investments into experimental processing. This lot encompasses all that their reputation is built upon and provides and delivers a cup full of bright, crisp, coffee excellence.

Sao Silvestre have earned their reputation in Brazil by always producing coffees of high quality, but also through experimentation. The varietal of this Microlot is known as, ‘Arara’ – an accidentally created varietal that has now become increasingly popular in Brazil.

Arara is a recent varietal, having only been released in 2012. The varietal was a happy accident when crossing cultivars, resulting in a varietal that once released would become a very desirable plant for producers to work with.

The qualities of the Arara varietal means that despite the crop’s small stature, it is incredibly resilient and more so, resistant to coffee leaf rust – a common and disastrous disease that can destroy a harvest for many producers. The late maturation of the cherries of the Arara plant also mean that the fruit takes more time to accumulate compounds which has been suggested to account for a unique sensory profile.

Since it’s accidental inception, Arara has been growing in demand and scoring 86 and above in competition, lending itself to becoming not only a practical but an exciting and satisfying varietal in Brazil.

Process

This Microlot has undergone an aerobic fermentation process, whereby the coffee cherries once picked (when the coffee is ripened) are then placed in open-air tanks to ferment at ambient temperatures of around 23 degrees Celsius. After 84 hours, when fermentation has progressed, and the coffee reaches 35 degrees, it is removed from the tanks to dry on raised beds for 32 days.