Central Valley and Tres Ríos

The Central Valley is where Costa Rica’s coffee began, around the capital, San José, and Tres Ríos, the smallest region, grows on soil enriched by the Irazú volcano. ICAFE counts the two as one region. Today they grow far less than Tarrazú, but their coffees are sweet, floral and balanced.

The short version

• Where Costa Rican coffee started, around 1780.
• 11,493 hectares together in 2022.
• Mostly 1,000–1,400 metres in the Central Valley.
• Mild, sweet, floral: up to 94 points with Coffee Review.
• Tres Ríos: the smallest region, its soil enriched by Irazú.

What does it taste like?

Mild, sweet and balanced, the importer Royal New York says of the Central Valley. Coffee Review’s recent blind assessments of Central Valley coffees:

Year	Coffee	Score	Notes
2021	Brandy Ball	92	Freesia, orange zest, hazelnut, caramel, cedar; gentle, round acidity
2023	Central Valley, Alajuela	93	Pink grapefruit, cocoa nib, red apple, maple syrup, lemon-thyme
2024	Honey Geisha, Alajuela	94	Honey, cocoa nib, walnut, clove, narcissus; delicately bright acidity

Tres Ríos has a longer record with Coffee Review, mostly from the 2000s:

Year	Coffee	Score	Notes
2006	Tres Ríos	91	Cedar, semi-sweet and raisin-toned dark chocolate; full-bodied
2007	La Magnolia	93	Orange, flowers, cedary chocolate; silky, gently lively
2008	La Magnolia	93	Flowers, orange, nut, fruity cocoa; quiet but assertive acidity
2011	Tres Ríos	90	Orange, flowers, nut, apricot; citrusy, zesty acidity

Source: Coffee Review.

Where and how is it grown?

The Central Valley is highly populated and contains the capital, Royal New York says; 80% of its coffee grows at 1,000 to 1,400 metres. Tres Ríos is the smallest of Costa Rica’s coffee regions but produces exceptional quality: almost all of it is strictly hard bean, and the Irazú volcano, which last erupted in 1963, adds minerality to the soil. Costa Rica’s harvest is concentrated from November to February, USDA says.

How much coffee do they grow?

Measure	Figure	Source
Area, 2018	13,327 ha (Central Valley and Tres Ríos)	ICAFE, via USDA
Area, 2022	11,493 ha (−13.8%)	ICAFE, via USDA
Central Valley share of the crop	About 15%	Royal New York

ICAFE does not give Tres Ríos a separate area figure in the table USDA reports.

A short history

Coffee arrived in the Central Valley around 1780, Royal New York says. After independence from Spain, San José began distributing seeds and granting land to anyone willing to start a coffee farm, and Cartago and Tres Ríos followed its example. By 1830 coffee had overtaken cacao, sugar cane and tobacco to become the country’s largest crop, and in 1832 it was shipped to Chile, rebagged and sold on to England.

The Central Valley and other Costa Rican origins

• Coffee in Costa Rica: the whole country, its regions and its history.
• Tarrazú (Los Santos): the largest region, south-east of the Central Valley.
• West Valley: the Valle Occidental’s microlots.