The tour takes place on our coffee estate. You will be able to experience every aspect of coffee, from the farming and harvesting to the milling and roasting process and finally the cupping and tasting of an exceptional cup of Hacienda Real Coffee.

Upon completing our tour you will be a coffee connoiseur!

The following is a summary of the steps needed to produce the best Costa Rican coffee:

1. Coffee seeds are planted in nurseries to produce seedlings
2. Seedling is transplanted at 6-8 months
3. 3-4 years after planting, coffee produces its first harvest
4. Coffee trees are pruned after harvests and can live for up to 35 years

1. Coffee is received and measured by volume. Each measure is one half of a fanega (200 lts)
2. Coffee is then placed in a siphon with water, this not only cools the coffee in order to prevent over fermenting but also separates floaters, leaves, sticks, etc.
3. Cherries that sink are depulped and sorted by size, resulting in a First, Second and Third Quality. Cherries that float (floaters)t are processed separately.
4. The mucilage must now be removed by placing the depulped coffee in fermenting tanks. The coffee must remain in them for approximately 24 hours (without water) allowing for a natural fermenting process to soften the mucilage.
5. The coffee is now washed in a very large coffee washer, this process removes the mucilage and any remaining pulp.
6. Once coffee has been washed it is ready to dry. This is done in large coffee dryers at a temperature of 55 degrees Celcius (131 degrees Farenheit) and lasts about 24 hours. Each dryer holds approximately 2,760 kilos ( 6,000 lbs ) of coffee.
7. Dry coffee is stored with its own layer of parchment in silos for at least 2 months, allowing the coffee to rest in order to produce a superior cup.
8. Final preparation requires the parchment to be removed by a husker, converting it to GREEN COFFEE, which is sorted by density, size and color by specialized machinery.
9. Coffee is bagged in 69 kilo ( 150 lbs ) jute bags for export and is shipped to gourmet or specialty roasters all over the world.
10. Coffee processed at the Golden Bean Coffee Mill is sold to the United States, Spain, Italy, Switzerland, Germany, England,etc.
11. Golden Bean Coffee Mill process an average of 10,000 fanegas or quintales per harvest ( 1,000,000 lbs ) from three of the seven growing regions (Turrialba, Naranjo and Tarrazu)

The cupping process identifies the “taza” or the specific coffee taste according to global recognized coffee flavors. By taking the Golden Bean Coffee Tour you can live an unique experience by personally evaluating the different aromas and flavors as a professional coffee taster.

At our Factory Store you will also be able to purchase Golden Bean Tour souvenirs as well as select high quality Costa Rican arts and crafts.