Auction Hacienda La Esmeralda Red Label Geisha Coffee Too Expensive to Afford? You Still Have the Blue Label Geisha...

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The World's Most Expensive Coffee - Panama La Esmeralda Geisha Coffee Beans

Have you heard of it? With the undefeated aura of Best of Panama, the auction prices of La Esmeralda's Geisha continue to skyrocket year after year. It has even displaced the international status of the old-era king of coffee - Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee beans, becoming the most important top-tier coffee bean symbol in the third wave of coffee.

Many people must have a question in their hearts: Why is it so expensive, yet everyone is scrambling to get it? And the price keeps rising year after year...

Today, let's help everyone understand why La Esmeralda Estate has become the king of the coffee world.

The success of La Esmeralda Estate is by no means accidental. Its strength completely convinces global buyers - yes, it's worth this price!

We have briefly introduced this estate before, and today we'll take you deeper into understanding this estate that leads the third wave of coffee - Panama La Esmeralda Estate.

The Story of Geisha Coffee Beans

The story of Geisha coffee beans can be seen as an ugly duckling turning into a swan. "Geisha" is actually a transliteration name, originating from the name of its native village - "Geisha Village," a very rural place in Ethiopia.

Originally in Ethiopia, it appeared as a weak, thin coffee tree with unfull bean shapes, low yield, and a very unremarkable appearance - no one would pay attention to it. Unexpectedly, after being transplanted to Panama La Esmeralda Estate, the estate owner accidentally discovered its unique flavor. After cultivation, it transformed into the most popular coffee in the world.

Panama La Esmeralda's Geisha was discovered through its unique taste. The third-generation estate owner Daniel Peterson had long planned to properly cultivate the estate. He believed that the coffee produced by the estate was always harvested and sold mixed, with good overall quality evaluation, but not uniform quality and flavor.

Therefore, through his skilled cupping, he cup-tested and compared coffee from various blocks in the estate one by one, selecting good batches from among them.

During one cupping session, the owner discovered a particular batch had a special citrus aroma. After tracing the source, he found the fragrance came from a Geisha variety tree within the estate. Later, when cultivated independently at high altitude, it was found that after roasting, it could emit elegant citrus notes, even revealing some apple aroma, honey sweetness, and berry fragrance - completely different from typical Central American beans.

The estate owner used this magical, weak bean tree to enter world competitions, beginning the immortal future of Geisha coffee.

It achieved a record-breaking score of 94.6 at the Panama National Competition (BEST OF PANAMA), not only winning the championship for Panama La Esmeralda Estate but also making the Geisha variety shine on the international stage!

Afterward, it won championships in various places for 8 consecutive years, most of which were international competitions with credible judging. Geisha coffee beans thus became Panama's premium signature.

Now coffee farmers from various countries are also competing to introduce this coffee variety for cultivation - including Panama, Guatemala, Colombia, etc. I heard that farmers in Taiwan are also growing it!

Why is Geisha Coffee So Sought-After?

But why exactly are Geisha coffee beans so in demand? Why do people keep buying despite rising prices?

First, the special flavor goes without saying. But the key reason is its limited production. Geisha cultivation has various limitations - it's inherently weak and difficult to care for, has high withering mortality rates in early cultivation stages, and yields are lower compared to traditional varieties.

Additionally, Geisha needs to be grown above 1500m altitude to develop its characteristics. Geisha grown at lower altitudes has much inferior aroma delicacy and flavor compared to high-altitude Geisha. However, there aren't many excellent high-altitude areas suitable for coffee cultivation, creating further product limitations. No wonder it's often in short supply!

Understanding La Esmeralda's Color Coding System

You often hear about La Esmeralda's Geisha having red, blue, and green labels - what do these mean?

Actually, it's quite simple: they are graded based on auction participation and altitude:

Red Label Geisha: Participates in auctions, grown at 1600-1800 meters altitude

Green Label Geisha: Selected Geisha grown at 1600-1800 meters altitude

Blue Label Geisha: Selected Geisha grown at around 1500 meters altitude

Red Label participates in global auction bidding every May. Green Label doesn't participate in auctions but is同样 high-altitude, high-quality, with slightly lower prices. Buyers of Red Label get priority purchasing rights for Green Label.

This time we're introducing two new batches of La Esmeralda Geisha - one Red Label and one Blue Label.

Blue Label is the closest to Red Label beans - both are high-altitude quality from La Esmeralda Estate. The only difference is that Red Label is auction-grade while Blue Label is non-auction batch, but of course, Blue Label is more affordable!

We use medium-light roasting, hoping to preserve its most special, original flavors. The 2017 new batch Geisha is intoxicating even in its dry aroma~

Delicate bergamot rushes to your nose, layered with lemon notes. After tasting, special sweet aromas like Taiwanese lychee and muscat grapes burst forth in your mouth, paired with elegant orange blossom fragrance that gently touches your taste buds. The overall flavor is clean with endless aftertaste.

Geisha Coffee Bean Brand Recommendation

Panama La Esmeralda - Blue Label Geisha Coffee Beans roasted by FrontStreet Coffee have full guarantees in both brand and quality. More importantly, they offer excellent value - each 100-gram package costs only 120 yuan. Calculating at 15 grams per cup, one package can make 6 cups of coffee, with each cup costing only about 20 yuan. Compared to cafe prices that often exceed 100 yuan per cup, this is truly a conscientious recommendation.

FrontStreet Coffee: A Guangzhou-based roastery with a small shop but diverse bean varieties, where you can find various famous and lesser-known beans. They also provide online shop services: https://shop104210103.taobao.com

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473