Alta Gracia is a selected plot at the highest point of Fazenda IP, where some of the farm's highest-quality coffees are produced. The area grows Bourbon and Yellow Bourbon, and they are picked selectively by hand at the particular point of their maturity, which is somewhat slower than the rest of the farm. Coffees from Alta Gracia also receive special treatment in processing: There are traditional Naturals as well as raised-bed-dried Naturals, along with Pulped Naturals and Washed lots.
Fazenda IP was first purchased in 1967, by Isidro Pereira, father of Luiz Paolo Dias Pereira. (Fazenda IP takes its name from Isidro's initials.) Luiz was pursuing an education in agriculture at the time the farm came into the family, but after five years, he joined his father to expand production and improve quality.
By 1974, Luiz began expanding Fazenda IP: It now covers an area of 720 hectares—500 percent growth over the farm's original size. This estate cultivates Yellow Catuai, Yellow Catucai, Acaia, and Yellow Bourbon. The coffee is processed using both the natural and honey method. Nestled outside the city of Carmo de Minas, the farm sits at a range of 950–1200 meters. The higher altitude favors a slow ripening of cherry and permits selective picking, which are decisive factors to produce coffees of exceptional quality.
For more information about coffee production in Brazil, visit our Brazil Origin Page.
