Colombian Narino Aponte Royal Reserve Honey

These beans are grown at an average elevation of 6,400 feet above sea level and come from Narino which is in the southern part of Colombia.  No honey is utilized in these beans and the term “honey” is the result of a process in which the fruit skin of the coffee cherry is removed, but some mucilage (coffee fruit pulp that is very sticky and dense in sugar) is left on the bean to dry for up to 45 days.  By leaving some mucilage, the beans retain more sugar (hence the term “honey”) and become sweeter and fruitier (tasting notes of pomegranate, raspberry and cherry), which results in a coffee that can be sipped all day.  We roast these beans at a light roast as the beans are more susceptible to scorching from the sugars of the coffee fruit during the drying process.