Panama La Valentina Estate Geisha Coffee Bean Varieties Pour-Over Coffee Brewing Parameters

Panama Boquete Finca La Valentina Geisha Washed

Panama Boquete Finca La Valentina Geisha Washed

Introduction to Finca La Valentina

Finca La Valentina covers approximately 12.5 hectares, making it a micro-sized estate in Panama. According to the owner's account, 8.5 hectares are planted with various coffee varieties including Typica, Red Catuai, and Pacamara. Since 2008, small portions of the estate began cultivating Geisha variety coffee, which now accounts for nearly half of the total production. The estate's altitude ranges from 1,500 to 1,675 meters above sea level. In addition to coffee cultivation, the estate maintains 3.5 hectares of native forest and various fruit trees, including high-altitude cypress, pine, and eucalyptus trees, making it a typical example of a self-sufficient estate.

Finca La Valentina is most renowned for winning the championship in the 2011 Best of Panama competition with an impressive cupping score of 92.3 points. It not only defeated the then most iconic and consecutive champion La Esmeralda but also set a new record with the auction price reaching $70.25 per pound. In the following years, the estate has achieved numerous outstanding results, consistently qualifying for the final competition rounds of Best of Panama, including 5th place in the Washed Geisha category in 2012, 10th place in 2013, 12th place in 2014, and 14th place in 2015.

Finca La Valentina is dedicated to cultivating specialty coffee beans. Besides personalized care, the unique local microclimate contributes to the exceptional high quality of their Arabica coffee beans (SHB). In 2011, the estate's Geisha ARISTAR won first place in the Panama competition. In 2012, the estate's Geisha ARISTAR and Valentina also achieved high scores of 87.07 and 84.66, respectively.

Coffee Bean Variety Introduction

Geisha coffee beans, also known as "Gui Xian" coffee or "Geisha" beans, all refer to the same coffee variety. The name originates from Geisha Mountain in Ethiopia and is pronounced similarly to the famous Japanese Geisha, hence the name.

Geisha coffee beans have an extraordinary legend... This coffee variety actually originates from southwestern Ethiopia. In 1963, Don Pachi Serracin introduced Geisha coffee trees from Costa Rica to Panama. Due to its low yield, which directly affected harvest quantities, coffee farmers had little interest in cultivating it. It wasn't until Daniel Peterson, owner of Panama La Esmeralda, accidentally discovered that the coffee beans produced by these Geisha trees, originally planted as windbreaks at the highest point of his coffee estate, possessed the characteristic citrus and floral aromas of African beans. After separating these coffee beans and participating in the 2004 Panama Coffee Cupping Competition, they gained instant fame. Since then, Geisha beans have been unstoppable, winning consecutive championships in the Panama Coffee Cupping Competition for many years. In the eyes of today's specialty coffee enthusiasts worldwide, Geisha coffee beans are undoubtedly the supreme treasure.

Processing Method Introduction

Washed Process

In response to the shortcomings of the traditional natural process, the washed method was developed. First, harvested cherries are passed through a depulping machine to separate most of the fruit pulp from the coffee beans. Then, they are guided to a clean water tank and soaked in water for fermentation to completely remove the remaining pulp layer. After fermentation is complete, they are dried either by sun-drying or using machine methods to reduce the moisture content to 12%. Since the washed method already removes the pulp, during the drying process, there's no need to worry about mold or insect infestation problems that occur with the natural process.

(↑ Depulping machine removing pulp) (↑ Soaking in water for fermentation) (↑ Spreading for drying)

Natural process beans have rich and full flavors with very distinct and diverse layers, while washed process beans offer a very clean and refreshing taste with distinct fruit acidity. Different processing methods give coffee beans unique aromatic characteristics.

FrontStreet Coffee's Roasting Suggestions/Analysis

Geisha, as the most outstanding variety among numerous coffee cultivars, is greatly loved by coffee enthusiasts. Among them, washed processed Geisha best highlights the inherent flavor characteristics of Geisha itself. What makes Geisha special is its very distinct and clear floral and citrus flavors, extremely high clarity, soft and elegant acidity, lasting cotton-like sweetness, and premium tea-like mouthfeel.

To fully reveal these characteristics, special attention must be paid to the roasting process. Geisha is generally grown at high altitudes above 1,500 meters, producing beans with high hardness and density. Its form is plump, medium-sized, thick and long in body, with pointed ends.

So how can we express Geisha's unique flavors through roasting?

The roasting approach considers that due to the bean's high hardness and density, high heat is used in the early stage for dehydration and to quickly establish a temperature difference between the bean surface and core. To preserve more floral aromas, the Maillard reaction time needs to be relatively short, so after yellowing, the heat is adjusted to medium-high to quickly bring the beans into first crack. Shortening the time from yellowing to the start of first crack can also increase clarity. If the temperature rises too quickly after first crack, it will intensify caramelization and mask the floral and fruit aromas. Therefore, when approaching first crack, the heat is significantly reduced to slow down the temperature rise, and the airflow damper is fully opened at the start of first crack. The beans are dropped when the first crack becomes dense, allowing the core to develop while preserving maximum aroma and sugars.

Cupping Flavor Description

Flavor description: Delicate citrus acidity, rich floral aroma

Brewing Analysis

Today, FrontStreet Coffee introduces the commonly used pour-over method for Geisha coffee: Three-stage method

Three-stage Pouring Method

Segmented extraction, dividing one portion of water into three stages for pouring

Suitable for light roast, medium-light roast, and medium roast coffee beans

Uses Kalita wave dripper

Increase bloom time or number of water pauses to enhance the richness of the coffee's taste

The three-stage pouring method for segmented extraction

Advantages: More layered than single-pour method, clearly distinguishing the front, middle, and back-end flavors. The method involves increasing the amount of water poured each time after blooming, typically pouring when the coffee liquid is about to drop to the powder surface level, using small, medium, and large water flows for three-stage extraction.

Disadvantages: Higher requirements for water flow rate and volume control.

FrontStreet Coffee's Geisha Coffee Pour-over Parameter Recommendations

Wave dripper adopts immersion extraction, increasing the contact surface area between coffee grounds and water, which can improve texture compared to V60 brewing, resulting in a thicker mouthfeel.

For pour-over coffee: 15g of coffee, water temperature 91-92°C, grind BG 5R (Chinese standard 20-mesh screen pass rate 64%), water-to-coffee ratio close to 1:15-16

Method: 27g water for bloom, bloom time is 30s. The hot water in the pour-over kettle is poured in clockwise circles with the center of the filter as the focal point. Timing starts when brewing begins, pour water to 27g, then stop pouring and wait for 30 seconds before the first pour.

For the first pour of pour-over coffee, circle in the same way as before, but the speed can be slightly slower, increasing a bit when reaching the outer circle. Stop pouring at around 1:15 seconds, wait for the liquid level to drop by 1/3, then pour again. The second pour should be concentrated in the center, with water flow avoiding the area where coffee grounds meet the filter paper to prevent channeling effects. End extraction at around 2:05 seconds; the tail end can be omitted (the longer the time, the more astringency and rough taste will increase).

Segments: 30-125-230g

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