How Does Geisha Coffee Cultivation Shape Panama's Volcan Region?

Geisha coffee beans are the variety that lifted Panama to prominence in specialty coffee after Hacienda La Esmeralda won a reliable of Panama competition in 2005. The Volcan region in Chiriqui Province, one of Panama's three main growing areas, produces this variety on volcanic ash soils at high altitude. Ninety Plus operates a Geisha estate there, and its Juliette Geisha beans are a representative lot from that terroir.

Panama's coffee cultivation relies on a tropical maritime climate with average temperatures of 23 to 27 degrees Celsius, annual rainfall of 1,500 to 2,500 mm, and cool air flowing above 1,900 meters along the Central Cordillera. Those conditions create the microclimates that separate the Boquete and Volcan districts. The article traces this history, Ninety Plus's Profile Processing system, and Front Street Coffee's brewing and flavor notes for Juliette Geisha.

Panama coffee occupies a pivotal position in the international specialty coffee landscape, and the Geisha variety is the crowning jewel within it. From European immigrants introducing coffee to Panama in the late 19th century, to Hacienda La Esmeralda's breakthrough at the BOP competition in 2005, Panama coffee's development has been legendary. This article focuses on the Volcán region, one of Panama's three major producing areas, providing an in-depth introduction to Ninety Plus's Geisha estate there and its representative product—Juliette Geisha coffee beans. The article covers the impact of Panama's geography and climate on coffee cultivation, the unique terroir of the Volcán region, the development history of Ninety Plus and its Profile Processing system, as well as Front Street Coffee's brewing recommendations and flavor descriptions for Juliette Geisha, offering coffee enthusiasts a detailed guide to origin and tasting.

Panama coffee enjoys an excellent reputation in the international market, with the Geisha variety being particularly prominent. In the late 19th century, European immigrants brought coffee cultivation to Panama. In 2005, the Geisha grown at Hacienda La Esmeralda won the Best of Panama (BOP) competition and was auctioned at a high price, making Panama coffee and the Geisha variety rise to fame in the coffee world.

Panama Coffee

Panama's ability to produce such high-quality coffee is inseparable from its geographical conditions and unique climate. Panama is located in southern Central America, with undulating terrain and crisscrossing valleys. Apart from the northern and southern coastal plains, most of the country is mountainous. The country is rich in forest resources, with forests and woodland covering 43% of its land area.

Being close to the equator, Panama has a tropical maritime climate, humid during the day and cool at night, with an average annual temperature between 23 and 27°C. The year is divided into dry and rainy seasons, with average annual precipitation of 1,500 to 2,500 mm. In addition, the country's east-west oriented terrain allows cold air masses to flow through areas above 1,900 meters in the Central Cordillera, creating diverse microclimates for the Boquete and Volcán regions. Coffee is mainly grown around the volcanic areas of Chiriquí Province in western Panama, where volcanic ash-enriched fertile soil, higher altitudes, and moderate rainfall create microclimatic conditions that make the region an ideal place for premium coffee.

Volcán Region

Panama currently has three main coffee-growing regions: Boquete, Volcán, and Renacimiento, all located in Chiriquí Province and surrounded by three volcanoes. Among them, the Boquete region is the most well-known, home to many famous coffee estates such as Hacienda La Esmeralda, Elida Estate, and Duncan Estate.

The Volcán region is located on the eastern side of Barú Volcano, differing from the Boquete region, which is also within the Barú Volcano range. The northern part of the Volcán region is shielded by mountains, making it difficult for moisture from the Atlantic to reach, resulting in a relatively dry climate. It enjoys abundant sunshine, and coffee is grown in fertile volcanic soil at altitudes between 1,200 and 1,800 meters. Although the Volcán region is less famous than Boquete, its coffee has gradually gained ground in the specialty coffee market in recent years, and Volcán coffee estates have begun to stand out in BOP competitions. Notable estates include Ninety Plus Geisha Estate, Hartmann Estate, and Janson Estate.

Ninety Plus Company

Ninety Plus (90+) is the name of an American green coffee company. Founder Joseph Brodsky, inspired by Hacienda La Esmeralda's Geisha at the time, established the company in 2006. In the field of coffee cupping, 90+ means that only beans of extremely excellent quality and flavor can receive a score above 90, so many people believe that Ninety Plus only produces coffee beans scoring above 90. This is also thanks to the company's Profile Processing production system.

Conventional green bean buyers, when purchasing coffee beans, usually first conduct cupping and tasting, then purchase beans with good flavor—that is, buying quality green beans produced by others and reselling them. Ninety Plus started with limited scale, lacking sufficient funds to engage in cultivation, and similarly purchased coffee cherries from surrounding farmers, transporting them back to the processing plant for processing. However, relying on its unique processing methods, Ninety Plus launched two coffee beans, Aricha and Beloya, which presented extremely intense fruit flavors. After hitting the market, they generated a strong response, making Ninety Plus famous and increasing its revenue. With funds in hand, the company began to intervene in the green bean production stage, selecting promising farmers and providing varying degrees of advice and technology to farmers and processing plants to better coordinate with the company's production. With the Profile Processing system established by the founder at the company's founding in 2006, Ninety Plus does not directly purchase green beans but instead starts from the selection and processing of coffee green beans, and every batch of beans produced and processed undergoes strict screening, thereby ensuring that Ninety Plus beans consistently maintain a high standard of quality.

Ninety Plus Estate

In 2009, Ninety Plus, with years of accumulated technology and experience, established the Ninety Plus Geisha Estate in the Volcán region of Panama. Since earlier efforts in Ethiopia failed to find a variety comparable to Geisha, the company decided to cultivate Geisha and apply its own techniques to it. In 2014, the estate began producing coffee beans, and the 90+ series was born. In 2019, Ninety Plus acquired another plot of land and established another Ninety Plus estate. Because it is located near Barú Volcano, the new estate was named Ninety Plus Barú Estates. Currently, Front Street has two 90+ series coffee beans produced by the Geisha Estate, namely Juliette Geisha and Eleta Geisha. Both belong to the 90+ processing method. Although Ninety Plus has not disclosed the specific processing method, Front Street speculates after cupping that it belongs to anaerobic-type processing.

FrontStreet Coffee Panama 90+ Geisha · Juliette Coffee Beans Region: Volcán Estate/Processing Plant: 90+ Geisha Estate Ninety Plus Altitude: 1,400-1,800 meters Variety: Geisha Processing Method: 90+ Processing Flavor: Muscat grape, champagne, perfumed lemon, fruit wine

FrontStreet Coffee's 90+ Geisha · Juliette uses a medium roast. Front Street uses a V60 at a 1:15 ratio with 92℃ water temperature for brewing. You can smell a Muscat grape-like aroma, and on the palate there is perfumed lemon-like acidity along with grape and champagne flavors. After the temperature drops slightly, fruit wine-like flavors emerge—clean and sweet, with a rich and ever-changing mouthfeel and an endless finish.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.