This Sky: Coffee, Hope, and a Place for Birds

There are coffees that taste good, and then there are coffees that give you another reason to care about what is in your cup.

Our newest Roaster’s Reserve, Finca La Amistad from Costa Rica, does both.

This fully washed coffee is clean, sweet, and beautifully delicate, with notes of honeydew melon and raspberry tea. But its story begins long before brewing—with a century-old family farm, a forested landscape near the Panamanian border, and a way of growing coffee that leaves room for birds.

More Than “Shade-Grown”

Finca La Amistad is certified organic and Smithsonian Bird Friendly. Royal Coffee identifies it as the only Bird Friendly-certified estate in Costa Rica.

Bird Friendly certification goes much further than a general “shade-grown” claim. Developed by Smithsonian scientists, the certification requires organic production and science-based standards for canopy coverage, tree height, native-tree diversity, foliage layers, biodiversity, and habitat protection.

Certified farms are also deforestation-free.

By keeping mature trees standing over working coffee land, Bird Friendly farms preserve critical habitat for migratory and resident birds. The canopy also stores carbon, cools coffee plants, protects soil, slows water runoff, and helps farms become more resilient to heat and extreme weather.

The result is a way of growing coffee that protects the landscape rather than replacing it.

A Natural Fit at Finca La Amistad

Finca La Amistad sits in Coto Brus, Puntarenas, near Costa Rica’s border with Panama and alongside La Amistad International Park.

The Montero family has grown coffee here for more than 100 years. Roberto Montero, the fourth generation of his family to care for the farm, began converting the property to organic production in 1989 after witnessing the long-term effects of chemical-intensive, full-sun farming.

The transition was not a shortcut. Roberto rebuilt the soil through composting, planted shade trees throughout the coffee parcels, and continued refining the farm’s organic practices year after year.

Today, coffee grows within a living landscape of forest corridors, streams, waterfalls, layered shade, birds, and butterflies.

The stewardship continues after harvest. Coffee is wet- and dry-milled on the farm using hydropower generated by stream flow. Coffee-processing byproducts are composted and returned to the land.

Honeydew Melon and Raspberry Tea

Caturra and Catuaí grow at Finca La Amistad between 1,200 and 1,500 meters before being fully washed and dried using a combination of sun and mechanical dryers.

This batch is juicy, clean, and gently tea-like. Honeydew melon leads the cup, followed by the bright red-fruit character and delicate structure of raspberry tea.

It is sweet and balanced without feeling heavy—a coffee that is immediately welcoming but continues to reveal more as it cools.

Marie’s Song: “This Sky”

Every Roaster’s Reserve includes a song selected by our head roaster, Marie Marsh. The song is not intended to describe the coffee literally. It is chosen to deepen the feeling around the coffee, the producer, and the story behind the release.

For Finca La Amistad, Marie chose “This Sky” by The Derek Trucks Band.

“I love this song. The first time I heard it, I was driving through Big Sur, and the whole experience felt almost ethereal. It made me feel free and genuinely happy—and, as cheesy as it may sound, like I was floating through the landscape like a bird.

“The melodies and instrumentals have the same delicate quality as this coffee. They’re sweet, smooth, and beautifully mellow.

“‘This Sky’ is ultimately about holding onto hope and choosing freedom and love. That feels inseparable from the ethics of this coffee. I hope people feel good drinking it—not only because it’s beautiful in the cup, but because choosing Bird Friendly coffee is one small, meaningful way to help protect the habitats birds depend on.”

— Marie Marsh, Head Roaster

That is exactly what we want this Roaster’s Reserve to hold: beauty, delicacy, freedom, and hope.

It is a reminder that exceptional coffee can carry more than flavor. It can preserve canopy, support a farmer’s long commitment to the land, and protect the birds moving through the same landscape where coffee grows.

Listen to “This Sky” on YouTube, pour yourself a cup, and take your time with both.

Finca La Amistad — Costa Rica — Roaster’s Reserve
Honeydew Melon • Raspberry Tea

Available for a limited time at Bear Coast Coffee.