Differences, Distinction, and Award Status of Panama Finca Soledad Honey Process Catuai SHB Coffee Beans

Panama Jurutungo Honey Catuai

Country: Panama

Grade: SHB

Region: Firestone (Huoshi) region

Roast level: Medium

Process: Honey

Variety: Catuai

Processing mill: Firestone Estate

Flavor: Lemon, orange, cranberry, green tea

Cupping notes: Dried fruit aroma, rich fruit acidity, noticeable sweetness on entry, lemon, orange, cranberry, green tea, an even and smooth texture, soft with subtle florals, and a long-lasting sweet aftertaste

Catuai

Panama's premium coffee grows in the western part of the country, near Costa Rica and close to the Pacific. Coffee from the Boquete district of Chiriqui province is the most famous, with Volcan, Santa Clara, and Candela also well known; other regions include the David, Remacimeinto, Bugaba, and Tole districts. Only coffee grown between 1300 and 1500 meters qualifies as specialty coffee here.

"Catuai" is a hybrid of Mundo Novo and Caturra-essentially a second-generation cross. It inherits Caturra's compact tree stature, and the name comes from the indigenous language, meaning "very good." As a member of the Arabica family, Catuai is comparatively high-yielding.

Hand-brewed Firestone Estate Panama: 15g of coffee, medium grind (Fuji Royal hand grinder at setting 4), V60 dripper, water at 88-89°C. First pour with 30g of water and bloom for 27 seconds, pour to 105g and pause; once the water level drops to half, continue pouring slowly up to 225g, and cut off the tail end. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Panama's coffee belt runs through Boquete, Volcan, Santa Clara, and Piedra de Candela in the west, with Boquete and Volcan the most celebrated specialty regions. Both sit in Chiriqui province, squarely in the heart of the coffee belt, blessed with fertile volcanic soil and old-growth forest.

For a first taste of Panamanian specialty coffee, FrontStreet Coffee recommends the Boquete washed Geisha-an entry-level, estate-grade Geisha grown at 1600 meters. The region's frequent mountain mists, humid days and cool nights, and the rich soils of the Baru volcano all feed the cup, which opens with Geisha's signature jasmine, green tea, honey, citrus, and orange.

If you love the honey-process profile of this Catuai, the FrontStreet Panama Flower Butterfly is another great pick: it carries half Geisha lineage, built from Geisha, Caturra, and Catuai grown on the Baru volcano in Boquete, where abundant rain, wide day-night temperature swings, and volcanic soils produce outstanding body, citrus acidity, and jasmine aroma-equally good as a pour-over or a cold brew. And for the top of the tree, the Esmeralda Red Label Geisha comes from a single plot above 1700 meters and must cup at 91 points or higher, with refined orange blossom and honey notes.