The Legendary History of Panama's La Esmeralda Estate and the Characteristics and Flavors of Its Famous Coffee Varieties

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The reason why La Esmeralda's Geisha became world-renowned coffee was due to a coincidence. Retired Swedish-American banker Rudolph A. Peterson bought La Esmeralda estate in Panama to spend his later years. Unexpectedly, the coffee trees in the estate bore fruit, and he casually sent them to participate in coffee competitions. As a result, they became famous overnight, winning the national championship at the 2004 Panama Specialty Coffee Competition.

This coffee variety, which had never appeared in coffee competitions before, began to attract attention. However, most people held a wait-and-see attitude, with some even considering it a fluke. Unexpectedly, it won the championship again the following year, making it impossible to ignore. Due to limited production, people turned to buying Geisha coffee beans from other countries. Subsequently, La Esmeralda continued to win championships year after year, becoming practically a Panamanian national treasure. But winning only Panama's recognition wasn't enough. In 2005, La Esmeralda Geisha defeated heroes from around the world in the SCAA (Specialty Coffee Association of America) competition, winning the title of World's Best. It won world championships again in 2006 and 2007. At this point, La Esmeralda Geisha had become a sensational topic in coffee circles worldwide.

La Esmeralda Geisha's Three Brands

La Esmeralda Geisha has 3 brands, divided by altitude:

Auction Geisha (ESMERALDA SPECIAL) (Red Label): Selected from altitudes above 1550 meters.

Boquete Geisha (Green Label): Geisha selected from 1500 meters.

ESMERALDA 1,500 (Blue Label): Selected Geisha varieties from around 1500 meters altitude.

Award Records

(The following are the award records of La Esmeralda):

Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) Annual Cupping Competition Champion

1st Place Specialty Coffee Association of America

Roasters Guild Cupping Pavilion

Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) Annual Cupping Competition Second Place

2nd Place Coffee of the Year

Best of Panama Champion

1st Place "Best of Panama"

Rainforest Alliance Coffee Quality Cupping Competition Champion

1st Place Rainforest A for Quality

Pour-over Brewing Instructions

FrontStreet Coffee's pour-over La Esmeralda Blue Label Geisha. 15g of coffee, medium-fine grind (Fuji鬼齿刀 3.5 grind), V60 dripper, 91-93°C water temperature. First pour 30g of water, let bloom for 27 seconds. Pour to 105g and stop. Wait until the water level drops to half, then continue pouring slowly until reaching 225g. Avoid the tail section. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Product Information

Panama Geisha (Hacienda La Esmeralda)
FrontStreet Coffee Panama La Esmeralda Blue Label Geisha

Country: Panama

Grade: Blue Label

Region: Slopes of Baru Volcano

Roast Level: Light Roast

Processing Method: Washed

Variety: Geisha

Estate: La Esmeralda

Flavor Notes: Oolong tea aroma, peach aroma, honey sweetness

FrontStreet Coffee Panama · La Esmeralda Geisha Coffee Beans

Panama Geisha (Hacienda La Esmeralda)

Origin: Panama

Region: Located on the slopes of Baru Volcano, Panama's highest peak in the west

Estate: Esmeralda (La Esmeralda) / Hacienda La Esmeralda

Grade: Blue Label

Growing Altitude: 1450M

Processing Method: Fine washed processing

Special Certification: Rainforest Alliance Certified

Roast Level: Light roast city-

What is the Panama Auction?

In 1996, during the lowest period of international coffee prices, seven coffee estates in the Boquete and Volcan regions saw the dawn of the specialty coffee era. They organized and formed the famous Panamanian Association of Special Coffees of Panama (SCAP). In 2013, the highest bid for washed Geisha in the BOP exceeded $160 USD/pound, while the highest bid for natural Geisha was won by a natural Geisha from Hacienda La Esmeralda at over $350 USD/pound.

To date, La Esmeralda estate has won 12 championships in various coffee competitions. In online public auctions, it has set the highest bid record three times: $21 USD in 2004, $50.25 USD in 2006, and $130 USD in 2007! Of course, other countries have also seen good coffee fetch nearly $50 USD per pound (Brazil's 2005 CoE champion Fazenda Santa Inês, Guatemala's 2008 CoE champion El Injerto at $80.20 USD). But note the timing - when La Esmeralda's prices set records, no previous auction prices had surpassed hers. Afterwards, there were some, but she would surpass others again. She is truly a record creator, not by luck!

La Esmeralda estate was purchased by Price Peterson's father, Swedish-American banker Rudolph A. Peterson, who once served as President of Bank of America and was a major figure in the financial world at the time. Rudolph bought Hacienda La Esmeralda just for vacation and later retirement use, probably not expecting that this estate would become world-famous and even represent Panama's specialty coffee estates. After Price took over, he divided the market into three major brands based on altitude, microclimate, cupping performance, and planted varieties. (The Geisha variety was discovered in the Geisha forest of Ethiopia in 1931, then sent to Kenya's Coffee Research Institute; introduced to Uganda and Tanzania in 1936, Costa Rica introduced it in 1953. Not many people paid attention to Geisha until one day when Don Pachi initially brought it from the small town of GESHA in southwestern Ethiopia to Costa Rica. Afterwards, Geisha entered Panama along the southern route, and Panama's La Esmeralda estate separated it from other varieties and won the national coffee championship.)

Manufacturer: Coffee Workshop
Address: No. 10 Bao'an Front Street, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, FrontStreet Coffee
Manufacturer Contact: 020-38364473
Shelf Life: 90 days
Net Weight: 100g
Packaging: Bulk
Origin: Panama

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