Costa Rica Honey Process Geisha Price | Costa Rica Honey Process Geisha Coffee Pricing

Introduction to Otis Granite Estate

The Otis Granite processing plant in Costa Rica belongs to an emerging estate. The family cooperative was established in 1994, but it wasn't until 2005 that they built their own processing plant, which now has 17 years of history. Otis Granite sits about 5km north of the town of San Marcos in Tarrazu, overseeing ten coffee estates including Finca Yano. Elevations range from 1500 to 2000 meters on mountain slopes, all classified SHB (Strictly Hard Bean)—the highest grade.

Otis 2000 Meters Estate Geisha - Golden Honey Process

Flavor: The dry aroma presents a delicate spring-tea fragrance laced with orange peel and chocolate, plus notes of herbal tea, rose hips, and green grapes. As the cup cools, it gradually reveals juicy sweetness of lemon and peach. The aftertaste is like chocolate-dipped orange peel.

Manufacturer: FrontStreet Coffee
Shelf Life: 90 days
Net Weight: 100g
Packaging: Bulk coffee beans
Product Form: Roasted coffee beans
Sugar Content: Sugar-free
Origin: Costa Rica
Roast Degree: Light roast

When it comes to Geisha coffee, many people are captivated by its wonderful floral aroma and vibrant fruit acidity. A fresh surge of Panama Geisha enthusiasm in 2015 led many to assume Geisha is a variety exclusive to Panama. That is not the case: Geisha was first identified in Ethiopia in 1931 and, through successive transplants and cultivation, has since found a home in other countries and regions.

Compared to Panama Geisha, Costa Rican Geisha has more body and richness. If Panama Geisha is the fresh, delicate style, Costa Rican Geisha is the more reserved one.

Costa Rica sits on the Central American isthmus at 10°N latitude and 84°W longitude, bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the east and the North Pacific to the west. The country lies on the low-latitude volcanic belt of Central America, with the Central Plateau and mountain regions at elevations of roughly 800-2000 meters—ideal for coffee. Costa Rican coffee has always been prized for its exceptionally balanced, clean, bright flavor and berry-like acidity, and the best lots finish with spice and cocoa notes. The country's most famous growing region is Tarrazu near the capital San José: it has the highest average elevation along with superb climate and soil, making it the most renowned and generally acknowledged best coffee region in Costa Rica. Tres Rios is a celebrated sub-region within Tarrazu, and the most famous Costa Rican single estate in the specialty world is the La Minita estate in Tarrazu, with an annual production of only 160,000 pounds.

Pour-Over Yellow Honey

15g of coffee, ground medium-fine (setting 3.5 on a Fuji Royal grinder), V60 dripper, water at 91-93°C. First pour 30g of water for a 27-second bloom, then continue to 105g and pause. Once the water level in the coffee bed drops to half, continue pouring slowly until you reach 225g. Discard the tail end. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Costa Rica Tarrazu Honey Geisha

Country: Costa Rica
Grade: SHB
Region: Tarrazu
Roast Degree: Light roast
Processing Method: Honey processing

Honey Processing Method:

The cherries are depulped and the beans, still coated in mucilage, go straight to drying. What distinguishes the different honey processes is precisely this remaining mucilage: how much is retained, the drying time, and the drying method.

Characteristics of Honey Processing:

At harvest, sugar content is tested first, and only cherries measuring 21-22% sugar are picked. Honey processing also differs from other methods in requiring drying on African raised beds. Dried directly on cement or bare soil, the beans can be scratched during turning, inviting bacterial infection, and sun-drying on soil can impart earthy flavors.

Honey vs. Washed - Taste Difference:

Honey-processed coffee shows higher sweetness and sugar content, with relatively more body at the same roast level.

Honey-processed beans need good ventilation while drying; otherwise the retained mucilage can ferment or mold and cause off-flavors.

The honey processes we commonly see are Yellow Honey, Red Honey, and Black Honey.

Variety: Geisha
Processing Plant: Otis Granite Processing Plant
Flavor: Herbal tea, rose hips, green grape flavors

Costa Rica's honey process (known in Chinese as "mi" processing) is one of the country's signatures, and these red-honey beans are a perfect introduction to it.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Geisha's hypnotic florals and lively fruit acidity have made it the world's most coveted variety—low-yielding, disease-susceptible, and demanding to grow, which keeps prices high. FrontStreet Coffee recommends three ways in:

FrontStreet Esmeralda Red Label & Green Label Geisha — from Panama's legendary Hacienda La Esmeralda, the estate that made Geisha famous. The Red Label (Esmeralda Special) grows at 1600-1800 meters, must cup above 90 points, and comes from a single plot per batch with a unique lot number (FrontStreet's from the Harramuyo plot). The Green Label (Private Collection) blends lots across high-altitude plots to express the estate's signature Geisha character—orange-blossom honeyed sweetness, rich juicy fruit acidity, and a tea-like finish—at a friendlier price and superb value.

FrontStreet "Strawberry Candy" Geisha Blend — a house blend pairing honey-processed Costa Rica with Panama Geisha, delivering delicate florals and sweet fruit in one cup: rose and strawberry-gummy aromas, moderate grape and citrus acidity, and an almond-scented finish. It works as a pour-over or cold brew for its crisp floral-fruit character, and equally well through an espresso machine, where the shot shows fine crema and a silky strawberry-gummy sweetness with no harshness—brilliant as an americano or a latte.