Brazil - Santuario Sul (Washed)

This is exactly why I love coffee. There is always something new to explore, something that challenges what you think you know about how a coffee from a particular place should taste.

And this one does exactly that.

This is an SL28 from Brazil, processed as a washed coffee. Both of those things are pretty unusual for Brazilian coffee.

SL28 is a variety most famously associated with Kenya. It was originally selected there in the 1930s by Scott Agricultural Laboratories and has become known for producing incredibly expressive coffees with vibrant acidity, fruit and complexity.

So what happens when you take that variety and grow it in Carmo de Minas, Brazil?

That's exactly the kind of question behind Santuário Sul.

The farm was created by Luiz Paulo with the goal of exploring what Brazilian coffee could be. Today, more than 30 exotic varieties grow there alongside traditional Brazilian varieties like Yellow Bourbon, with different approaches to cultivation, shade and processing all being explored.

Then there's the processing. Brazil is much more commonly associated with natural and pulped natural coffees, and with the chocolate, nut and caramel flavours we often think of as a classic Brazilian profile.

This coffee is washed, giving us a much cleaner expression of the SL28 and a flavour profile that feels completely different to what you might expect when you see Brazil written on the bag.

It's bright, clean, fruity and complex, while still carrying that beautiful sweetness we love from Brazilian coffee.

For me, that's what makes coffee so interesting.

One origin doesn't have to taste one particular way. Change the variety, change the processing, change how it's grown, and suddenly you can experience that place from a completely different perspective.

Brazil. SL28. Washed. And anything but typical.