How to Brew Gesha Coffee Beans? How to Make Delicious Pour-Over Coffee with Gesha Beans from Different Origins?

How to Drink Geisha Coffee? How to Make Delicious Pour-Over Coffee with Geisha Coffee Beans from Different Origins?

The captivating and delicate coffee flavors of Geisha coffee beans leave many coffee enthusiasts longing for more. Due to the "picky" nature of Geisha variety coffee trees regarding their growing environment and their low yield, the delicate flavors naturally come with a "shockingly expensive" price tag.

Geisha/Gesha, because its pronunciation is similar to "Geisha" in Japanese, some regions refer to Geisha coffee as Geisha coffee. Although the flavor of Geisha variety coffee beans is delicate, this elegant flavor originates from specific growing conditions. The Geisha variety is extremely "selective" about its growing environment, requiring high altitude, cloud cover or extensive shade from trees, and fertile soil to produce rich, captivating floral aromas, delicate and elegant fruit acidity, and tea-like aftertaste.

Why Are Panamanian La Esmeralda's Geisha Coffee Beans So Expensive?

First, La Esmeralda was the first to discover that Geisha coffee beans had captivating floral aromas. In 2003, they separated the Geisha variety from numerous others and cultivated it with special care. In 2004, it won the championship in the BOP green bean competition, making Geisha coffee famous overnight and establishing La Esmeralda's status in the specialty coffee industry. Second, La Esmeralda's high altitude, rich volcanic soil, and cultivation within windbreaks provide ideal conditions. Panamanian Geisha varieties originate from Ethiopia. They were discovered in the Geisha forest of Ethiopia in 1931, then sent to Kenya's coffee research institute. In 1936, they were introduced to Uganda and Tanzania, in 1953 to Costa Rica, and in 1970 to Panama. When initially introduced to Panama, due to low yields, people were unwilling to cultivate them, so they were planted in windbreaks to protect other coffee trees from wind.

Besides La Esmeralda, other producing regions in Panama also grow Geisha, but because their altitude is not as high as La Esmeralda's, some Panamanian Geisha flavors are not as delicate. However! Panama's soil is covered with volcanic ash, making the land very fertile. FrontStreet Coffee, through cupping multiple Panamanian Geisha coffee beans from different regions, found they all have clear floral aromas, bright and clean acidity, and honey-like aftertaste, with rich layered complexity.

Through cupping, we can learn that Panamanian Geisha coffee beans have very rich layered complexity, so when brewing, you can slightly reduce the concentration to make each flavor layer clearer. We recommend a brewing ratio of 1:15.5-1:16, brewing at 90-91°C, and recommend using medium-fine grind (Chinese standard 20-mesh sieve passing rate of 77%).

Costa Rican Geisha Coffee Beans

From the spread route of the Geisha variety mentioned above, Costa Rica started growing Geisha earlier than Panama. Costa Rica's coffee growing areas provide fertile volcanic ash from volcanic terrain, mild and suitable temperatures, and stable, abundant rainfall—all important factors for Costa Rica's production of excellent coffee. Since Panamanian Geisha became famous overnight, many coffee estates in Costa Rica also began growing Geisha coffee beans, especially in the Tarrazú region. The rich microclimates in the Tarrazú region create a day-night temperature difference of 26°C. The significant temperature difference between day and night allows coffee cherries to better accumulate nutrients and produce more delicate flavors.

FrontStreet Coffee, through cupping Costa Rican Geisha coffee beans, found their flavor profile similar to Panamanian Geisha, with floral aromas, clean lemon acidity, juice-like texture, and overall relatively full body. Through cupping, we can learn that Costa Rican Geisha coffee beans are relatively full-bodied overall, so we recommend brewing at 91-92°C with a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, and recommend using medium-fine grind (Chinese standard 20-mesh sieve passing rate of 80%).

Ethiopian Geisha Coffee Beans

Ethiopia's most representative Geisha coffee comes from the Gesha Village Estate, which is one of the few estates primarily growing the Geisha variety. Since the Geisha variety grown in Gesha Village belongs to wild Geisha varieties, it has similarities to the familiar Panamanian Geisha variety in terms of plant and flavor, but overall it's still quite different from Panamanian Geisha coffee flavors. To distinguish the two Geishas, Gesha Village named Ethiopia's Geisha variety "Gori Gesha" (because this variety was discovered in the Gori Gesha forest).

FrontStreet Coffee, through cupping Gesha Village's Geisha coffee beans, found the coffee flavor primarily features yellow drupe fruits (yellow peach), with medium-high sweetness, and better-performing batches even have toffee-like flavors. Through cupping, we can learn that Ethiopian Geisha coffee beans have excellent sweetness, so when brewing, you can use 91-92°C to extract more sweetness. We recommend using medium-fine grind (Chinese standard 20-mesh sieve passing rate of 80%) and a brewing ratio of 1:15.

Colombian Geisha Coffee Beans

Colombia only began introducing Geisha coffee beans from Panama in recent years. Most Colombian coffee growing areas are located in mountainous regions with rich microclimates, mild temperatures, and flavorful water resources, providing excellent growing conditions for coffee. FrontStreet Coffee, through cupping Colombian Geisha coffee beans, found they have floral aromas, orange/tangerine-like gentle acidity, honey-like sweetness, and tea-like aftertaste.

Through cupping, we can learn that Colombian coffee beans are relatively gentle and balanced overall, so we recommend brewing at 90-91°C with a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, and recommend using medium-fine grind (Chinese standard 20-mesh sieve passing rate of 78%).

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473