Distinguishing Geisha Red Label, Green Label, and Blue Label - Introduction to Hacienda La Esmeralda Geisha Coffee

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When it comes to Geisha coffee, most people immediately think of Hacienda La Esmeralda in Panama. In 2004, Daniel Peterson, the third-generation manager of La Esmeralda, entered a batch of Geisha coffee beans in the BOP (Best of Panama) green coffee competition. These beans not only lacked the rich, robust coffee flavor but were also roasted using light roast, which was unpopular at the time.

Daniel Peterson, second from left in the back row

In this competition, the captivating floral and fruity aroma of the Geisha coffee beans won the hearts of all judges and simultaneously pushed the coffee industry into a new wave. According to Daniel, Geisha coffee was not initially favored. His father (Price Peterson, second-generation manager of La Esmeralda) even stated during the initial cupping process that these beans were contaminated with perfume and nobody would like them. However, members of the SCAA at the time indicated that this coffee was exceptionally special, so Daniel insisted on entering this distinctive batch of coffee beans in the 2004 BOP, where it won first place and became famous overnight!

Because this batch of Geisha coffee beans from La Esmeralda had a completely different flavor profile from traditional Panamanian coffee beans, it made Panamanian-grown coffee an overnight hot topic in the industry. Over the next decade, Panama's coffee status transformed from obscurity to becoming highly regarded. La Esmeralda's coffee beans set new price records in online auctions in 2004, 2006, 2007, and 2010! (Detailed prices below)

June 2004: $21 per pound

May 2006: $50.25 per pound

May 2007: $130 per pound

May 2010: Reaching $170 per pound

Besides winning championships in the BOP competition multiple times, La Esmeralda has also won many championship titles in other competitions, including consecutive wins!

Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) Cupping Champion (2007, 2006, 2005)

Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) Coffee of the Year Second Place (2009, 2008)

Best of Panama Champion (2010, 2009, 2007, 2006, 2005, 2004)

Rainforest Alliance Coffee Quality Cupping Competition Champion (2009, 2008, 2007, 2006, 2004)

Because of this, whenever people mention Geisha coffee, they immediately think of La Esmeralda. Even though many other coffee farms have since grown excellent Geisha coffee beans and won championships, La Esmeralda maintains an unshakable position in the specialty coffee community.

Hacienda La Esmeralda is located in the Boquete region, Panama's premium coffee growing area. Coffee grown in this region is primarily Typica, Bourbon, Catuai, and Geisha varieties. Due to careful attention and special care for the natural environment, the farm has received Rainforest Alliance certification. Although La Esmeralda is world-famous for its Geisha variety, the exceptional estate environment and green bean processing technology have made its coffee beans beloved.

La Esmeralda has three main plots: Jaramillo, Canas Verdes, and El Velo. Each plot is further subdivided into smaller plots.

Jaramillo has an average elevation of 1600-1700m. The Jaramillo plot is subdivided into 5 small plots: Mario, Noria, Reina, Bosque, and Buenos Aires. The "Panama La Esmeralda Natural Red Label Coffee Beans" sold by FrontStreet Coffee come from the Mario plot.

Canas Verdes has an average elevation of 1600-1800m. Canas Verdes includes 9 small plots: Lino, Coronado, Fundador, León, Montaña, Trapiche, Chinta, Cabaña, and Tumaco.

El Velo is La Esmeralda's newest acquired plot, with an average elevation of 1700-1900m. El Velo includes 7 small plots: Guabo, Portón, Durazno, Higuerón, Higo, Buena Vista, and Águila.

Currently, La Esmeralda's Geisha product line is divided into "Esmeralda Special" & "Private Collection," which we know as Red Label & Green Label.

The Esmeralda Special series (Red Label) is the highest quality Geisha coffee beans sold by La Esmeralda, grown at elevations of 1600-1800 meters in specific plots. Each batch must cup above 90 points. This series typically comes from the Jaramillo and Canas Verdes sub-estates.

Another characteristic of FrontStreet Coffee's Red Label batches is that each batch has an independent number, and all coffee beans in a batch come from one small plot. For example, FrontStreet Coffee's Red Label this year comes from the Mario plot. This allows buyers to select suitable batches based on subtle flavor preferences.

FrontStreet Coffee's Private Collection series (Green Label) emphasizes the signature flavors of La Esmeralda's high-altitude Geisha coffee, unlike the Red Label which emphasizes specific plots. This series is a blend of batches from various specific plots. (Actually, the Green Label can be roughly understood as a Red Label without plot separation.)

At this point, some of you might be wondering - isn't there also a Blue Label?! According to FrontStreet Coffee's understanding, La Esmeralda officially announced in the 2021 production season that they would no longer release the Blue Label series. We also saw on La Esmeralda's official website that the Blue Label has been removed from the product descriptions, leaving only the Red Label and Green Label for Geisha varieties.

The Blue Label was originally called "Geisha1500" and is referred to as the Blue Label because of its blue background logo. The Blue Label is defined as a blend of Geisha coffee from La Esmeralda's three main regions (Jaramillo, Canas Verdes, and El Velo) grown at approximately 1500 meters elevation.

Currently, at FrontStreet Coffee's flagship store, you can purchase La Esmeralda's Natural Red Label coffee beans and Washed Green Label coffee beans. To ensure everyone can taste the most complete flavors of the coffee beans, FrontStreet Coffee ships all coffee beans within 5 days of roasting!

To preserve the captivating flavors of La Esmeralda's Geisha coffee beans, FrontStreet Coffee uses light roasting, maintaining the bright acidity and enchanting floral and fruity aromas of Geisha coffee.

Because Geisha coffee grows at high altitudes, the temperature difference between day and night allows coffee beans sufficient time for growth and flavor development, making Geisha variety beans relatively hard and prone to sinking and clogging drainage holes. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using a grind size with 78% pass-through on a Chinese standard #20 sieve (approximately fine sugar size), and suggests brewing water temperature of 90-91°C.

FrontStreet Coffee's recommended brewing parameters & pouring technique for Geisha coffee: 15g coffee grounds, paired with Hario V60 small dripper, then brewed using a 1:16 coffee-to-water ratio. Once everything is ready, use a three-stage pouring technique: start timing, first pour to 30g water for a 30s bloom; then begin the second stage with small circular pours to 125g, wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to half before pouring again, continue with small circular pours to 225g, and after complete drip filtration, the total extraction time should be approximately 2 minutes 10 seconds to 2 minutes 20 seconds.

Important Notice :

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