Meet our Winners We are proud to present the winners of the 2025 edition of our quality contest. Each of them has demonstrated excellence and dedication in the production of specialty coffees, reflecting our commitment to quality and tradition.

SÍTIO ROMÃO / Producer Name: JOSE VITOR BERGAMIN ROMÃO

91 Points CASTELO Last bid offered: 1120 cts/lb | buyer_647

Bags: 3 bags

Density: 688g/L

Moisture: 11.2%

Water Activity: 0.53

Variety: CATUAÍ 81

Process: Pulped Natural

Sample: SS260925

Cupping attributes: Floral, lemon pie, tropical fruit, brown sugar, complex, frutty, rapadura, stone fruit, juicy, long and pleasant aftertaste

Story: José’s family farm, located at 1,000 meters in Castelo, Espírito Santo, began producing specialty coffee about 20 years ago after his parents started pulping coffee to add value. Positive feedback from tasters led them to invest further in quality production. Today, the 9-hectare property has 8 ha. planted with Mundo Novo, Catuaí, and Catucaí varieties. José Vitor, the fourth generation of the family, is actively involved in all stages of production, and specialty coffee has strengthened family collaboration and ensured the succession of the family business.

1st

Place

SÍTIO CANTO DA PEDRA / Producer Name: DALDETE VENTURIM ZARDO

90.5 Points DOMINGOS MARTINS Last bid offered: 700 cts/lb | buyer_872

Bags: 2 bags

Density: 700g/L

Moisture: 11.0%

Water Activity: 0.47

Variety: CATUCAÍ 785

Process: Pulped Natural

Sample: SS261125

Cupping attributes: Floral, jasmin, frutty, pineapple, bright acidity like sweet lemon, honeydew, rapadura, smooth mounthfeel, easy to drink, pleasant and long aftertaste

Story: The property, acquired in 1996, is managed by Daudete Ventorim in partnership with Geovani and Jocivania. Together, they carefully cultivate small coffee plots, honoring local traditions and maintaining a strong connection to the land. In this process, they oversee every stage from fieldwork to harvest, focusing on quality and attention to detail, while passing family values to the next generation and producing high-quality microlots.

2nd

Place

SÍTIO ROMÃO / Producer Name: CIRLENE DELL ARMI BERGAMIN ROMÃO

90 Points CASTELO Last bid offered: 750 cts/lb | buyer_1123

Bags: 2 bags

Density: 696g/L

Moisture: 11.2%

Water Activity: 0.53

Variety: CATUAÍ 81

Process: Pulped Natural

Sample: SS261225

Cupping attributes: Floral, peach, honeydew, mango, frutty, citric acidity, juicy and creamy body, long and clean aftertaste

Story: Cirlene and José Antônio’s farm, located at 1,000 meters in Castelo, Espírito Santo. Encouraged by positive feedback, they invested in quality-focused production. Today, the 9-hectare farm has 8 ha planted with varieties such as Mundo Novo, Catuaí, and Catucaí. Their eldest son, José Vitor, the fourth generation of the family, is also actively involved in all stages of production, and specialty coffee has strengthened family collaboration and ensured the continuity of their legacy.

3rd

Place

SÍITO CÓRREGO / Producer Name: DOUGLAS GUSMÃO SILVA

89 Points VARGEM ALTA Last bid offered: 1040 cts/lb | buyer_535

Bags: 2 bags

Density: 686g/L

Moisture: 11.0%

Water Activity: 0.51

Variety: CATUCAÍ 785

Process: Pulped Natural

Sample: SS261325

Cupping attributes: Tomato sauce, umami, chocolate, complex, citric acidity orange, sweet spice, long and pleasant aftertaste

Story: This family-owned property began its coffee journey in the 1980s, transitioning from pastureland to coffee cultivation. Today, the second generation leads the farm, with three brothers: Dionata, Leonardo, and Douglas, responsible for planting and harvesting, while Joyce manages administration and production control.

4th

Place

SÍTIO LIBERDADE / Producer Name: LUCIANO DUTRA PIMENTA

88.5 Points AFONSO CLAUDIO Last bid offered: 720 cts/lb | buyer_647

Bags: 2 bags

Density: 684g/L

Moisture: 11.8%

Water Activity: 0.51

Variety: CATUCAÍ 785

Process: Pulped Natural

Sample: SS261425

Cupping attributes: Caramel, sweet, yellow fruit, honey, smooth, milk chooclate, creamy body, long aftertaste

Story: With no family tradition in coffee, brothers-in-law Luciano Pimenta and Antônio Carlos came together driven by a shared goal of producing the best coffee in the region. They purchased a farm in Afonso Cláudio, Espírito Santo, where Luciano, an agricultural engineer, oversees technical decisions and quality strategies, while Antônio manages day-to-day operations. Their attention to detail led to a second-place finish in Bourbon’s quality contest in 2019, and they also promote biodiversity by planting fruit trees to support the local ecosystem and generate additional income.

5th

Place

SÍTIO BATEIA / Producer Name: JOSÉ JULIANO NALLI

88.25 Points CASTELO INITIAL VALUE: 600 cts/lb

Bags: 5 bags

Density: 684g/L

Moisture: 12.0%

Water Activity: 0.59

Variety: CATUCAÍ 785

Process: Pulped Natural

Sample: SS261525

Cupping attributes: Yellow fruits, caramel, honey, plum, brown sugar, mango, black tea, dense body, honeydew, long and pleasant aftertaste

Story: Não tem História?The Bateia community, a small rural area in Castelo, carries a rich history with the Nalli family standing out for their legacy in specialty coffee. The family began producing specialty coffees in the 2000s, spanning the third and fourth generations. Sítio Bateia, owned by Marcos Antônio Nalli since 1978, honors the community’s name, which comes from the “pan” once used to separate gold from mud. Juliano works closely on the farm, carefully managing his plots to ensure high-quality production, resulting in fine microlots that reflect his dedication.

6th

Place

SÍTIO BATEIA / Producer Name: JOSÉ JULIANO NALLI

88 Points CASTELO INITIAL VALUE: 600 cts/lb

Bags: 2 bags

Density: 686g/L

Moisture: 11.4%

Water Activity: 0.56

Variety: CATUCAÍ 785

Process: Pulped Natural

Sample: SS261625

Cupping attributes: Peach syrup, sugar cane, honey, coffee pulp, yellow fruit, creamy, dense body, long and pleasant aftertaste

Story: The Bateia community, a small rural area in Castelo, carries a rich history with the Nalli family standing out for their legacy in specialty coffee. The family began producing specialty coffees in the 2000s, spanning the third and fourth generations. Sítio Bateia, owned by Marcos Antônio Nalli since 1978, honors the community’s name, which comes from the “pan” once used to separate gold from mud. Juliano works closely on the farm, carefully managing his plots to ensure high-quality production, resulting in fine microlots that reflect his dedication.

7th

Place

SÍTIO SAGRADA FAMÍLIA / Producer Name: PEDRO HENRIQUE DELA COSTA DIAS

87.75 Points BREJETUBA Last bid offered: 650 cts/lb | buyer_535

Bags: 2 bags

Density: 684g/L

Moisture: 11.0%

Water Activity: 0.48

Variety: CATUAÍ 44

Process: Pulped Natural

Sample: SS261725

Cupping attributes: Yellow fruit, honeydew, milk chocolate, rapadura, citric acidity like lemon, smooth, clean and delicated aftertaste

Story: Sítio Sagrada Família II has been in Pedro’s family for over sixty years and is managed by his father, João Valter, who continues the family’s coffee cultivation tradition alongside Pedro. Focused on quality, they have invested in a pulping machine, covered raised beds, concrete drying patios, and mechanical dryers. Coffee is selectively picked three to four times, pulped the same day, fermented for 12–18 hours, and carefully dried on covered beds and patios or dryers, ensuring that every step produces fine microlots.

8th

Place

SÍITO CÓRREGO / Producer Name: DOUGLAS GUSMÃO SILVA

87.5 Points VARGEM ALTA Last bid offered: 600 cts/lb | buyer_4602

Bags: 5 bags

Density: 688g/L

Moisture: 11.3%

Water Activity: 0.53

Variety: CATUCAÍ 785

Process: Pulped Natural

Sample: SS261825

Cupping attributes: Caramel, honey, brown sugar, citric acidity, velvet body, long aftertaste

9th

Place

SÍTIO RECANTO FELIZ / Producer Name: Valentim Fiorezi

87 Points CASTELO Last bid offered: 600 cts/lb | buyer_535

Bags: 2 bags

Density: 676g/L

Moisture: 11.6%

Water Activity: 0.47

Variety: CATUCAÍ 785

Process: Pulped Natural

Sample: SS261925

Cupping attributes: Caramel, sweet honey, vanilla, citric acidity like orange, juicy, yellow fruit, delicated and pleasant

Story: Valentim Fiorezi, born in Pontões, Espírito Santo, grew up working with coffee on mountainsides and learned the value of careful cultivation. After marrying Edineia from the traditional Sartori family, he combined their experiences and, in 2007, took over Sítio Recanto Feliz in the Bateia community, Castelo. Valentim has since dedicated himself to managing the farm and harvest with patience and attention to detail, producing coffees that reflect the couple’s unity, commitment, and consistent quality.

10th

Place

Bourbon Specialty Coffees

Created by producers, for producers.
Bourbon Specialty Coffees is a pioneer in exporting green beans of specialty coffees from Brazil. With 25 years of history, we operate by sourcing coffees from 8 different regions and have contributed to the stories of over 2,000 producers over these two decades.
Our focus is to provide diversity to our customers in a consistent way, and having a strong partnership with our producers.

Normal Coffee Cycle in Brazil

Our competition was born with the goal of recognizing and rewarding small producers from the Espírito Santo Mountains, located in a terroir where their harvest occurs late, preventing them from participating in quality competitions held in Brazil.

This late harvest in this region is due to the phenomenon known as the March Flower.

The March Flower is the latest flowering that occurs in Brazil. While other regions of the country have their flowering in October and November, in March, Espírito Santo producers see their crops bloom.

Because this flowering occurs in March, the coffees develop during the winter period in Brazil. Being a time of milder temperatures, the ripening of these fruits can take up to 270 days to occur, almost 60 days more than in other producing regions.

More complex, floral, and sweet coffees result from this phenomenon. Incredible microlots that, before, weren't even produced because there was no market that recognized and understood this phenomenon.

In these 12 years of the competition, we celebrate the consolidation of this project, which helped highlight various names in the coffee industry of Espírito Santo, besides showcasing to the world the qualitative potential of the coffees produced there.

We celebrate this milestone with you, who join us in this edition and help us bring the history and legacy of so many producers to the world!

From the entire Bourbon team, our heartfelt thanks.

Cheers.