Why Many of the Longest-Living People on the Planet Love To Drink Honey Coffee

Some things in life are essentially non-negotiable, such as drinking a warm cup of coffee in the morning. The beverage that provides a much-needed jolt of energy to start the day has become a part of daily life for many people around the world, including those in Nicoya, Costa Rica, which is home to many of the world’s longest-living individuals.
While coffee is known and consumed globally, the types of beans and brewing methods vary. In Ikaria, Greece (another of the so-called Blue Zones), coffee is boiled to extract its antioxidants, also known as “Turkish coffee,” Dan Buettner, a longevity expert, National Geographic fellow, and author of The Blue Zones Challenge: A 4-Week Plan for a Longer, Better Life, previously told Well+Good.

In Nicoya and other parts of Costa Rica, however, you’ll likely find locals brewing their coffee with a chorreador and honey coffee-processed beans (which do not involve bees). Instead, according to Monserrat Prado Flores, a Costa Rican coffee producer at the fourth-generation, family-owned, and female-led company Ditso Café, honey-processed coffee produces a unique flavor profile. In addition to its delicious and distinctive flavor, it is one of the more environmentally friendly ways to prepare coffee beans for roasting.

What is honey espresso?
According to Flores, honey coffee refers to a method of extracting the beans for roasting from the coffee fruit or “cherry.” Inside the outer red layer of a coffee fruit is a coffee bean covered in a mucilage that is naturally composed of sugar, according to Flores. Here, various honey processing techniques come into play, including natural, washed, double-washed, and anaerobic honey. Depending on the chosen processing method, the mucilage will either be washed away or retained throughout.

What are the various honey coffee varieties?
“The type of honey coffee is determined by the quantity of mucilage left on the beans.” “For instance, 100 perfect of the mucilage will ferment into black honey, with dark-colored beans as a result of the “honey” produced by the fermentation of the sugars,” she explains. The flavor of black honey coffee is intensely sweet with notes of raisins and red fruits. “The more mucilage, the longer we allow the beans to dry, which is approximately 15 days for a quality batch of black honey coffee beans,” Flores explains.

The second variety of honey coffee is referred to as “red honey.” “When we leave approximately fifty percent of the mucilage, we obtain red honey with a brownish-red color and a flavor that is sweet and fruity like a peach,” she explains. Additionally, there is yellow honey, which contains 25% mucilage. It has a golden hue and a milder flavor than the previous two, yet it is sweet and floral. There are additional varieties, including white, crystal, and purple honey-processed coffee.

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