Geisha Coffee Flavor Profile - Introduction to Panama Elida Geisha Coffee Bean Taste Characteristics

In the world of specialty coffee, most varieties are Arabica, and among them, Geisha coffee is widely recognized as the most noble coffee bean. At FrontStreet Coffee, we often introduce our customers to the uniqueness of Geisha. If we consider coffees from the same producing region, washed processing represents the main flavor profile, while natural processing adds aroma on top of the washed base. For Blue Mountain, we recommend washed processing; for aromatic beans, we recommend natural processing, such as Geisha. Geisha is also a specialty coffee that always remains on FrontStreet Coffee's bean list.

The Origin of Geisha Coffee

Geisha coffee beans are also known as "Geisha" (the same pronunciation as Japanese geisha), but they do not originate from Japan. The name comes from the Gesha forest in Ethiopia where they grow, which happens to have the same pronunciation as the traditional Japanese Geisha. However, in recent years, the Chinese transliteration has mostly been "Guixia coffee."

The Geisha variety was discovered in the Gesha forest of Ethiopia in 1931 and then sent to the Coffee Research Institute in Kenya. In 1936, it was introduced to Uganda and Tanzania. Costa Rica introduced it in 1953, and Panama began growing Geisha coffee in the 1970s when Francisco Serracin from the Tumba Estate obtained seeds from CATIE in Costa Rica.

Although the original homeland of this coffee bean is Gesha Mountain in southwestern Africa, after being introduced to Panama, it wasn't popular among coffee farmers due to its low yield. However, when Panama's La Esmeralda estate made this coffee bean shine at the 2004 Panama cupping competition, Geisha's reputation began to spread far and wide! Another reason is that Geisha coffee production is relatively low, so when people equate price with quality, our Geisha coffee instantly became a legend.

Characteristics of Geisha Coffee

Geisha coffee beans have a beautiful blue-green color, typically referring to washed beans with a jade-like warm texture. The beans are elongated and have a fragrance of fresh grass, peaches, and berries, along with the unique milk-sweet aroma of oolong tea that most coffee beans lack. It seems that aroma and flavor require associative thinking, but the subtle tea note is something we can clearly perceive.

Although some say that Yirgacheffe coffee tastes similar to Geisha coffee, the charm contained in Yirgacheffe is not as rich as that of Geisha. Geisha coffee has its own unique flavor characteristics - clear floral notes and bright, clean citrus acidity. However, Geishas from different regions have their own unique flavors, and these differences may come from the influence of growing location or processing methods.

Since Geisha also shows different flavor expressions, FrontStreet Coffee will explore the flavors of several Panamanian Geisha coffees.

Panamanian Geisha

Elida Estate is located in the town of Boquete, a renowned coffee-producing region in Panama. Elida Estate is situated at a high altitude, with part of it even within the Volcan Baru National Park reserve. Baru is one of the highest volcanoes in Central America and Panama's only volcanic terrain. With an excellent growing environment at an altitude of about 1670-1825 meters, Elida mainly cultivates three varieties: CATUAI, GEISHA, and CRILLO.

The Geisha Green Tip Natural coffee beans grown at Elida Estate won the Geisha Washed category championship at the 2016 "Best of Panama" (BOP) auction. International judges gave it an incredible score of 94.15, not only setting the highest score in BOP history, but this batch of green beans also set a record for the highest price ever for Geisha Washed beans at BOP, selling at about NT$9,000 per pound. The 2016 Japan Barista Champion also used coffee beans from Elida Estate to win the championship.

FrontStreet Coffee: Panama Elida Estate
Country: Panama
Region: Boquete
Altitude: 1850M
Processing Method: Washed
Variety: Geisha
Flavor Description: Citrus, honey, berries, green tea, with a round and smooth mouthfeel.

FrontStreet Coffee: Panama Sophia Estate
Country: Panama
Region: Baru Volcano Region
Altitude: 1900-2100
Processing Method: Natural
Variety: Geisha
Sophia Estate Geisha coffee has an orange-like sweet and sour taste with aromas of honeydew melon and roses at the beginning. The middle phase shows apple juice-like freshness, with a finish reminiscent of oolong tea's sweet aftertaste.

FrontStreet Coffee: Guaguanuo Estate
Country: Panama
Region: Chiriqui Province
Altitude: 1750m
Processing Method: Natural
Variety: Geisha
Guaguanuo Estate Natural Geisha coffee flavor profile: The entrance has the aroma and sweet-sour taste of mango and pineapple composite juice, the middle phase shows white floral notes with the sweet fermentation of malt, and the finish is like fruit candy.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Recommendations

Through cupping, FrontStreet Coffee has learned that Panamanian Geisha coffee beans have rich layers, so we can slightly reduce the concentration during brewing to make each flavor layer clearer. We recommend a brewing ratio of 1:15.5-1:16, using water at 90-91°C for brewing. For coffee bean grind size, we recommend medium-fine grinding (77% retention rate on Chinese standard #20 sieve).

V60/conical filter cup, paired with a three-stage circular pouring technique: First, use 30g of water to fully moisten the coffee powder layer into a "hamburger" shape and let it bloom for 30s, then proceed to the second stage of brewing; for the second stage, FrontStreet Coffee uses a steady medium-fine water stream to pour in a circle to 125g and then stops, waiting for the water level to drop to 2/3 of the powder layer before pouring the third stage; the third stage continues with a medium-fine water stream to pour in a circle to 225g and completes the water injection.

Important Notice :

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Tel:020 38364473