Alfonso Lacerda

About the Farm

Sítio Forquilha do Rio is located in Dores do Rio Preto, Espírito Santo, at the border of Minas Gerais, in the Serra do Caparaó region near Caparaó National Park.

The farm extends across approximately 47 hectares at elevations ranging from 1,200 to 1,430 meters above sea level, offering ideal mountain conditions for slow cherry maturation and refined cup development.

Managed through a strong family farming model, the property combines environmental preservation, selective harvesting, and quality-focused production methods that have positioned the family among the leading specialty coffee producers in Brazil.

Production Approach

The coffees are harvested manually through selective picking, ensuring only cherries at peak ripeness are processed.

Post-harvest processing follows natural methods, with coffees dried slowly on covered patios for approximately 16 to 18 days under careful monitoring and controlled handling.

The family maintains strict quality standards throughout processing, including impurity separation using specialized reprocessing equipment and rigorous lot selection focused on cup clarity, sweetness, and consistency.

Varieties cultivated include Red and Yellow Catuaí, as well as the distinctive Caparaó Amarelo, a regional variety currently studied for its unique genetic profile.

Background

Afonso Lacerda belongs to a family with more than 80 years of coffee-growing tradition and represents the third generation of producers at Sítio Forquilha do Rio. Together with his brothers Ademir and José Alexandre, his wife Altilina, and the younger generations of the family, Afonso has helped transform the farm into an internationally respected specialty coffee reference.

He is a two-time winner of the prestigious Coffee of the Year competition during Brazil’s International Coffee Week and one of the most awarded producers in the history of the Brazilian specialty coffee sector. The family also operates Onofre Cafés Especiais, named in honor of the family patriarch, where visitors and international buyers can experience the coffees and the culture behind their production in the Caparaó region