I visited an offbeat coffee-making hotspot that could save the industry — here's what it was like

On a recent tour of the Costa Rican coffee farm where he volunteers as a tour guide, Felix Salazar poured out a cup of the inky, aromatic brew and asked me to wait for what he called "the bite."

Within seconds after I took a sip, the coffee's initial sweet flavor gave way to a deeper, tangy taste that left me wanting more.

I'm not alone. Coffee is one of the most widely consumed beverages in the world, and its active ingredient — caffeine — is currently the most popular psychoactive drug on the planet.

But coffee is in trouble.

According to a new study in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, the world's largest coffee-producing regions could shrink by as much as 88% by 2050 as a result of climate change. The study is the first of its kind to look at how bees — key coffee crop pollinators — will be impacted by a warmer planet.

While the vast majority of coffee-making hotspots in South America will be decimated by climate change, some countries may be spared, according to the new analysis. One of those countries is Costa Rica. Here's what it's like to make coffee in the country.

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The region of Monteverde, where a lot of Costa Rica's coffee is grown, is a misty, cloud-enshrined area about three hours from San Jose, the capital. The humid, shady climate is ideal for growing coffee plants, but the drive to reach it can be a challenge if you're not familiar with the roads.

Here's a snapshot from my recent drive to Cafe Monteverde, a coffee farm in Costa Rica.

I was introduced to the coffee farm by Felix Salazar (left), a nature photographer born and raised in Monteverde who also works on the farm and gives tours in his free time. Felix walked me through the rolling green fields where the coffee for Cafe Monteverde is grown.

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