Costa Rica Coffee Costa Rica Geisha Geisha Coffee Pour Over Method Tips Sharing

For more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style)

The Queen of Coffee: Geisha

When thinking of the queen of coffee, most people would probably think of Geisha, and FrontStreet Coffee is no exception! Indeed, since its championship victory in 2004, Geisha has been pursued throughout the coffee industry, with demand stretching all the way to Panama - this is no exaggeration. Although other countries continue to cultivate the Geisha variety, they still fall short compared to Panama's Geisha, though they certainly have their own unique characteristics, such as Costa Rican Geisha!

Costa Rica: The Pioneer of Coffee Cultivation

Costa Rica is the earliest country in Central America to cultivate coffee. In 1820, it had its first batch of coffee exported to Colombia. In 1854, it was hailed as "golden beans" by British nobility, and since then, coffee has become Costa Rica's main economic crop. Only Arabica coffee trees are cultivated in Costa Rica. As early as the beginning of the 20th century, the government mandated that only Arabica coffee beans could be grown within the country, while Robusta coffee beans became "prohibited substances" within its borders.

The Origin and Journey of Geisha

Geisha was discovered in the Geisha forest of Ethiopia in 1931 and later sent to a coffee research institute in Kenya. In 1936, it was introduced to Uganda and Tanzania, and in 1953, it was brought to Costa Rica.

The renowned Panamanian Geisha actually originated from Costa Rica. In the 1930s, Geisha seeds spread from Ethiopia and eventually reached Tanzania. In 1953, Costa Rican research institution CATIE obtained some Geisha seeds from Tanzania for research purposes. In 1963, Pachi Serracin, the former owner of Panama's Hacienda La Esmeralda, brought Geisha from CATIE to Panama, distributing it to neighbors. After 40 years, Geisha finally made a stunning appearance at the "Best of Panama" competition.

Coffee's Impact on Costa Rica

Coffee has taken root in Costa Rica for over 200 years. Although the country's land area ranks third from the bottom among Central American coffee-producing nations, it plays an indispensable and important role. Currently, Costa Rica has a total population of about 4.5 million, but boasts as many as 400 million coffee trees. Coffee exports account for 25% of the country's total export value. According to statistics, about one-third of the local population is involved in the coffee industry chain. It's no exaggeration to say that coffee has changed this country's standard of living.

Costa Rica enjoys a unique natural environment with fertile volcanic ash, mild and suitable temperatures, stable and abundant rainfall, sufficient daytime sunshine, and significant day-night temperature variations - all factors that contribute to coffee being one of the country's main agricultural products. They also produce various grades of green coffee beans, from commercial affordable Arabica beans to those that have won the Cup of Excellence (COE) competition, as well as the prestigious Geisha coffee variety.

Costa Rican Coffee Growing Regions

Costa Rica has eight major coffee growing regions: Central Valley, Western Valley, Tres Ríos, Brunca, Orosi, Tarrazú, Turrialba, and Guanacaste. Among these, Central Valley, Tarrazú, and Tres Ríos are the most famous.

Tarrazú is the largest coffee-growing region in Costa Rica, with an average altitude of 1,200-1,700 meters. The varieties grown are mostly Caturra and Catuai, with other varieties including Geisha, SL-28, and Typica. The harvest season in Tarrazú is from December to March of the following year, with its main characteristic being an unparalleled perfect mouthfeel created by high-altitude growing conditions.

Central Valley has an altitude of 1,200-1,600 meters, with a harvest season from November to March of the following year. The region contains three high-altitude volcanoes: Irazú, Barva, and Poás, which provide rich nutrients to surrounding coffee-growing areas. The excellent microclimate combined with volcanic fertile soil gives Central Valley beans chocolate cocoa flavors and elegant aromas. This region has three sub-regions: San José, Heredia, and Alajuela.

The Tres Ríos region, located near the Irazú Volcano not far east of the capital, has an altitude of 1,200-1,650 meters, with a harvest season from December to March of the following year. In recent years, urban expansion has gradually extended to suburban areas, with farmland being sold to developers, resulting in a sharp decrease in coffee production in the Tres Ríos region. Most of the production is now contracted by Starbucks, making it difficult for industry professionals to purchase. The well-known Aquiares farm in the Tres Ríos region has been operating since 1857 and has a long history. The Tres Ríos region has good climatic conditions, producing coffee beans with excellent balance.

Costa Rican Coffee Bean Grades

SHB (Strictly Hard Beans): Altitude 1,500-1,650 meters

GHB (Good Hard Beans): Altitude 1,200-1,000 meters

HB (Hard Bean): Altitude 1,000-800 meters

MHB (Medium Hard Beans): Altitude 1,000-500 meters

Costa Rican Coffee Bean Processing Methods

Most Costa Rican coffee uses the washed processing method, but its most representative processing method is honey processing, which provides more sweetness than the washed method. Honey processing retains the mucilage before drying, resulting in coffee beans with honey-like sweetness after processing. Based on the degree of mucilage retention, it is further divided into white honey, yellow honey, red honey, and black honey.

Building on honey processing, raisin honey processing has also been developed. This involves not removing the skin first, but directly placing coffee beans on drying beds overnight to allow the skin and pulp to contract, giving them a raisin-like appearance. The subsequent steps are then consistent with regular honey processing.

The washed processing method involves putting selected coffee cherries into a pulper to initially remove the skin and pulp; placing the parchment coffee beans with residual pulp and mucilage in water to ferment for about 24 hours; after fermentation, putting the parchment coffee beans in flowing water channels to wash away the pulp and mucilage; after washing, drying the coffee beans or using dryers to reduce moisture content to about 12%; and finally removing the parchment from the green coffee beans.

FrontStreet Coffee · Costa Rica Padre Geisha

Region: Tarrazú

Estate: Padre Estate

Altitude: 1,600-1,650m

Grade: SHB

Processing Method: Washed

Forty kilometers south of San José, the capital of Costa Rica, lies an area known as Tarrazú-Frailes, which belongs to the Tarrazú region. With an altitude of 1,600-1,650 meters, it is home to 63 coffee farming families, each with about 1-2 hectares of coffee plantations. They sell their harvested coffee beans to large companies each year, earning meager profits.

The local priest serves as one of the most educated and well-connected figures in the entire village. In addition to preaching, the priest also helps local small farmers secure better conditions. The priest can be seen assisting with everything from renting space at neighboring processing plants to handle coffee beans to finding better buyers. This is also how Padre Estate got its name. OKLAO (a Taiwanese coffee brand that integrates production and sales) was their first buyer. During their cooperation, OKLAO also provided many improvement suggestions, significantly increasing production and successfully establishing the local coffee brand Café del Padre.

Later, Padre Estate received funding to build its own processing plant—the Verola Processing Plant—which was officially opened on January 28, 2016. Now they have their own processing plant, quality is guaranteed, and it has also driven local economic benefits.

FrontStreet Coffee Roasting Recommendations

FrontStreet Coffee's Padre Geisha belongs to the SHB (Strictly Hard Bean) category. The beans are relatively hard with moderate moisture content. The yellowing point occurs at 5 minutes and 10 seconds, and first crack begins at 8 minutes and 17 seconds. The beans are removed after 1 minute and 28 seconds of development after first crack.

FrontStreet Coffee · Costa Rica Candelilla Geisha

Region: Tarrazú

Estate: Candelilla Estate

Altitude: 1,750m

Grade: SHB

Processing Method: Washed

The name Candelilla Estate comes from the many small fireflies that can be easily seen in the coffee farm in the evening, which is how it got its name. Locals use the word "candelilla" to refer to the fireflies in this region.

Candelilla Estate is a partnership between seven partners, all from families with a long tradition of coffee cultivation. They are the third generation continuing the coffee cultivation tradition, having inherited agricultural knowledge from their ancestors. Most of the land at today's Candelilla Estate is dedicated to coffee cultivation.

Initially, Candelilla Estate was just several ordinary coffee farms operated separately by the partners, who would send coffee cherries to local cooperatives for processing. During 1997, the coffee crisis affected Costa Rica's coffee industry. Against this backdrop, several partners integrated their resources and established Candelilla Estate in 2000, with their own small coffee processing plant.

FrontStreet Coffee Roasting Recommendations

160°C bean entry temperature, 105.2°C return temperature. At 5 minutes and 10 seconds, temperature reaches 149.5°C completing dehydration. First crack at 182°C, development continues to 192°C before the beans are removed.

FrontStreet Coffee Pour-Over Parameters

Dripper: Hario V60

Water Temperature: 90°C

Coffee Dose: 15 grams

Water-to-Coffee Ratio: 1:15

Grind Size: Medium-fine grind, 80% pass-through rate on China standard #20 sieve

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Method

Segmented Extraction

Use 30 grams of water for a 30-second bloom. When continuing to pour water to 125 grams, create a segment. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 225 grams and stop pouring. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed again, remove the dripper. (Timing starts from the bloom) Total extraction time is two minutes.

Flavor Description

FrontStreet Coffee's Padre Geisha: Ginger flower aroma, lime and citrus acidity, creamy notes in the mid-section, brown sugar sweetness in the aftertaste, with cocoa and tea-like finish.

FrontStreet Coffee's Candelilla Geisha: Jasmine flower aroma, lemon acidity, juice-like mouthfeel, honey-like sweetness in the mid-section, with green tea finish.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473