Panama Elida Estate Single-Origin Bean Grading, Pricing, Green Beans, and Roasting Profile

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Panama Elida Estate Single Origin Bean Classification, Price, Green Beans and Roasting Profile

Panama Elida Estate Coffee from Chiriqui Province, Boquete

I've always preferred the intense flavors of African beans, and in my impression, Central American beans seemed to represent the mild-mannered camp. Whether from Costa Rica or Guatemala, Caribbean island coffees are close to being synonymous with "juice." However, this Panama coffee gave me a pleasant surprise. Its refreshing fruit acidity is noticeably more vivid than other Central American countries and closer to the sweet and sour aroma of ripe fruit. Upon tasting, besides being balanced and clean, the rich sweetness and slightly syrupy texture further enhance its smoothness and liveliness—apart from the floral notes and citrus flavors, the overall mouthfeel is no less impressive than Geisha.

Cupping Keywords: Caramel sweetness, sweet, clean, balanced, medium body

Green Bean Information:

Grower: Familia Chiari

Region: Boquete Town, Chiriqui Province, Panama

Processing: Fully washed

Altitude: 1500 meters

Harvest Period: October to March of the following year

Soil: Volcanic ash soil

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 solely for vacation and later retirement use, probably not anticipating that this estate would become world-famous and even represent Panama's fine coffee estates. After Price took over, he segmented the market into three major brands based on altitude, microclimate, cupping performance, and cultivated varieties (Esmeralda Special, Diamond Mountain grows, Palmyra).

Palmyra (Rainforest Alliance certified) coffee from this brand is grown near the Baru Volcano Park area, exclusively with Catuai varieties, representing typical Panama Boquete high-altitude coffee flavors. The acidity isn't too sharp, with nutty sweetness and vanilla chocolate flavors. Palmyra is actually La Esmeralda's highest-yielding coffee, accounting for about 70% of the entire family's coffee production. Elida Estate is located in Panama's western border province—Chiriqui Province's Boquete region. The province's most famous landmark and tourist attraction is the 3300-meter-high Baru Volcano—Baru Volcano is one of the highest volcanoes in Central America, covering approximately 14,000 hectares. Based on altitude, it can be divided into seven different microclimate zones. Within the volcano range, many rare plants, birds, and mammals inhabit. The Boquete region is located on the eastern side of Baru Volcano, a valley area formed by volcanic lava flow, adjacent to Panama's another famous coffee producing region—Volcan Valley.

Baru is a young volcano with an altitude exceeding 3400 meters, classified as an active volcano with seven different microclimate zones surrounding it, nurturing rich and diverse ecosystems. The diverse microclimates have both advantages and disadvantages for coffee cultivation, but for Elida, her flavor is richer and more aromatic than most Panama beans, with black berry aftertaste and varied mouthfeel becoming the main reasons why connoisseurs extremely love her.

However, high-altitude terrain also has disadvantages. For example, Elida's average coffee cultivation altitude exceeds 1700 meters. Combined with high terrain and low night temperatures, coffee takes five years after planting before it can be harvested, making the waiting period extremely long. After entering the harvest period, coffee ripening often exceeds one month. If abnormal weather occurs before ripening, such as typhoons, heavy rain, or other irresistible factors, knowing it will cause significant losses, but because the beans aren't ripe, insisting on quality by not rushing to harvest leads to sharply reduced yields. The risk is actually much greater than for low-altitude estates.

Panama coffee is famous for Geisha from Hacienda La Esmeralda, and the region where Hacienda La Esmeralda is located is also quite famous; it's the Boquete region in Chiriqui Province. Boquete is a town in Chiriqui Province, located near the border between Panama and Costa Rica, close to the famous Baru Volcano, with beautiful scenery, fertile and rich soil, and climate and soil perfectly suitable for producing high-quality coffee.

Since 2006, Elida's selected batches have consistently ranked among the best Panama-winning batches, with prices becoming increasingly prestigious year by year. Among Central American estates, Elida should be considered the most having "Kenyan black berry notes," with its black berries and persistent complex fruit flavors often receiving endless praise. Judges also flock to Elida's unique "umami," a term derived from "Umami." Currently, many experts include "umami" as the fifth basic taste (sweet, sour, bitter, salty, umami). Umami's effect is similar to monosodium glutamate, enhancing freshness or used in foods like dried shiitake mushrooms, aged cheese, and kombu for making broth. Umami in coffee is related to good "aftertaste," such as having a long and pleasant aftertaste after sipping, all belonging to the perception of umami flavors.

The equipment, utensils, and processing steps at Elida's processing facility are all meticulously managed. Generally, when coffee cherries reach a certain stage of post-processing, if their moisture content exceeds 20% for extended periods, not only do the high-quality components within the coffee cherries easily dissipate, but there's also the possibility of off-flavors developing. Additionally, Elida's processing facility is still at high altitude, so it has dedicated processing equipment to control temperature and timing during drying. This must be controlled perfectly and is also a crucial key step affecting quality.

This batch uses natural processing method, with the classic Typica variety. Typica: The oldest native variety from Ethiopia, grown in southeastern Ethiopia and Sudan. All Arabica varieties derive from Typica. The flavor is elegant, but the plant is weak with poor disease resistance and low fruit yield. Excellent estate beans like Jamaica Blue Mountain, Sumatra Mandheling, and Hawaii Kona all belong to Typica. Typica has reddish-brown terminal leaves, called red-tipped coffee, and belongs to Arabica.

More than half of Elida Estate's area is within Panama's National Park reserve area. It's a rare ultra-high-altitude estate in Central America, growing coffee between 1700 meters to nearly 2000 meters based on terrain feasibility, famous for its main flavor axis of "richness and umami."

Elida Estate belongs to owner Wilford Lamotis. This estate grows three varieties, including Typica, Geisha, and Catuai, with the nursery area cultivating seedlings of these varieties. The journey to the estate is beautiful, and at 1700 meters, the air becomes cold, like walking in high mountains enjoying forest bathing and breathing very fresh air. The estate's terrain at 2000 meters is steep, but after crossing the ridge line to reach the saddle area, it's surprisingly flat open ground with terrain that can block the howling mountain winds. Wilford says this is the best place to grow Geisha!

Flavor Description: Rich tropical fruits, strawberry aroma, black plums, apricots, peaches, longan, rich fruit wine aroma.

Brand: FrontStreet Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee)

Net Weight: 227g

Packaging: Bulk

Bean State: Roasted coffee beans

Sugar Content: Sugar-free

Origin: Panama

Roast Level: Medium roast

Typica is a tall cultivar of Arabica, originating from the branch from Yemen to Java, and began spreading on Java Island in the early 18th century.

Ethiopia's oldest native variety, all Arabica varieties derive from Typica. Typica has bronze terminal leaves, with oval or slender, pointed beans; elegant flavor, but weak plant with poor disease resistance and low fruit yield. Excellent estate beans like Jamaica Blue Mountain, Sumatra Mandheling, and Hawaii Kona all belong to Typica.

Its plant is very similar to what we call Java today, with bronze-tipped young leaves, large fruits and seeds, very low yield, and susceptible to all major pests and diseases.

Pour-over Panama. 15g powder, medium grind (small Fuji ghost tooth grinder #4), V60 dripper, 88-89°C water temperature. First pour 30g water, bloom for 27 seconds, pour to 105g then stop pouring. Wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to half, then continue pouring. Slowly pour until reaching 225g total water. Don't use the tail section. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Panama Boquete Elida Typica Natural

Country: Panama

Grade: SHB

Region: Boquete

Roast Level: Medium roast

Processing Method: Natural

Variety: Typica

Flavor: Rich tropical fruits, strawberry aroma, black plums

Panama

Population: 3,406,000

Panama's regional coffee definition is based on how coffee is produced, not on geographical divisions. Previously, when coffee was more widely cultivated, when the regions listed below were smaller and more clustered, their coffee beans could be combined as one unit.

BOQUETE

The Boquete region is Panama's most famous producing region. Its mountainous terrain creates many microclimates. Relatively cool weather and frequent fog help slow the maturation of coffee cherries, which some consider similar to high-altitude climate.

Altitude: 400-1,900m

Harvest: December - March

Varieties: Typica, Caturra, Catuai, Bourbon, Geisha, San Ramon

VOLCAN-CANDELA

The Candela Volcano region produces most of Panama's food and some amazing coffee. The region is named after Baru Volcano and Piedra Candela city, bordering Costa Rica.

Altitude: 1,200-1,600m

Harvest: December - March

Varieties: Typica, Caturra, Catuai, Bourbon, Geisha, San Ramon

RENACIMIENTO

Renacimiento is a producing region in Chiriqui Province, bordering Costa Rica. The area itself is relatively small, so it's not Panama's main specialty coffee producing region.

Altitude: 1,100-1,500m

Harvest: December - March

Varieties: Typica, Caturra, Catuai, Bourbon, Geisha, San Ramon

Estate Information:

Elida Estate is located in Panama's western border - Chiriqui Province (Chiriqui-Boquete). The province's Baru Volcano is one of the highest volcanoes in Central America, and its fertile volcanic soil provides optimal nutrients for coffee. Baru Volcano is divided into seven different microclimate zones based on altitude, with a national park established for protection, prohibiting human development and hunting, protecting rare and precious plants, birds, and mammals. Elida Estate covers approximately 65 hectares, with half located within the national park. Only 30% of the estate is planted with coffee trees, while the remainder remains primary forest.

Coffee Region: Panama / Boquete

Estate Founded: 1918

Estate Size: 65 hectares

Planting Area: 30 hectares

Planting Altitude: Approximately 1850 meters

Grading Standard: SHB

Coffee Varieties: Typica

Soil Type: Volcanic soil

Average Annual Temperature: Average 20°C

Annual Rainfall: Approximately 2400mm

Processing Method: Natural process

Harvesting Method: Hand-picked

Related Certifications: Shade trees / Bird-friendly

Award Records:

2015 Best Of Panama - Natural process 4th place

2014 Best Of Panama - Natural process 3rd place

2013 Best Of Panama - Natural process 6th place

2010 Best Of Panama - Natural process 6th place

2009 Best Of Panama - Natural process 5th place

2008 Best Of Panama - Natural process 10th place

2007 Best Of Panama - Natural process 3rd place

2006 Best Of Panama - Natural process 13th place

Panama Elida (Natural)

More than half of Elida Estate's area is within Panama's National Park reserve area. It's a rare ultra-high-altitude estate in Central America, growing coffee between 1700 meters to nearly 2000 meters, famous for its main flavor axis of "richness and umami." Elida Estate's flavor is richer and more aromatic than most Panama beans, with black berry aftertaste and varied mouthfeel becoming the main reasons why connoisseurs extremely love her. Elida Estate is also a consistent winner in the Best of Panama competition.

Cupping

The black berry flavor is prominent upon entry, very clean and full, with good oiliness, excellent balance of sweetness and acidity, high-altitude tomato flavor, and persistent oiliness.

The Boquete region has always been Panama's most watched coffee producing area, with many world-renowned famous estates—such as Hacienda La Esmeralda, which became famous overnight with the Geisha variety, Hartman Estate, Mama Cata Estate, Kotowa Estate, Santa Teresa Estate, etc., which are regular winners of Best of Panama. Elida Estate itself is also a heavyweight star estate in the Boquete region—having won Best of Panama awards for five consecutive years, with an impressive record second only to Hacienda La Esmeralda. Elida Estate covers 65 hectares, with more than half located within Baru Volcano National Park. Of the estate, 30 hectares are planted with coffee trees, while the remaining 35 hectares are primary forest. Coffee cultivation altitude ranges from 1670 meters to 1850 meters, making it one of Panama's two highest-altitude coffee estates (the other estate with this altitude should be Carmen Estate in Volcan Valley).

In European and American markets, coffee beans are basically espresso blend beans: Espresso (any blend of two or more coffee beans roasted dark can be called espresso beans, and most espresso rarely uses high-altitude specialty coffee beans as ingredients, and Europe and America are no exception), with single origin coffees being few and far between! Let alone estate specialty coffee beans. Europeans and Americans pursue rich mouthfeel when drinking coffee (due to their dietary habits!), they basically rarely drink single origin coffee; single origin coffee is often not roasted as dark as espresso, and the mouthfeel isn't as intense as espresso, so these high-altitude estate specialty single origin coffees are basically purchased by British royalty and consumers in Japan, Singapore, Taiwan, Hong Kong, mainland China, etc. These customers, like their requirements for good tea, demand not only to taste the pure mouthfeel of the origin but also the health benefits of coffee; in fact, many Chinese people's requirements for product quality are far higher than Europeans and Americans, it's just that domestically, due to various reasons, buying good products requires some effort; since Europeans and Americans mainly drink espresso, it's very difficult to buy high mountain estate coffee beans abroad.

The following coffee origins are only partial varieties. Some coffee beans from certain origins have very small annual harvests, and it's common not to be able to buy them. Customers often ask which coffee tastes better, but it's hard to say since tastes vary. Many estate specialty coffees, because they need to preserve the characteristics of their growing environment during roasting, are not roasted as dark as espresso (the darker the roast, the more characteristics are lost). There will always be some acidity, but the better the origin, the weaker the acidity, the purer the mouthfeel, and the lower the bitterness. A truly perfect cup of Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee has this perfect mouthfeel.

Thanks to Boquete's unique climate, with distinct wet and dry seasons, ample sunlight and rainfall, and fertile soil formed from volcanic ash from Baru Volcano, Elida Estate's coffee cultivation quickly developed its own character. In 1929, the estate's coffee beans were first exported to Germany, winning a good reputation for Panama coffee. In the three-quarters of a century that followed, as a family estate, Elida's coffee cultivation continued to develop, forming its international reputation.

The coffee here grows at an altitude of 1500 meters. The coffee plantation is surrounded by a well-preserved natural tropical ecological park. Nearby Baru Volcano National Park and La Amistad National Park are both natural wildlife protection areas. All this forms the estate's unique microclimate and creates its unique flavor.

This bean is fully washed, appearing fresh green in color, with full, glossy beans that clearly indicate high-density hard beans. When roasted to high level, distinct fruit aroma emerges, and the entry is juice-like sweet and sour, bright and refreshing. When roasted slightly darker, the dry aroma combines vanilla sweetness and honey sweetness, intoxicating the senses. At high+ roast level, acidity decreases while body increases, and sweetness significantly improves, with fruit acidity becoming softer and more lively, while strong sweetness and rich fruit aroma can still be felt in the aftertaste.

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