There's a big punch of rum and raisin fudge up front, rich and indulgent with a beautifully creamy texture. Sweet sultanas bring extra depth and sweetness through the middle of the cup, while a gentle note of red apple keeps everything balanced and bright.
This coffee comes from Matagalpa in northern Nicaragua, grown and processed for us by our good friends the Mierisch family. We've bought from their farm, Finca Limoncillo, since 2007, which makes it one of our longest-running producer relationships, and we've every intention of keeping it going. The first single origin we're releasing from this year's harvest is a Natural Ethiosar.
The Mierisch farms in Nicaragua are scattered across Jinotega and Matagalpa, dotted up either side of the mountain range that marks the border between the two departments. When Roland visits, he'll usually see three in a day because they sit close together: Mama Mina first, then La Huella, finishing at Limoncillo, the biggest of the three.
Limoncillo sits at 1,200 metres above sea level in the mountains of Matagalpa. It covers 171 hectares, 109 of them planted with coffee, and nine waterfalls run through it. It's one of the benchmark farms in Nicaraguan specialty coffee, and the family, known for their experimental processing and varietal work, grow Caturra, Red Bourbon, Pacamara and Java here alongside Ethiosar.
The first Mierisch farm dates back to 1895. Ernst Bruno Mierisch Boettiger, a German émigré, helped engineer the Pacific railway between Masaya and Diriamba, and the Nicaraguan government paid him in land: a gold mine and a farm he named Sajonia, the Spanish spelling of Saxony, his home region. He planted his first coffee tree in 1908. Today Fincas Mierisch runs nine coffee farms in Nicaragua and three in Honduras, led by his grandson, Dr Erwin Mierisch (third generation), and his great-great-grandson, Erwin "Wingo" Mierisch (fifth generation).
Wingo joined the farms in 2017 and has worked across post-harvest processing, roasting, cupping and green coffee sales. He now leads the development of new processing methods at the mill and has tightened the QC lab's protocols for quality and consistency. With his push, the team at the Don Esteban mill has put serious investment into processing experiments.
Erick Lopez, the Head Agronomist, started in the fields 22 years ago. The family spotted his talent, promoted him and paid for his further education, and he now runs most of the day-to-day work across the farms. Plenty of the Fincas Mierisch team have been with the family for years, and their skill is what the quality rests on.
The family employs more than 3,000 people during harvest, and over 60 families live on Limoncillo full-time. Of every producer we buy from, this is the one whose workers speak about them most warmly, and the respect runs both ways. Because the Mierisches are friends, we can dig into exactly what they do for the people who work for them, and every detail backs up something we've long believed: good people grow good coffee.
Chemical use across the farms is kept to a minimum, and the land is managed with care. In 2024 Limoncillo finished a 15 kW hydroelectric plant that powers the farm's operations and the homes of the 60 families living on site. Cattle and horses share the estate, and 54 hectares of protected rainforest keep it rich in wildlife. Workers get housing, meals, childcare, education and healthcare year-round, and wages 30% above the local minimum.
All of this coffee passes through the Don Esteban mill on Limoncillo, the processing hub for the family's Matagalpa farms, named in honour of the family patriarch. It's built to flex, so the team can adapt processing to each varietal and lot. Cherries are hand-picked, and from there the route depends on the process. Washed and honey lots go through eco-pulpers that use far less water and let the team control how much mucilage stays on the bean. For a natural like this one, the whole cherry goes onto covered African-style raised beds to dry slowly, fruit and all.
We've roasted Ethiosar from Limoncillo for several years, and its story starts with the Mierisches' cousin Ricardo, whose farm nearby sits much lower, at just 800 metres above sea level. Ricardo's plants were struggling. Yields were dropping and disease was creeping in, which he put down to a changing climate, heavier rain and his low altitude. One experimental plant bucked the trend. It fruited more than its neighbours and shrugged off disease. That plant was Ethiosar.
Ethiosar is a stable hybrid, bred for cup quality and disease resistance together. It starts with a cross between:
- Sudan Rume, an old Ethiopian landrace known for complex, floral flavours
- Sarchimor, a hybrid of Villa Sarchi and Timor, bred for resilience
That hybrid is then crossed back with Villa Sarchi, a dwarf mutation of Bourbon from Costa Rica, prized for its sweetness and compact growth. What you get is a plant that yields well, stands up to disease and still puts a sweet, layered cup in your mug.
- Country: Nicaragua
- Region: Matagalpa
- Municipality: Yasica Norte
- Farm: Limoncillo
- Producers: The Mierisch family
- Farm size: 171 hectares
- Coffee growing area: 109 hectares
- Protected rainforest: 54 hectares
- Varietal: Ethiosar
- Process: Natural
- Elevation: 1,200 m.a.s.l.
- Harvest months: October to February
- Diurnal temperature cycle: average high 25°C, low 17°C