Boquete Panama Coffee Estate - Panama Elida Estate Coffee Characteristics

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Panama Elida Estate

Robert Lamastus established Elida Estate in the early 20th century when he was working on the Panama Canal. He heard that Boquete was particularly suitable for growing coffee, so he purchased the estate. The estate is now managed by his grandson Wilford Lamastus. Under Wilford's efforts, Elida has become one of the most renowned estates in Panama and globally, frequently making it to the final bidding list of "Best of Panama."

Half of the estate's area is located within the "Volcan Baru National Park," a conservation area that has become a habitat for many plants and animals. Various rare mammals such as mountain leopards and birds like long-tailed birds can be found here, with extremely rich biodiversity.

Volcan Baru is also one of the highest volcanoes in Central America, with seven different microclimates depending on altitude. Elida's coffee is only grown up to 1850 meters high - in Panama, coffee is not cultivated at higher elevations. The rainy season is very long, lasting from May to November, with annual rainfall reaching up to 2400mm. The period with abundant sunshine is from late February to early May. Even during the dry season, the mountainous areas remain foggy and humid, with relatively low temperatures and even colder nights.

The coffee is covered by cloud-shrouded pristine forests year-round, providing excellent shade-grown conditions. Elida's coffee trees require longer time to harvest from planting - approximately four and a half to five and a half years (two to three years longer than usual). The low-temperature environment also means cherries take an extra month to mature. These factors all contribute to the coffee's special flavor characteristics. The estate mostly uses the washed method to process cherries, with a smaller portion using the natural processing method. The natural processing method involves drying coffee beans with the fruit pulp intact, allowing the fruit's flavors to easily penetrate into the beans.

For drying needs, cherry fruits are moved from higher-altitude planting areas to lower-altitude, warmer drying fields. The natural drying process lasts for 10 to 12 days. Compared to washed coffees, natural processed coffees typically have a fuller body, but the biggest challenge lies in the fermentation process during drying. Elida's natural processing is extremely refined, producing coffee with complex flavors, intense fruit characteristics, and full aroma. They are particularly experienced in handling traditional varieties like Typica and Catuai. During natural processing, cherries are processed separately by harvest date, so each batch consists of cherries harvested on the same day and processed together. An average batch contains five bags. After approximately 10-12 days of low-temperature natural drying, the parchment coffee is stored in 10-12℃ warehouses for 75-100 days of aging until the week of shipment, when hulling and hand-sorting are performed.

In Summary

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