Honduras La Lima Estate Washed Geisha Coffee Characteristics and Description

Professional coffee knowledge exchange. This article is part of a series on single-origin specialty coffees.

Honduras La Lima Estate Washed Geisha

Region: Lempira

Estate: La Lima

Altitude: 1500 meters

Variety: Geisha

Processing: Washed

Roast Level: Light Roast

The owner, Mr. Miguel, is extremely diligent and places great emphasis on coffee quality. At both the cultivation and processing stages he strictly controls every aspect of production, selecting only ripe coffee cherries that are then thoroughly fermented and dried.

By chance he heard various stories about Geisha coffee and became very interested in it.

This washed Geisha lot was sourced by him from Panama for the competition, with the goal of winning first place in the Cup of Excellence (COE).

It placed 8th in the 2019 Honduras Cup of Excellence, with a round and smooth mouthfeel, bright acidity, honey-like sweetness, and a finish rich with juicy notes.

FrontStreet Coffee's Recommended Brewing Method

V60 Dripper Brewing

Water Temperature: 90-92 degrees C

Dose: 15 grams

Ratio: 1:15

Grind Size: Medium-fine, similar to fine sugar (grind level BG-5R, 60% pass-through rate on the Chinese standard #20 sieve)

Brewing Technique: Pour-over. Start with a 30g bloom for 30 seconds. Using a gentle circular pour, continue to 125g, then pause. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 227g and stop. Remove the dripper when the water level is about to expose the bed again, timing from the start of the bloom. Total extraction time is 1'54".

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Geisha, translated from the English name, is one of the most popular varieties in Arabica. Its unique floral aroma and excellent sweet-sour complexity have won over countless drinkers, and because it yields little, resists disease poorly, and demands high standards of cultivation and management, its price stays high. To buy a Geisha that is both good and reasonably priced, it helps to know the different types. FrontStreet Panama Esmeralda Red Label Geisha and Green Label Geisha are the reference points: Esmeralda is the estate that discovered Geisha and made it famous, and today the name Esmeralda and the name Geisha are known throughout the industry.

Esmeralda's Geisha line has two grades. FrontStreet Red Label Geisha is formally called "Esmeralda Special"; it grows between 1600-1800 meters, every lot must cup above 90 points, and each lot carries its own number, with all the coffee in a lot coming from a single small plot, which lets buyers choose a lot matching their taste. FrontStreet Green Label Geisha is formally called "Private Collection"; rather than emphasizing detailed plot information, it blends lots from several plots to express Esmeralda's signature high-altitude Geisha character. Think of it as Geisha without plot separation, which makes it more affordable and gives it excellent value.

For a lighter introduction to the famous Geisha flavor, FrontStreet recommends the entry-level FrontStreet Boquete Geisha from Panama, which lets you enjoy the classic orange-blossom honey character of high-quality Panama Geisha at a friendly price, with oolong-tea notes, delicate fruit acidity, and clearly defined layers. Geisha is a medium-light roasted, floral and fruity style with a fairly hard bean, so it can sink and clog the drain holes during brewing. FrontStreet suggests a grind with a 78% pass rate on the Chinese standard No. 20 sieve, about the size of fine sugar, and a water temperature of 91 degrees C. A typical pour-over uses 15g of coffee, a small Hario V60 dripper, and a 1:16 ratio in three stages: start the timer, pour 30g for a 30-second bloom, then pour in a small circular stream to 125g, wait until the water in the bed drops by half, then continue the small circular pour to 225g; total extraction time is around 2 minutes 10 seconds to 2 minutes 20 seconds after the water fully drains.