Cafe Zumbador
The return of one of the orginal masterpiece coffees of the world. The estate partners of Café Zumbador - Puerto Rico, USA - Proudly return a limited number of lots of this rare treasure.
The volcanic clay based soils of the small farms producing Café Zumbador in the Central Mountain Range of the island of Puerto Rico were replanted after losing 85% of all the trees during Hurricane María 2017. The 4 estate partners are committed to preserving these young trees and their fruit while using the families’ proprietary dry and wet mill procedures to produces the memorable taste of Zumbador Coffee for new generations to enjoy.
View Auction ResultsAuction Times in your Region
20th July 2022, | 10:00am (London)
- 02:00am Los Angeles
- 05:00am New York
- 05:00am Puerto Rico
- 10:00am London
- 12:00am Riyadh
- 16:00am Jakarta
- 17:00pm Shanghai
- 18:00pm Tokyo
- 18:00 pm Seoul
- 20:00pm Sydney
Order your sample set
Ordering Samples allows you to taste any coffee before the auction and be ready to bid!
Each sample set contains 23 coffee samples (200 grams each) from this year’s auction!
Sample Set Fee: $250 each
Sample sales are now close
A Treasure Flavour growing in the Caribbean
The Caribbean Sea originate micronutrient feeding of coffee tree root system by the combination of constant Trade Winds* and proximity to the ocean due to the short distance from sea to farm in our small island.
*Studied by the Agriculture Department of the University of Puerto Rico
view Auction ResultsTerroir:
The island of Puerto Rico offers a unique nutrient combination of the volcanic clay soils of the Central Mountain Range, with an overindex of naturally occurring exchangeable manganese.
Abundant Rain
The abundant rain and relatively consistent conditions with 65% forested lands and a narrow temperature band enhance the quality of Zumbador’s microlots. We ensure that we preserve water quality throughout the wet mill process and our rivers are protected.
USA Growing Practices
We only use pure water and terrain conditions with regulated oversight by the USA’s Environmental Protection Agency and the topsoil protection with the guidance of the United States Department of Agriculture’s staff, whilst also paying US standard wages.
Zumbador Coffee: Inspired by the impossibility of hummingbird flight
This coffee is limited in quantity, grown in irreplicable conditions on the island of Puerto Rico, and delivers a historic taste.
Determined Resilience in a bean:
This auction will showcase a limited production from 4 growers from Lares and Yauco, who are commited to the preservation of proprietary growing pracices that yield the coffee’s unique taste.
These two regions are located in the Southwest Coastal mountain range and are known throughout the 4 centuries of coffee growing in Puerto Rico as the premier coffee regions. This is because of their higher altitudes, higher rain totals, cooler temperatures, and the reddish volcanic soils that carry a higher nutrient content than the rest of the island’s coffee regions.
Transport yourself to the tropical mountains of Puerto Rico in this rare island coffee distinguished by its great body and creamy chocolate taste. This 4th generation family producer, from the U.S. territory of Puerto Rico, presents a coffee taste preserved and untouched for over 100 years; with little interaction to the outside world.
18th century Arabica varieties are picked and processed using their artisan controlled fermentation method. The result has been described as one of the “grand crus” of the world. Zumbador is grown in the strictest environmental jurisdiction in the coffee world. All labor earn US wages, enjoy free health care, and public education.
tasting notes
Great body, creamy texture, chcocolate undertones and an arresting aftertaste
Our coffee history
Until 1998, Puerto Rico was an award winning exporter of SCA Grade 1 quality, recognized and celebrated by Coffee Festivals in London and New York. The coffee of our island was priced within the top 3 in the world. Unfortunately in 1998, Hurricane George destroyed the production and it took several years, with support of partners such as Jose Torres and Lester Marin, to rebuild the market demand.
In 2014, Zumbador Coffee was born to return Puerto Rico’s best to the world. However whilst preparing to bring our unique taste back to the market, Hurricane Maria hit and destroyed buildings, equipment and 85% of our trees.
It took us 5 years to resurge. Planting 1mm trees, whilst innovating with new and old varieties and supporting the small farms to diversify with other crops. We reduced our production from 100,000 bags to 9,000. In the previous years we have faced, over 10,000 earthquakes, a government bankruptcy and a 12-year economic recession, a decade of migration away from the island, several crop diseases.
Yet, we have come back from the brink of extinction. We had to. This original taste from Puerto Rico’s first crop ever in 1736 is worth preserving.
Learn more“One of the best green ‘crus” in the world, if not the best… unfortunately impossible to find“(1989)
Phillipe Jobin (foremost coffee authority of 20th Century’s)
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