New arrival: Brazil Peaberry Grass Valley, small bean, big character
We recently told you about our Tanzanian peaberry; here's its Brazilian cousin, playing in a completely different register. Brazil Peaberry Grass Valley is a natural peaberry grown in Alta Mogiana by a fourth-generation family farm. Where the Tanzanian goes floral, this one goes cocoa, toasted hazelnut and sweetness. And it arrives at the friendliest price in the catalogue.
A quick refresher: what is a peaberry?
A coffee cherry normally holds two flat beans, back to back. But in a small share of cherries usually cited as 5 to 12% only one of the two seeds develops and takes up all the space. The bean turns round, dense and compact. That's the peaberry, and it has to be sorted out separately, which is why it's sold as its own lot.
Alta Mogiana, the old guard of Brazilian coffee
Head to the north-east of São Paulo state, on the Minas Gerais border. Coffee's story here starts in the 1880s, carried by the railway out of Campinas that pushed the coffee frontier westward. A hundred and forty years on, Alta Mogiana remains one of the country's most respected regions and in 2013 it too earned a denomination of origin.
What makes the region: rich soils, water from the Rio Grande, an average temperature around 21 °C, and above all a dry season from May to August that falls right on the harvest. Ideal conditions for natural processing drying the whole cherry in the sun, on patios or raised beds, without fearing rain.
Our lot comes from the Grass Valley farm, worked by the same family for four generations, at over 1,280 metres the top end of Brazilian altitude.
In the cup
Rich and enveloping, firmly in our Chocolatey & nutty family:
- Notes: cocoa, milk chocolate, roasted nuts, red fruit, berries, citrus
- Process: natural · Variety: peaberry
- Farm: Grass Valley, a fourth-generation family farm
- Region: Grass Valley, Alta Mogiana (São Paulo) · Altitude: 1,280 m and up
- Harvest: 2025-2026 · Grade: specialty, SCA 83 · Moisture: 10.6%
Our roasting tips
Peaberries tumble freely in the drum: heat transfer is more even and the roast moves a little faster than with flat beans. Charge slightly cooler and keep an ear on first crack, which can land earlier than your usual marker. The good news: screen size is very uniform, so the risk of an uneven roast is low.
Like every natural, it arrives with plenty of sugar on the bean hold back the power at the end so you don't burn it. At a medium roast you get a chocolatey, nutty filter with a hint of red fruit. At medium-dark, it's a thick, sweet espresso, unbeatable in a latte. At this price, it's also the perfect bean for testing a new profile without breaking the bank.
Discover the Brazil Peaberry Grass Valley available in 5 lb and 15 lb bags, from $9.51/lb. Ça va Torquer!