Cafe Pret Coffee: Indulge in a unique experience with the Lapa blend
In 2021, Costa Rica exported over $370 million worth of coffee. If you're one of the many coffee lovers in the United States who loves Costa Rican coffee, you should shop at Café Pret.
Café Pret specializes in premium coffee, sourcing and roasting all of our beans in Costa Rica for over 30 years.
Our customers love the Habitat line for a reason, and not just because our blends are delicious. With this coffee, we're preserving Costa Rica's wilderness and honoring the workers who preserve the country's native wildlife.
Lapa Mix: The latest addition to the Habitat line
The Lapa blend is inspired by the red lappa bird native to Costa Rica. Learn more about our new release in this post.
Habitat Lapa Mix Production Process
At Café Pret, we partner with local coffee farms in Costa Rica. Our partners hand-select the finest beans, so you can enjoy incomparably luxurious flavors.
We wanted to add a special touch to our Lapa blend, so we roasted the beans to their deepest, bringing out their naturally sweet flavors. This dark roast also features subtle almond notes for an unforgettable experience.
Promise Lapa Mix from Cafe Pret
With every cup of Habitat Lapa Blend, you're not only getting a delicious sip, but also supporting the wildlife conservation efforts of the Nama Conservancy.
The Nama Conservancy aims to protect the native red parrot, also known as the red lappa. The conservancy also raises public awareness and supports local biologists in their efforts to conserve this endangered species.
In support of the Nama Sanctuary's mission, we are donating 1,000 educational books to schools across Costa Rica. We are also providing artificial nests and wildlife cameras to aid research on these magnificent birds.
All about the red lava
Costa Rica is making strides in red lappa conservation efforts. Learn about the colorful birds that inspired our lappa mix below.
What is red lava?
The red lappa (Ara macao) is the local name for the red macaw in Costa Rica. Several species of macaws live in Costa Rica, including the green macaw or green lappa.
Red macaws are large, colorful birds that live in humid regions such as the tropics. They feature bright red, yellow, and blue feathers. You can distinguish a red macaw from a green macaw by the green feathers on its wingtips.
The green macaw (Ara abigus) has a similar body, head, and beak, but the difference is that these birds have mostly green plumage with touches of blue, red, and yellow on their wings.
Where do red lapis live?
Red lapwings live throughout the Americas. They prefer humid environments, such as forests, swamps, and even wooded urban areas. As such, they are commonly found in the following countries:
- Mexico
- Peru
- Ecuador
- Colombia
- Bolivia
- Venezuela
- Brazil
- Trinidad
- Cuba
The red-headed macaw is also the national bird of Honduras, a country in Central America. The red-headed macaw is native to areas of Costa Rica such as Puntarenas, Esparza, Cambronero, Desmonte, Acosta, La Cangreja, and Parita.
In fact, some experts believe that the largest population of red-headed macaws in the world lives in and around Carara National Park, one of Costa Rica's most popular tourist destinations.
What do red lapis eat?
The red lappa follows a vegetarian diet, enjoying fruits, seeds, leaves, and flowers. But its favorite food may surprise you: tree bark.
These birds enjoy eating the bark of a variety of trees, including teak, beach almond, oak, and havelo. Among their favorite trees are galinazo and royal palm trees.
Perhaps one of the reasons red-headed parrots love tree bark is that they build their nests in these trees. Red-headed parrots prefer to build their nests in galinazo, cebus, and ochuk trees.
Are red lapis endangered?
The International Union for Conservation of Nature classifies the red-bellied macaw (Ruby lappa) as "least concern," meaning they do not consider it to be threatened with extinction.
However, various countries in Central and South America classify the red lappa as endangered. The parrot trade, captive breeding, and extensive deforestation of the lappa's habitat have nearly wiped out the native species.
Recently, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service joined these countries. In 2019, the group announced its plan to classify the red lapwing as an endangered species.
Get the best premium Costa Rican coffee from Cafe Pret.
If you're a Costa Rican coffee lover, try our latest offering. The Habitat Lapa blend features chocolate and cinnamon flavors with subtle hints of almond. Most importantly, your purchase of this dark roast helps support conservation efforts for the magnificent red lappa bird, also known as the red parrot, a critically endangered species in Costa Rica.
Looking for the perfect dark roast to add to your morning coffee menu? Café Pret's Habitat Lapa blend is the flavor experience you've been dreaming of. Get a bag from Café Pret today!