Coffee Change Fund - Costa Rica Red Honey

10 oz Bags Only 

Your Purchase Includes a $10 Donation to The Coffee Change Fund 

Good Coffee Should Give Something Back

Great coffee depends on more than what’s in the cup. It depends on healthy farms, thriving farming communities, and the people who work hard to grow it. If we want great coffee to be around for generations to come, we all have a responsibility to help make that possible.  And the oppressive “C” market system just isn’t working.  

That’s the idea behind the Coffee Change Fund, an initiative led by Marianella Baez Jost, co-founder of Farmers Project, to help address the financial challenges coffee farmers face. Rising costs, unpredictable markets, and the expense of farming responsibly can make it difficult for producers to invest in the long-term health of their farms.

The Fund is working to create a transparent, traceable way for coffee businesses and consumers to invest directly in the future of coffee farming. Contributions are intended to help farmers access environmentally responsible agricultural inputs that support soil health, regenerative practices, and more sustainable production.

For me, this initiative has been years in the making. Seven or eight years ago, Marianella and I sat together at our 858 N. State Street cafe and discussed the idea of finding a better way to support coffee farmers and share the responsibility of sustaining the industry. Seeing that conversation evolve into Coffee Change Fund is incredibly exciting, and we’re proud that Big Shoulders Coffee can help bring it to life as a pioneering partner. 

We believe supporting the people who grow our coffee is part of our responsibility as a coffee company. The industry depends on farmers, yet too often the burden of maintaining healthy, productive farms falls almost entirely on them. If we all benefit from great coffee, we should all have a role in sustaining the people and places that make it possible.

Through sales of our Sircof Estate Special Honey, we’ll contribute to Coffee Change Fund, connecting the coffee we share with a commitment to the future of the industry.   

This is about more than a single farm or a single coffee. It’s about building a model where giving back becomes a shared, ongoing commitment not an occasional gesture. One where roasters, businesses, and consumers recognize that the future of great coffee depends on the people who grow it. 

We love coffee. We want future generations to love it, too. Making that possible starts with recognizing our responsibility of finding a different path to directly support the people and land behind every cup. Good coffee starts at the farm. Its future depends on all of us and Coffee Change Fund is the most interesting development I’ve seen in the 16-years I’ve been in coffee. 

I’ve been fortunate to visit the Sircof Farm and spend time with Marco and Marciela Oviedo. They are two of the warmest, most generous people you could hope to meet, and being welcomed into their world gave me a much deeper appreciation for what goes into producing great coffee. 

This coffee will be always tied to a day spent at their farm.  I remember having lunch out in the field, taking off my boots and socks, and wading ankle-deep in the cool water of the creek that runs through the property. It was one of those simple, beautiful moments that makes being at origin so special. You slow down, take in where you are, and begin to understand that coffee is about so much more than what ends up in your cup.  There’s another memory from that visit that has stayed with me just as vividly.

Under the covered drying patio, coffee was drying from the honey process. Along the edges of the drying beds, I noticed a liquid collecting as the coffee dried. I dipped my finger into it and tasted it. The sweetness was astonishingly concentrated, with a depth, texture, and intensity that reminded me of a true traditional balsamic vinegar from Modena. It was unlike anything I had experienced in coffee before.  I can still remember that taste. It was one of the most memorable moments I’ve had in all my years of visiting coffee farms, and it gave me a new appreciation for just how much is happening during processing. There was something extraordinary about tasting that concentrated juice. It brought the whole process to life in a way no description or cupping table ever can. 

That experience is part of what makes the Sircof Estate Special Honey so meaningful to me. The honey process begins with ripe coffee cherries that are depulped while some of their naturally sweet mucilage remains on the beans during drying. Of course, no honey is added.  The name refers to the sticky, honey-like layer of fruit and juiciness left on the coffee beans. The way that coffee is handled and dried influences the sweetness, body, and character that eventually develop in the cup.

Marco and Marciela have been working with coffee for decades, carrying forward a family tradition that dates back to 1973. Their farm near Grecia sits at roughly 1,350 metres above sea level, and their hands-on approach to processing allows them to give each harvest the care it deserves. 

Sircof coffees have shown flavors ranging from caramel and dark chocolate to cherry and raspberry, although every lot has its own character. What I take away from this particular coffee is not simply a set of tasting notes. It’s the memory of that creek, the lunch, the generosity, and the remarkable sweetness I tasted on the drying patio. 

At Big Shoulders Coffee, relationships with the people who grow our coffee are meaningful. Knowing a producer, walking their farm, and seeing the work firsthand changes the way you experience the coffee. It makes the connection sincere. 

This is one of those coffees for me. The Sircof Estate Special Honey brings me back to a place, a moment, and two wonderful people who have left a lasting impression on me. I’m proud to share it with you, and I hope that when you brew it, you find something in the cup that stays with you, too.