Introduction to Panama's Hacienda La Esmeralda Coffee Region | Altitude of La Esmeralda Coffee Beans

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Today, the popularity of specialty coffee is growing daily, with countless varieties of exquisitely flavored coffee beans. When it comes to the most popular coffee variety, Geisha undoubtedly takes the crown. Since Geisha made its name in Panama, various producing regions have rushed to introduce this variety, hoping to produce the "pinnacle of the coffee world." Colombia, Guatemala, Ethiopia, and even China's Yunnan province have begun producing Geisha coffee in recent years. To experience classic Geisha flavors, FrontStreet Coffee believes that Panamanian Geisha is the most representative.

Panama's Specialty Coffee Regions

Panama's coffee cultivation is concentrated in the western highlands: Boquete, Volcan, and Renacimiento. Among these, the Boquete valley and the Volcan area surrounding Baru Volcano are the most famous. Both regions are located in Chiriquí Province, perfectly situated in the center of the coffee belt, with fertile volcanic soil and pristine forests. Most of Panama's mountain ranges run from east to west, and cold air currents converge through the central mountains at altitudes above 6,500 meters, creating unique microclimates in the Boquete and Candela regions. The ideal temperatures for plant growth, fertile soil, and abundant rainfall here provide favorable conditions for cultivating high-quality coffee like Geisha.

The Boquete region is one of the towns in Chiriquí Province, located on the eastern side of Baru Volcano at altitudes of approximately 1,000-2,000 meters. It faces the warm and humid Caribbean monsoon winds while its back is exposed to cold Atlantic currents. The mountains are high and steep, with "Baru Volcano National Park" serving as a conservation area with rich biodiversity, featuring seven microclimates. Additionally, the area is shrouded in mist year-round with abundant rainfall, creating excellent local cultivation conditions, such as the renowned Hacienda La Esmeralda found on FrontStreet Coffee's bean list.

Geisha's "Talent Scout" - Hacienda La Esmeralda

When it comes to Geisha, Hacienda La Esmeralda's reputation is known to everyone in the specialty coffee world. In 2004, their Geisha won the Best of Panama coffee competition that year and continuously broke auction price records, gaining attention from the coffee industry ever since. Hacienda La Esmeralda brought Geisha to fame and was also the first coffee estate to strictly grade Geisha beans. Every year, the Geisha batches produced by the estate receive industry attention. After Geisha won the championship, the estate owners, the Peterson siblings, began more systematic management of the Geisha coffee trees in their estate based on altitude, region, and cupping performance.

Broadly, the Geisha cultivation areas are divided into three major plots: Cañas Verdes, Jaramillo, and El Velo. To ensure traceability of each coffee batch, the Petersons divided each major plot into smaller sub-plots, allowing buyers of Geisha coffee to access specific cultivation plot information through batch numbers.

The Geisha variety was first discovered in the Jaramillo plot, and it was here that the Peterson siblings decided to increase the cultivation altitude of Geisha. As the discovery and breeding ground for Geisha, Jaramillo has become Hacienda La Esmeralda's most famous plot. Jaramillo has an average altitude of over 1,650 meters, where the cool, moist air on the mountain allows the Geisha coffee here to be rich in natural essence and fragrant. Currently, Jaramillo is divided into five sub-plots: Mario, Noria, Reina, Bosque, and Buenos Aires. Among these, the Mario and Bosque plots have performed excellently in various competitions.

Hacienda La Esmeralda's coffee processing plant is established in Cañas Verdes, located at the foot of Baru Volcano, about a twenty-minute drive from the town of Boquete. When coffee cherries ripen, the estate arranges for workers to strictly follow standards, harvesting only at optimal maturity. All picking and selection is done by hand, and the cherries are transported to the processing plant in the shortest possible time.

Red Label Geisha and Green Label Geisha

On FrontStreet Coffee's bean list, there are about 10 different Geisha coffee options alone. Some might wonder what the "Red Label" and "Green Label" designations actually mean?

The so-called Red Label refers to the ESMERALDA SPECIAL grade (including auction batches). The highest-grade Red Label is harvested from high-altitude Geisha (1600-1800 meters) coffee cherries with cupping scores exceeding 90 points, primarily from the Jaramillo and Cañas Verdes farms.

Despite the challenges of cultivation and harvesting at high altitudes, the floral and fruity flavors of Geisha from the Boquete region are most prominent. Hacienda La Esmeralda holds independent auction competitions, and the Red Label batches selected from designated plots for competition are called auction batches. Each auction batch has a unique number, with each number corresponding to an entire batch from a specific plot. The one we most commonly hear about is probably the Mario plot from the Jaramillo farm. The Esmeralda Red Label Geisha coffee beans that FrontStreet Coffee acquired come from the Mario plot and are processed using the natural method.

To ensure more even drying of coffee cherries, Hacienda La Esmeralda's natural coffee production combines traditional patio drying with electric Guardiola dryers. The Guardiola allows constant hot air to flow around the beans, thus evenly removing moisture and presenting a more balanced flavor profile.

The Green Label refers to PRIVATE COLLECTION. Green Label is selected from coffee grown at altitudes of 1600-1800 meters, all harvested from the Jaramillo and Cañas Verdes plots. However, Hacienda La Esmeralda does not specify specific plot information, so these batches do not participate in auctions. Although the grade is not as high as the Red Label, it mainly showcases the signature classic flavors of high-altitude Geisha. The Green Label Geisha that FrontStreet Coffee acquired uses the washed processing method, with cupping notes revealing fresher, more natural lemon, berry, pomelo, and Tieguanyin tea flavors.

What are the Considerations for Pour-Over Geisha Coffee?

Geisha coffee is world-renowned for its rich floral aromas and complex fruit notes. FrontStreet Coffee's roasters hope to preserve more of Geisha's quality acidity, so they choose light to medium-light roasting (with slight adjustments for different batches). This roast level doesn't significantly change the high density of high-altitude beans, so brewing requires a higher extraction rate to present fuller flavor layers. This involves using higher water temperatures and slightly finer grind settings to extract more aromatic compounds. Additionally, FrontStreet Coffee wants Geisha's flavor characteristics to be more clearly expressed, so they use a slightly wider coffee-to-water ratio of 1:16.

To improve Geisha coffee extraction rates while avoiding over-extraction and highlighting sweet and sour flavor layers, FrontStreet Coffee's baristas use the V60 dripper. The V60 dripper features flow ribs connecting the top and bottom and a large central hole that accelerates water flow downward. The spiral-shaped air vents design extends the water flow path, increasing contact time between coffee grounds and hot water. Each water stream converges along the grooves toward the center of the dripper, concentrating pressure on the coffee grounds and extracting coffee with richer layering.

Below, FrontStreet Coffee demonstrates the brewing steps for their house-pour Esmeralda Red Label Natural Geisha, which everyone can reference and compare with their own brewing approach.

The pour-over parameters for Red Label Geisha coffee are: Dripper: V60, Water temperature: 92°C, Coffee amount: 15g, Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:16, Grind size: Fine sugar (20-mesh sieve 80% pass-through)

Fold the filter paper to fit snugly with the dripper, wet it with a small amount of water to make it adhere better, and pour out the water from the lower pot. Then add the coffee grounds and tap gently to distribute them evenly. For the first pour, gently inject 30g of water for blooming, with a bloom time of 30 seconds. For the second pour, inject up to about 125g of water, circling evenly and steadily outward. Then wait for the coffee liquid to drop, and when it reaches halfway, inject the final pour to reach 240g. Wait for all the coffee to finish dripping. The total extraction time is generally around 2 minutes.

The pour-over Esmeralda Red Label Geisha coffee tastes fresh with jasmine, citrus, and tropical fruit acidity. The flavor layers change with temperature variations, the overall mouthfeel is smooth, and the aftertaste has a pleasant tea-like aroma.

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