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Panama's Green Diamond - Esmeralda Estate's Seven Major Regions Geisha Coffee Beans with Explosive Citrus Aroma

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, Professional coffee knowledge exchange, more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account cafe_style). Panama's Esmeralda Estate was originally a coffee estate family that had been operating for 40 years without any fame, but since 2004, it has been like drinking an energy drink, with the special raw bean variety - Geisha coffee, continuously winning in international coffee competitions.

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style)

The Rise of a Coffee Legend

Panama's Hacienda La Esmeralda was once an unknown coffee estate family that had been in operation for 40 years. However, starting from 2004, it burst onto the international coffee scene like a force of nature, winning astonishing awards in consecutive international coffee competitions with its specially aromatic green bean variety - Geisha coffee.

It achieved first place in the "Best of Panama" competition for four consecutive years, first place in the "SCAA Cupping" competition, and first place in the "Rainforest Alliance Cupping" competition three times.

What's most staggering is its auction price after winning Best of Panama - each pound of green beans reached $130 USD without shipping costs, which converts to 2,000 RMB per kilogram!

The Geisha Coffee Revolution

Geisha coffee swept through the coffee world with hurricane-like force. This coffee revolution came so powerfully that even the long-reigning king and queen of the coffee kingdom - Jamaica Blue Mountain and Hawaii Kona - had to step aside.

This wild variety, originally native to Ethiopia, has now been planted in major coffee-producing regions after countless battles, with its best representative being Panama's "La Esmeralda" estate.

The Geisha Coffee Story

Because the tree varieties are taller than typical coffee trees, they were originally planted in a small area within the estate and used as windbreaks.

It was the estate owner's son, searching for all coffee tree varieties in the estate to test for the annual Best of Panama competition, who gave Geisha the opportunity to shine. Since then, it has participated in various world coffee competitions, winning a total of eleven championships.

A Tasting Experience

Geisha coffee truly deserves careful appreciation from every coffee lover.

Upon first smelling, it releases a subtle sweet aroma of white sugarcane, accompanied by jasmine floral notes and fruit aromas of sweet peach and citrus.

When tasted, you can feel the lemon-like subtle acidity dancing on the tip of your tongue, followed by the subtle sweetness that spreads across the taste buds due to rich gelatin, creating a full, mellow, and thick sensation on the upper palate and upper throat.

As the temperature decreases, the acidity becomes more delicate, with the aroma of ripe kiwi gradually emerging along with the sweet fragrance of ginger juice - incredibly sweet in the aftertaste!

The lively and fresh elements in the coffee reveal multiple fruit acids like lemon, citrus, and strawberry in the mouth, all competing to express themselves like bamboo shoots after spring rain.

At this point, what remains in the throat is no longer that powerful, mellow flavor, but rather a warm, chocolate-like sweetness.

It is precisely because of its clean texture, rich, intense, and varied entry flavor that it displays an elegant, noble, and unique character.

The Seven Micro-Regions

Starting in 2009, Esmeralda Geisha began mapping the growing regions and dividing competition batches into seven different regions according to harvest areas.

The official La Esmeralda website introduces these seven batches as follows:

(1) Reserva de la Señora

Overall balanced and sweet, with main notes including jasmine, orange, chocolate, blackberry jam, and rose tea. Grown in a newer region within the Cañas Verdes administrative area, near Baru Volcano National Park.

(2) Caballeriza

Main notes feature wild strawberry, strong licorice, blueberry, and red currant flavors, belonging to a coffee with outstanding aroma. Grown in a new region of Jaramillo. The Mario region at 1500-1650 meters altitude is classified according to harvest time.

(3) Mario Carnava

Floral sweetness, blueberry, grapefruit, and passion fruit are the main notes.

(4) Mario San José

Bright and sweet acidity, with red berries and molasses as the main flavor characteristics.

(5) Mario Pascua

Citrus, jasmine, and sugarcane sweetness, showing clear late-harvest characteristics during cupping.

(6) Naranjo

Features cranberry, citrus, strong vanilla, and milk candy flavors, balanced and clean, with a rather complete and comprehensive profile. Grown in a new region belonging to Jaramillo.

(7) Colgá

Cultivated in lush green valley lands, located in a new region of the Cañas Verdes area. Cocoa and nutmeg are the main notes, with complex and multi-layered floral aromas that are fragrant and captivating.

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