Peaberry Honey

This peaberry from our Direct Trade partners in Brazil opens with aromas of nougat, baked apple, and milk chocolate. Notes of butter toffee and roasted almond are balanced with crisp green grape acidity in the round-bodied cup, resolving into a satisfying finish of semi-sweet chocolate and walnut.

Details

Producer: Paulo and Juliana Piancastelli  Farm: Fazenda Terra Alta  Region: Ibiá, Minais Gerais  Altitude: 960-1,021 masl Varietal: IAC 125 RN, Catuai 62  Process: Honey Roast: Light-Medium Notes: Nougat, Green Grape, Walnut

The Story

This specially-sorted peaberry lot consists of two varietals grown at Terra Alta:

• Catuai 62 is a sub-cultivar of Yellow Catuaí, a short shrub that is highly productive. Its cherries mature slowly, producing a sweet, small bean.

• IAC 125 RN is a relatively new cultivar released by the Agronomy Institute of Campinas. Its stature is small with large cherries that create a considerable amount of mucilage, which is beneficial to the natural and pulped natural (or honey) processes.

Careful fermentation and slow sun-drying on raised beds give the coffee a round body and brighter acidity than is typically found in Brazilian coffees.

The Peaberry Mutation

Peaberries are the result of a natural mutation in which only one of two seeds inside the coffee cherry is fertilized. Instead of two coffee beans with flat faces and round backs developing within the cherry, a single rounded bean is the result.

Peaberries constitute a small percentage of each harvest and they are typically sorted into peaberry-only lots for consistency during the roasting process, as they are denser than regular coffee beans.

Direct Trade

Fazenda Terra Alta was born in 2010 when Paulo and Juliana Piancastelli left their corporate lives behind and searched for greener pastures. They started planting in 2011 and have produced high-scoring and award-winning coffees since their first harvest in 2013.

In their relatively short time in the specialty coffee industry, the Piancastellis have put together an expert production team, planted high-quality coffee varietals, and implemented innovative processing methods.

Paulo and Juliana have built an independent importing/exporting structure that supports the Direct Trade model fully. They work with roasters during the harvest to seek out micro-lots as well as collaboration on processing methods. They are also in complete control of the coffee during shipment, as they own an importation warehouse in the United States.

This Peaberry Honey lot from PT's Coffee Roasting highlights the meticulous work of producers Paulo and Juliana Piancastelli in Ibiá, Minas Gerais. Grown between 960 and 1021 masl, this selection showcases the unique characteristics of the peaberry—a natural mutation where a single, rounded seed develops inside the coffee cherry rather than the typical pair of flat-sided beans. Because these seeds are smaller and denser, they often require careful attention during the roasting process to ensure even development.

The coffee undergoes a honey process, a technique that sits between washed and natural methods by leaving a portion of the fruit’s mucilage on the bean during drying. You can learn more about how this impacts the final cup profile in our processing methods explainer. Sourced from the Brazil · Ibiá, Minas Gerais region, this coffee offers a distinct profile of nougat, green grape, and walnut. To better understand these descriptors, consult our flavor wheel.