Is Costa Rica Geisha Coffee Bean Delicious? Is Geisha Blend Coffee Bean a Single-Origin Coffee Bean?

When it comes to Geisha coffee, people naturally think of Panamanian Geisha coffee beans. However, Panama's Geisha coffee variety was introduced through neighboring Costa Rica. So what are the different characteristics between Geisha coffee from these two countries? FrontStreet Coffee will compare Geisha coffee from these two producing regions.

Geisha was discovered in 1931 in the Geisha forest of Ethiopia, then brought to Kenya's coffee research institute, introduced to Uganda and Tanzania in 1936, and to Costa Rica in 1953. In 1963, Don Pachi Serracin introduced the Geisha coffee variety from Costa Rica to Panama. Because of low yields, which directly affected harvest quantities, farmers had little willingness to cultivate it.

It wasn't until Daniel Peterson, owner of Panama La Esmeralda, accidentally discovered that the coffee beans produced by Geisha coffee trees originally used as windbreaks at the highest point of his coffee estate had the characteristic citrus and floral aromas of African beans. He separated these coffee beans and entered them in the 2004 Panama Best of Panama competition, where they became an instant sensation. From then on, Geisha beans became unstoppable, winning the Panama coffee cupping competition championship for many consecutive years. In the eyes of specialty coffee enthusiasts worldwide today, Geisha coffee beans are undoubtedly the ultimate treasure. So how does Costa Rica, the previous stop on Geisha's path to fame, perform?

FrontStreet Coffee · Costa Rica Mirasoul Estate Strawberry Candy Geisha Blend

Region: Costa Rica, Tarrazú

Estate: Mirasoul Estate

Altitude: 1700m

Varieties: Geisha, ET47, SL28, MAICO

Processing Method: Raisin Honey Process

Mirasoul Estate is located in the Tarrazú specialty coffee region of Costa Rica. The Tarrazú region is situated in the fertile volcanic area of Central America, where there is a humid climate, fertile volcanic soil, abundant rainfall throughout the year, high altitude, and dense natural forest shade, providing an exceptionally advantageous growing environment for coffee. Although many coffee estates are established within the Tarrazú region, the micro-climates, soil differences, and variety-specific characteristics of each estate are quite distinctively expressed. This magic bestowed by nature is precisely what motivates FrontStreet Coffee to continuously seek out different coffee beans from the same region for comparison.

Estate owner Esteban Sanches graduated from the coffee department of Costa Rica's agricultural university, making him professionally trained, while also being a person with a strong scientific experimental spirit. On one hand, the estate tries to cultivate varieties like ET47 Ethiopian native varieties and experiments with various processing methods. On the other hand, the small wet processing machines at the estate processing plant, from design to assembly, were all built by Esteban Sanches himself.

Coffee Varieties

Geisha, ET47, SL28, Maico

Geisha - I believe everyone is familiar with this variety. The Geisha variety was originally collected from the coffee forests of Ethiopia in the 1930s. It was brought to the Tropical Agricultural Research Center (CATIE) in Central America in 1953, where it was recorded as T2722. However, the plant's branches were fragile and not favored by farmers, so it was not widely cultivated.

ET47 - In the 1990s, the Costa Rica Coffee Research Institute distributed many research varieties introduced as anti-rust disease trees to farmers in the Tarrazú region for cultivation. ET47 was laboratory number 47, as many varieties were introduced during the same period and mostly used numbers for identification. Estate owner Esteban Sanches obtained ET47 and began dedicating himself to researching this coffee variety. This variety can be described as a complex complex, carrying many excellent flavor characteristics, such as fruity sweetness, a round and clean mouthfeel, and elegant, pleasant acidity.

SL28 - According to historical records, senior coffee officials from Scott Laboratories (A.D. Trench) noticed a variety growing in the Modi region of Tanzania that seemed to have tolerance to drought, disease, and pests. Seeds were collected and brought back to Scott Laboratories, where its drought resistance was confirmed. Recent genetic tests have also confirmed that the SL28 variety belongs to the Bourbon genetic group, so SL28 coffee beans also appear round and thick, similar to Bourbon varieties.

Maico - There is currently no official information published about this variety. FrontStreet Coffee's Costa Rica Mirasoul Strawberry Candy Geisha Blend consists of 50% Geisha coffee beans and 50% ET47, SL28, and MAICO mixed varieties. Geisha coffee beans provide jasmine aroma for this FrontStreet Coffee Mirasoul Strawberry Candy, while other varieties provide richer strawberry and berry flavors. Through the raisin honey processing method, this FrontStreet Coffee Costa Rica Mirasoul Strawberry Candy achieves enhanced sweetness.

Processing Method

The raisin honey processing method preserves 100% mucilage and uses zero water processing. This approach increases the difficulty of honey processing, requiring strict time control. The estate owner first selects harvested coffee fruits, then places the selected coffee fruits on raised beds to dry for at least three days before removing the skin. Interestingly, the pulping machine researched by the estate owner himself is different from others - it can process two different types of beans at once.

After removing the skin while preserving mucilage, drying is performed. At this stage, climate factors are key to successful honey processing. During the drying process, these coffee beans must be constantly turned to ensure even drying, but the turning frequency must be controlled to ensure slow drying for proper fermentation, but not so slow as to cause over-fermentation. FrontStreet Coffee discovered through cupping that raisin honey processing, by preserving 100% mucilage for sun-drying, results in coffee with full sweetness and a fermented sweetness reminiscent of preserved fruits.

FrontStreet Coffee Roasting Analysis

This FrontStreet Coffee Mirasoul Estate Geisha blend consists of four varieties combined with raisin honey processing. When observing these green beans, FrontStreet Coffee's roaster found that the fermentation level of Geisha beans was significantly lower than the other three varieties. After three different roasting curves, although the general flavors were expressed, FrontStreet Coffee's roaster still felt they weren't clear and bright enough. Therefore, through several fine adjustments, they ensured stable heat delivery by managing heat application, used high heat during development to accumulate energy, and opened the air damper fully at first crack to express this coffee's characteristics.

Yangjia 800N, bean charge: 480g. Preheat roaster to 200°C, reduce to 175°C for loading, heat adjusted to 120, air damper opened to 3, return to temperature point at 1'32", maintain heat; at 114°C, heat unchanged, air damper opened to 4.

6'15" turning yellow, grassy aroma disappears, entering dehydration stage, at 140°C heat reduced to 100, air damper maintained at 4. 9'00" dehydration complete, bean surface shows wrinkles and black patterns, toast aroma turns to coffee aroma, prelude to first crack, now pay attention to listen for first crack sound. At 10'25" first crack begins, air damper fully opened to 5, heat unchanged. Post-first crack development time 1'30", drop at 193.5°C.

FrontStreet Coffee Cupping Report

FrontStreet Coffee's cupping is conducted within 8-24 hours after coffee beans are roasted, using 200ml ceramic cupping bowls, standard anti-static metal cupping spoons, and cupping water temperature of 94°C. Cupping coffee grind size is controlled to 70%-75% pass-through rate on a #20 standard sieve (0.85mm). Ratio is 1:18.18 (11.1g coffee powder plus 200ml hot water), resulting in extraction concentration exactly within the 1.15%-1.35% Golden Cup range. First grind and smell dry aroma, then add water to fill the bowl. Confirm wet aroma, break crust and remove grounds after 4 minutes, then conduct flavor tasting.

Dry Aroma: Floral

Wet Aroma: Dried fruit, berries

Flavor: Raisins, berries, nuts, cream

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Suggestions

Dripper: V60 #01

Dose: 15g

Ratio: 1:15

Temperature: 90°C

Grind: Medium-fine (80% pass-through rate on China standard #20 sieve)

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Method: First wet the filter paper and preheat the dripper and coffee pot. Use 30g of water for 30-second bloom, then pour with small circular motion to 125g and segment. When water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 225g and stop. When water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, remove the dripper (timing starts from bloom). Extraction time is 2'01".

[FrontStreet Coffee Costa Rica Mirasoul Estate Strawberry Candy Geisha Blend] Brewing Flavor: Jasmine flower aroma, with raisin sweetness and strawberry candy flavors in the entry, and nutty cream-like mouthfeel.

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Important Notice :

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