What is a Peaberry?

2nd Sep 2021

A peaberry, also called 'caracol' or 'snail' in Spanish, is a natural mutation of the coffee bean inside its cherry. Normally, coffee beans grow two to a fruit, flat against one another like halves of a peanut. But sometimes, a funny thing happens in about 5% of the world's coffee and the bean is born an only child. And perhaps just like an only child, the peaberry beans get a little special treatment by not having to share with anybody else.

Peaberry beans tend to be smaller, denser and ultimately, just a little bit cuter than their flat cousins. Coffee aficionados also tend to say they taste noticeably sweeter and more flavorful than standard coffee beans. Naysayers insist they cannot tell the difference, but still appreciate the beans for their uniqueness.

Because there's no way to tell from looking at the cherry alone whether there's a single or double-header inside, these little guys need to be hand-sorted after picking in order to be sold separately. In many cases the peaberries are sold for roasting right alongside their normal counterparts. Occasionally, growers will hand-select the peaberry beans for special sale.

Café Milagro Peaberry is a unique blend of rare beans from Costa Rica’s finest small, independent coffee farmers.