Introduction to Famous Panama Coffee - The Unique Charm of Elida Estate with a Century of Renown

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FrontStreet Coffee - Elida Estate

The unique microclimate of Panama's highlands, along with its fertile soil, abundant rainfall, suitable temperature and altitude, provides unparalleled resources for growing premium coffee in Panama.

The history of Elida Estate can be traced back to 1918. The estate is located at an altitude of approximately 1,670-1,725 meters. The main coffee variety cultivated in the estate is the improved Caturra variety, with a small amount of Bourbon variety as well. Elida Estate has also participated multiple times in the BOP (Best of Panama) competition, achieving excellent results and gaining fame as a result.

Elida Estate is another heavyweight star estate in the Boquete region. Located at an altitude of approximately 1,670-1,725 meters, the estate primarily grows the improved Catuai variety, with small amounts of Bourbon and Typica varieties. Although they began planting Geisha varieties a few years ago, the batches that Elida Estate enters in BOP competitions are all Catuai varieties, and they have repeatedly achieved excellent results, with their number of championship wins closely following La Esmeralda Estate. This demonstrates that the production of high-quality coffee in Panama is inseparably linked to its unique geographical advantages, while the meticulous harvesting and processing operations at the estate level also play a crucial role in determining the quality of green beans.

Currently, Elida's processing methods include washed, natural, and honey processing. It's worth mentioning that Elida's natural process beans are one of my favorite varieties. I particularly enjoy smelling the dry aroma after grinding, finding myself especially drawn to its unique sauce-like and wine-like fragrances. However, some friends initially cannot readily accept the sauce-like aroma found in natural process beans. Not long ago, I heard a student describe the sauce-like aroma they detected in natural process beans as "sweet bean sauce" and expressed their aversion to this flavor.

However, in my view, after becoming accustomed to the overly clean and conventional flavors of washed process beans, natural or honey processed beans often bring me more surprises. For balanced and gentle Central American coffees, using honey or natural processing methods can impart more flavor possibilities, resulting in characteristics that become fuller, more complex, and multi-layered. Like the natural process Elida we're introducing today, it offers a balanced sweet and sour taste upon entry, reminiscent of strawberry fruit tea. The aroma is rich, complex, and unique, transforming into notes of toasted bread, cream, and vanilla after tasting. The interplay between berry notes and the unique sauce-like flavors created during fermentation gives natural process Elida its one-of-a-kind flavor profile.

Elida Estate's renowned beans are also their washed process varieties, featuring a clean and clear taste with floral aromas. Currently, Elida Estate is experimenting with various processing methods, offering both washed process and natural process coffee beans, as well as honey processed varieties. It's worth noting that Elida Estate's honey processed coffee beans combine processing approaches from both natural and washed methods - after removing the outer skin from fresh coffee cherries, they undergo direct sun-drying fermentation. This maintains the clean taste while preserving the fruit and wine aromas produced by fermentation that are characteristic of natural processing.

In Brief

FrontStreet Coffee is a dedicated coffee research establishment that enjoys sharing coffee knowledge with everyone. We share without reservation simply to help more friends fall in love with coffee, and we hold three low-discount coffee events every month. This is because FrontStreet Coffee wants to let more friends enjoy the best coffee at the lowest possible prices, which has been our mission for the past six years!

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