Our latest micro-lot from that incredible trip to the Serra de Mantiqueira region of Brazil last year with DR Wakefield and this naturally processed Yellow Arara from Thalita Martins and her farm Moinho stood out on the cupping table. A little fruity up front, sweet and nutty in the middle and a little boozy on the finish and definitely a step above your 'average' Brazil.

Arara is a relatively new variety released by Fundação Procafé in 2012. It is a natural cross between Yellow Catuaí and Obatã, producing bright yellow cherries that’s prized for its high scoring cup from the Catuaí combined with resilience and productivity from the Obatã.

The Serra de Mantiqueira stretch across São Paulo, Minas Gerais and Rio de Janeiro states. Located in the Minas Gerais state, the Mantiqueria de Minas area was the first to get a geographical indication in the Brazilian coffee industry (supported and developed by BSCA). This fresh approach, akin to ‘terroir’ in the wine industry, is redefining how people view specialty coffee from Brazil with 25 counties in the region and 7,800 producers, of which 89% are smallholders. The area comprises 69,500 hectares and altitude ranges from 900 to 1,500 masl, with a predominance of yellow varieties over the more typical red. All coffees are minimum 84 SCA points as part of the denomination and many enter the late harvest Cup of Excellence in Brazil.

One of the interesting aspects of these COCARIVE micro-lots imported by D R Wakefield is the level of detail provided. Each 30Kg box contains 2 x 15Kg Vac-Pac's to maintain freshness and shelf life and on the outside is a small QR code. Scanning it links to a very detailed document of the coffee specifics including sensory analysis and cup score.