Geisha Selection: Blue Label, Green Label, or Red Label? A Detailed Guide to Panama Esmeralda Estate's Geisha Coffee Lots and Grading

Hacienda La Esmeralda is the discoverer of Gesha coffee. Without that small step of separating the variety back then, there might not have been the Gesha coffee craze that has swept the world for over 20 years. As a brand synonymous with the Gesha coffee flavor experience, what information do the plots, grades, auctions, and batches of Hacienda La Esmeralda Gesha coffee convey? Today, FrontStreet Coffee will explore this renowned Panamanian estate with you.

Esmeralda's Farms and Plots

Originally just a single estate, Hacienda La Esmeralda has continuously acquired surrounding coffee farms to expand production scale as its fame grew. Currently, Hacienda La Esmeralda actually comprises four farms (which can also be translated as estates): Cañas Verdes, El Velo, Jaramillo, and Palmira. At the same time, these farms have been divided into smaller named plots. The foundation of Esmeralda's grading system comes from the single or mixed harvests of 22 small plots across three major farms. Why three farms?

Palmira is a newly added farm that currently has no production or plot information. After coffee trees are planted, it takes 3-8 years for them to complete the growth process, flowering and fruiting, and flavor development.

Jaramillo Farm

With an annual rainfall of 4000ml, average daytime temperatures of 19-25°C, nighttime temperatures of 11-15°C, and an average altitude of 1600-1700m. The Jaramillo plot is subdivided into 5 small plots: Mario, Noria, Reina, Bosque, and Buenos Aires.

Cañas Verdes Farm

With an annual rainfall of 3500ml, average daytime temperatures of 16-23°C, nighttime temperatures of 10-15°C, and an average altitude of 1600-1800m. Cañas includes a total of 9 small plots: Lino, Coronado, Fundador, León, Montaña, Trapiche, Chinta, Cabaña, and Tumaco.

El Velo Farm

El Velo Farm is the most recently acquired plot of Hacienda La Esmeralda, with an average altitude of 1700-1900m. In addition to Gesha and Catuai, this plot also grows a small number of other exotic varieties such as Laurina, Pacamara, Mocha, and SL28. El Velo is divided into 7 small plots: Guabo, Portón, Durazno, Higuerón, Higo, Buena Vista, and Águila.

Satellite Map Comparison

Evolution of Esmeralda's Grading System

In 2020, Hacienda La Esmeralda's Gesha coffee beans were still divided into three grades: Blue Label, Green Label, and Red Label.

According to Hacienda La Esmeralda's definition, Blue Label was harvested from areas below 1500 meters in these estates, Red Label was harvested from single plots above 1500 meters, while Green Label was a mixed harvest from plots above 1500 meters, with auctions being part of the Red Label. Subsequently, Hacienda La Esmeralda discontinued the Blue Label. During this period, Red Label was the most expensive grade, with Gesha harvested from above 1600 meters and traceable to specific plots. Green Label was harvested at the same altitude as Red Label but could not be traced to specific plots. Meanwhile, Blue Label, as the entry-level Gesha coffee beans, was harvested from Gesha coffee beans at 1500 meters and below.

However, in 2021, Hacienda La Esmeralda discontinued the Blue Label. Therefore, there has been no Blue Label grade from Esmeralda in the market since then. In that year, Blue Label appeared under the name Volcanic Rock.

In 2022, Volcanic Rock was also discontinued.

By 2023, Hacienda La Esmeralda separated the auction Red Label from the regular Red Label into an independent grade. Therefore, Esmeralda's grading became Auction, Red Label, and Green Label. Previously, many people drank regular Red Label but imagined it was auction quality.

The grading of Hacienda La Esmeralda coffee beans varied during different periods. Using one year's grading definition as a reference could easily lead to incorrect expressions.

Choosing the Right Grade

At the same time, it's worth noting which of the red, green, or blue labels is best when purchasing? Originally, the Blue Label offered the best value.

With only Red Label and Green Label as choices, both come from the same plots. If you don't need to taste the flavor of each individual plot and just want the quality of Red Label, Green Label can actually meet this requirement. Of course, if you're willing to spend more and can distinguish the characteristics of different plots, you might choose Red Label for daily consumption, but the price will also be higher.

Auction coffees also come from the same plots as regular Red Labels, with prices increased through the auction process. Perhaps some batches with special processing differences have achieved better flavors, but these differences are not several or even dozens of times greater like the price differences. Whether it's worth it is subjective.

For ordinary consumers, coffee is mainly about regional flavor, not plot-specific flavor. Plots are more meaningful to producers. If a good result is achieved through human factors, using small plots as experimental batches to find the best solution, and then applying it to the entire site to elevate overall cultivation and processing to the same high level. Of course, this is an idealized result, as consumers sometimes need differentiated choices.

As for different date batches and auction flavors, these are more topics of conversation among enthusiasts. After all, drinking coffee while emphasizing to friends: "You know, this cup I'm drinking is from the Red Label batch harvested on February 13th, plot 7N." With just this short sentence, the other person will naturally show a sense of envy.

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