The Story and Origins of Panama Finca Soledad Honey Process Catuai SHB Specialty Coffee Beans

"Catuai" is a second-generation hybrid, a cross between Mundo Novo and Caturra, and it inherits the compact, low-growing plant structure that makes Caturra so easy to harvest. The name comes from an indigenous language meaning "very good," which is fitting: as a member of the Arabica family, Catuai is a reliably high-yielding variety.

Pour-over recipe for this Panamanian lot: dose 15 g of medium-ground coffee (set at #4 on a Fuji Royal ghost-tooth burr grinder), brewed on a V60 dripper with water at 88-89°C. Start with a 30 g bloom pour and let it sit for 27 seconds, then pour up to 105 g and pause. Once the water level has dropped to roughly half, continue pouring slowly until you reach 225 g in total. Cut the brew before the tail end. The water-to-coffee ratio is 1:15, with a total extraction time of about 2:00.

Coffee Details

Panama Jurutungo Honey Catuai

Country: Panama

Grade: SHB

Region: Flint District

Roast Level: Medium roast

Processing Method: Honey process

Variety: Catuai

Mill: Flint Estate

Flavor Notes: Lemon, orange, cranberry, green tea

About Catuai

Panama's premium coffees are grown in the west of the country, near the Costa Rican border and the Pacific coast. The most celebrated coffee comes from the Boquete district of Chiriquí province, with Volcán, Santa Clara, and Piedra de Candela also well known. Other producing areas include the David, Remacimeinto, Bugaba, and Tole districts. Only coffee grown between 1,300 and 1,500 meters above sea level qualifies as specialty grade.

Cupping Notes

Expect a dried-fruit aroma and a vibrant, well-defined fruit acidity carried on a clear sweetness. In the cup you'll find lemon, orange, cranberry, and a green-tea finish. The body is even and silky, soft with a subtle floral undertone, and the aftertaste lingers pleasantly long.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If this honey-processed Catuai has you curious about Panamanian coffee, FrontStreet's Panama Washed Butterfly (Hua Hudie) coffee is a natural next step. It carries half Geisha lineage, being composed of three varieties — Geisha, Caturra, and Catuai — and is grown in the Baru volcano area of Boquete. Panama's distinctive microclimate brings abundant rainfall and a wide day-night temperature difference, while the volcanic rocky soil and meticulous harvesting and processing give the cup excellent body, bright citrus acidity, and the jasmine fragrance characteristic of Geisha.

Versatile enough for both pour-over and cold brew, the Butterfly lot makes an easy companion piece to this Catuai: expect floral aromatics, citrus sweetness, and a clean, structured cup that showcases why Boquete's volcanic slopes are among Central America's finest growing regions.