Panama Coffee Beans: Baru Volcano Region Volcanic Soil Grown Coffee Beans Black Honey Process Flavor Characteristics

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In previous articles, FrontStreet Coffee discussed the fertile volcanic soil and rich microclimates of the Boquete region on the eastern side of Panama's Baru Volcano, which have nurtured batches of high-quality Panamanian specialty coffee beans. In this article, FrontStreet Coffee will specifically talk about coffee beans from the Baru Volcano region.

Coffee Information

Coffee Country: Panama

Coffee Region: Baru Volcano

Altitude: 1600-1650m

Coffee Varieties: Caturra, Catuai

Processing Method: Black Honey

Grade: SHB

Baru Volcano

Baru Volcano, also known as Chiriqui Volcano, is located in the southeastern extension of the Talamanca Mountain Range in western Panama, with an elevation of 3,477 meters. According to records, the most recent eruption of Baru Volcano occurred around 1550. The volcanic ash from that eruption fell across various regions of Panama, particularly in the areas surrounding the volcano, forming layers of fertile volcanic soil that provide a rich growing environment for plants.

Coffee trees in the Baru Volcano region are planted at altitudes above 1,600 meters. This high-altitude area features special microclimates, abundant rainfall, significant temperature variations between day and night, and nutrient-rich volcanic soil—creating an excellent environment for coffee cultivation.

Characteristics of Coffee Grown in Volcanic Soil

The sedimentary materials created by early volcanic activity and eruptions have produced extensive and fertile soils. These soils are rich in minerals, and volcanic ash contains abundant phosphorus and sulfur. Combined with unique climate patterns, this region has formed an environment suitable for growing high-quality coffee. Dense forests and numerous species contribute to biodiversity. Through cupping multiple coffee beans grown in volcanic soil, FrontStreet Coffee has found that the coffee's flavor presents a gentle and mellow overall texture, with elegant aromas and a special, pleasant acidity similar to fruit acids.

This coffee sourced by FrontStreet Coffee is produced by a small cooperative composed of 50 coffee farmers. The region uses traditional shade-grown cultivation methods, allowing coffee trees to grow in natural environments. Although production is lower, this approach maintains the natural environment, improves soil sustainability, and allows coffee trees to grow slowly, producing exceptional flavor coffee beans while bringing better income to coffee farmers.

Coffee Varieties

Caturra & Catuai

Caturra is a natural single-gene mutation of the Arabica Bourbon variety, discovered in Brazil in the 1950s. Both its yield and disease resistance are stronger than Bourbon, with comparable flavor quality. It is suitable for cultivation at altitudes between 700-1,700 meters and can be planted at high density without shade trees, thriving even under direct sunlight—hence its nickname "Sun Coffee." Through separate cupping of Caturra variety coffee beans, FrontStreet Coffee believes this variety has bright acidity and low to medium body. It has less clarity and sweetness than Bourbon, with citrus or lemon-like acidity in its flavor profile.

Catuai is a coffee variety artificially hybridized in 1949 from yellow Caturra and Mundo Novo, initially called "H-2077." Catuai has good resistance to disasters, particularly against wind and rain. Due to its smaller plant size, it can be planted at double the density and is relatively easy to treat for pests and diseases due to its short stature. Catuai grows vigorously and has low height but is susceptible to leaf rust disease.

Black Honey Processing

This coffee sourced by FrontStreet Coffee uses the Black Honey processing method. First, coffee farmers collect freshly picked coffee cherries and sort them, removing defective fruits such as unripe and overripe ones. After sorting, the coffee cherries are placed in a depulping machine to remove the skin while preserving the complete mucilage layer. The difference between Black Honey and other honey processing methods is that Black Honey preserves the complete mucilage, aiming to fully transfer the sugars from the mucilage to the coffee beans, thus requiring a longer drying time.

Because long drying times are required, it's not suitable to dry the coffee beans in direct sunlight. Instead, they must be placed in cool, ventilated areas for slow drying. The drying process generally takes about 18 to 25 days. During this period, continuous monitoring is necessary to avoid over-fermentation and mold problems. This processing method carries a higher risk of losing the freshness of the green beans. Finally, when the coffee moisture content drops to about 11%, it is bagged and stored until the parchment is removed just before export transportation. FrontStreet Coffee believes that typically, the more mucilage preserved, the richer the final coffee flavor and the higher the sweetness.

FrontStreet Coffee Roasting Records

To highlight the rich, soft fruit acidity of the Apollo coffee beans and the sweetness brought by Black Honey processing, FrontStreet Coffee's roaster used a medium-light roast for this bean. Roasting machine: Yangjia 800N semi-direct flame, batch size: 480g. Preheat the roaster to 160°C before loading, adjust heat to 130, damper open to 3. Turning point at 1'32", maintain heat; at 110°C, heat unchanged, damper open to 4, at 123°C, heat increased to 140. At 6'40", beans turn yellow, grassy smell disappears, entering the dehydration stage. At 146°C, heat reduced to 100, damper maintained at 4.

At 9'00", dehydration completed, bean surface shows wrinkles and black spots, toast aroma turns to coffee aroma, signaling pre-first crack. At this point, pay attention to listen for the first crack sound. At 10'07", first crack begins, damper fully open to 5, heat reduced to 50. Development time after first crack: 1'30", discharged at 193.5°C.

FrontStreet Coffee Cupping Report

FrontStreet Coffee conducts cupping within 8-24 hours after roasting sample coffee beans. FrontStreet Coffee's baristas typically use 200ml ceramic cups for cupping. Water temperature for cupping is 94°C. Grind size is controlled to have 70%-75% pass through a #20 standard sieve (0.85mm). Ratio: 11.1g of coffee grounds to 200ml of hot water, i.e., 1:18.18, which extracts a concentration exactly within the Golden Cup range of 1.15%-1.35%. Steeping time is 4 minutes.

Tasting Notes:

Dry Aroma: Caramel, citrus

Wet Aroma: Strawberry jam, fermented wine aroma

Flavor: Strawberry candy, citrus, caramel, almond, fermented wine aroma

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Experience

Dripper: V60 #01

Water Temperature: 90°C

Dose: 15g

Ratio: 1:15

Grind Size: Medium-fine (80% passing through Chinese standard #20 sieve)

Brewing Method: Three-stage extraction. Use 30g of water for 30-second bloom, then pour with a small stream in circular motion to 125g for the first stage. When the water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 225g and stop. When the water level drops again and is about to expose the coffee bed, remove the dripper. (Timing starts from the beginning of the bloom) Total extraction time: 2'01".

Brewing Flavor: Berries, strawberry jam, wine aroma, cocoa, caramel.

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee on WeChat: kaixinguoguo0925

Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473