How to Make a Delicious Pour-Over with Panama Boquete Piedra de Sol Natural Caturra_ Piedra de Sol Estate Information

Panama's Finest: Finca Los Lajones Estate

The Finca Los Lajones estate in Panama sits on volcanic soil rich in minerals and organic matter — near-perfect conditions for growing coffee. At Los Lajones, an elevated open-air sun-drying method is used to separate the husks, letting the cherries ferment naturally and develop a syrup-like sweetness. The finished dried cherries offer notes of green apple, tamarind, fresh oak, and chamomile tea.

Los Lajones lies on the slopes of Volcán Barú at an elevation of 1,750 to 2,400 meters. The farm spans 160 hectares in total, with roughly 40 hectares set aside for agriculture. Of that, 35 hectares are planted with coffee, 21 hectares are in production, and 14 hectares hold young trees aged 2 to 3 years — mainly Geisha and Pacamara. The remaining varieties go into the farm's dried coffee cherries.

In 1992 the farm was acquired by Graciano Cruz R. and his son. It had previously belonged to Alberto Rubio and for many years served primarily as cattle ranchland. In the first year after the purchase, coffee planting began on the lower elevations; more recently, the estate's focus has shifted upslope, with Geisha now planted at elevations up to 2,100 meters.

Graciano Cruz R. is a full-time coffee farmer who lives at the foot of Volcán Barú, just minutes from his farm and the local marketplace. He is also a certified Q grader, an MBA graduate, a director of numerous projects, a father of two sons, a surfer — and above all, an advocate for producing exceptional coffee with minimal natural resources.

Panama Boquete Las Lajones Catuai Natural Lot #14

The estate's owner, Graciano Cruz, is known as the king of Panama honey processing and a pioneer of natural processing methods.

Panama Coffee Boquete Las Lajones/Los Lajones Estate Catuai Natural Lot #14

Los Lajones sits in the Boquete growing region of Panama, between two volcanic lava flows. This microclimate zone has sharply distinct rainy and dry seasons: May to December is wet, while January to April stays remarkably dry thanks to steady Pacific sea breezes that hold back the Caribbean mist and rain. These conditions make Los Lajones ideally suited to honey and natural processing.

The estate covers 160 hectares: 35 planted with coffee, 14 with young seedlings, 40 under other agricultural cultivation, and the rest forest and operational land. Los Lajones was also the first organically certified estate in Panama. The fundamental first step in its honey process is selecting 100% ripe cherries, then washing and removing the pulp. The beans, still coated in mucilage, are laid on African drying beds built from local bamboo and sun-dried for 10 to 12 days until the green beans reach 11% moisture. As the mucilage on the parchment interacts with the beans during drying, it directly shapes the coffee's sweetness while indirectly lifting its fruit notes and acidity.

How to Brew Panama Los Lajones Natural Catuai

FrontStreet Coffee Pour-Over Reference:

Measure out 15g of Los Lajones Natural Catuai and grind to a medium coarseness — slightly coarser than table salt. We use the BG grinder at setting 5R (60% standard sieve pass rate), with water at 90°C and a V60 dripper.

Pour hot water from the kettle in clockwise circles centered on the middle of the dripper. Start timing when brewing begins: pour to 30g within 15 seconds, then stop. At the 1-minute mark, make the second pour, again in clockwise circles around the center. Keep the stream away from the seam where the coffee bed meets the filter paper to prevent channeling.

When you reach the outermost ring of grounds, leave that circle untouched, then spiral back toward the center circle by circle. At 2 minutes 20 seconds, the brew should reach 220g. The pour-over is complete.

Cold Brew Los Lajones Natural Catuai

FrontStreet Coffee Cold Brew Reference:

Panama Los Lajones Natural Catuai, light-medium roast, BG grinder setting 4B, grind level 3. Use 20g of coffee, water at 87°C, bloom for 3 minutes in a Chemex, then cold brew with ice water for a total water volume of 200ml.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Geisha, transliterated from "Geisha," is one of the most beloved varieties among Arabica coffees, prized for its distinctive florals and superb sweet-tart character. Because it yields little, resists disease poorly, and demands exacting cultivation, it commands persistently high prices. Panama is where Geisha made its name: in 2003 the Esmeralda estate entered its Geisha into the Best of Panama competition and stunned the judges, taking the crown with an average cupping score of 94.6 — a BOP record — and overnight the variety became the world's most coveted champion coffee. For the classic Panamanian profile of orange-blossom honeyed sweetness, fragrant florals, juicy fruit acidity, and a tea-like finish, FrontStreet recommends its Esmeralda Red Label (Esmeralda Special, grown at 1,600 to 1,800 meters with cupping scores above 90 and single-lot traceability) or the more budget-friendly Esmeralda Green Label (Private Collection, a blend of lots that showcases the estate's signature high-altitude Geisha character).

To brew Geisha at home, FrontStreet suggests a light-medium roast ground to about fine granulated sugar (roughly 78% pass through a #20 sieve), water at 91°C, and 15g of coffee in a Hario V60 at a 1:16 ratio. Use a three-pour method: bloom with 30g of water for 30 seconds, pour in small circles to 125g, top up to 225g once the bed drains halfway, and finish in about 2 minutes 10 seconds to 2 minutes 20 seconds. Prefer espresso? A medium-roast Geisha pulls a lively SOE shot of apricot, caramel, and nuts — or try the more approachable FrontStreet Granana Estate Geisha from Yirgacheffe for bright citrus, elegant ginger-flower aroma, and full, ripe fruit sweetness.