What Growing Conditions for Coffee Does Volcan Offer?

Carmen Estate in Panama's Volcan region won the 2023 BOP Washed Group championship with 96.5 points, and its raw beans drew $10,005 per kilogram at auction. The estate sits at 1,750 meters, matching Elida as Panama's highest-altitude Geisha farm, and its growing conditions for coffee come from more than 60 years of farming and 60 percent primary forest.

Volcan lies on the eastern side of Baru Volcano, where a tropical maritime climate brings average temperatures of 23°C to 27°C and 1,500 to 2,500 millimeters of annual rain. That mix of humid days, cool nights and volcanic soil shapes each coffee farm in Chiriqui Province, which holds the country's main specialty regions: Boquete, Volcan-Candela and Renacimiento.

Panama's specialty coffee enjoys a global reputation, and the 2023 BOP Washed Group champion, Carmen Estate, set a new record with 96.5 points and a raw bean auction high of $10,005 per kilogram. Located in the Volcán region at an altitude of 1,750 meters, this estate is tied with Elida as Panama's highest-altitude Geisha estate, with over 60 years of history and 60% primary forest. Today, Front Street Coffee will take you deep into Carmen Estate's terroir conditions, cultivation management, processing methods, and how it has repeatedly achieved success on the BOP stage.

Panama holds a pivotal position in the international coffee circle, producing top-quality coffee beans every year, with Geisha standing out in particular. In the 2023 BOP coffee competition, Carmen Estate (CARMEN FINCA) won the Washed Group championship with its Washed Geisha, scoring 96.5 points and setting a new record at the time for the highest score in world coffee flavor evaluation. Later, in the global auction, this batch of raw beans sold for $10,005 per kilogram, setting a historic high for raw coffee bean prices. Today, Front Street Coffee will introduce you to this rapidly rising Panamanian champion estate.

Panama

Panama's coffee achievements today are not only due to SCAP's efforts but also inseparable from the country's unique geographical conditions. Located at the southernmost tip of Central America, close to the equator, the country has undulating terrain and interlaced valleys, with plains along the coast, mostly mountainous areas elsewhere, abundant forest and river resources, and several volcanoes.

Panama has a tropical maritime climate, humid during the day and cool at night, with an average annual temperature between 23°C and 27°C and average annual rainfall of 1,500 to 2,500 millimeters. Influenced by its geographical environment, the country also has complex and varied microclimates, all of which provide ideal growing conditions for coffee trees.

Coffee Regions

Panama's specialty coffee regions are mainly concentrated in Chiriquí Province, which can be divided into three major areas: Boquete, Volcan-Candela, and Renacimiento, all located around the Baru Volcano, El Valle Volcano, and Le Yeguada Volcano.

Among them, Boquete can be said to be Panama's most famous coffee region, home to many well-known estates such as Hacienda La Esmeralda, Duncan Estate, and Elida Estate.

Although the Volcán region is less famous than Boquete, it is located on the eastern side of Baru Volcano and differs from Boquete, which also relies on Baru Volcano. The northern side of the Volcán region has mountains as a barrier, making it difficult for Atlantic moisture to reach, so the climate is relatively dry, but sunlight is abundant. Coffee trees are planted in fertile volcanic soil at altitudes between 1,200 and 1,900 meters. In recent years, coffees from the Volcán region have gradually made a name for themselves in the specialty market, such as Carmen Estate, the 2023 BOP Washed Group champion, which also won second and fourth place in the Natural Group at the 2024 BOP.

Carmen Estate Coffee

Carmen Estate is located between Panama's Baru Volcano and the Volcán Valley, at an altitude of 1,750 meters, and is tied with the famous Elida Estate as the two highest-altitude Geisha estates in Panama. The estate covers a total area of 70 hectares, sits in the center of the valley, and happens to have the Chiriquí River flowing south through the valley all the way to the Pacific Ocean. The valley scenery is beautiful, and the significant temperature difference between day and night, combined with fertile volcanic black soil, provides an excellent growing environment for coffee. Also, because Carmen Estate has a relatively large planting area and altitude variation, its coffee season can last nearly five months each year.

In 1960, Mrs. Efrain and Mr. Carmen Franceschi came to Panama and founded Carmen Estate. It has a history of more than 60 years and is currently fully managed by the third-generation owner, Mr. Carlos Aguilera Franceschi. Since its founding, Carmen Estate has always focused on growing high-quality coffee. Although it has a long history and is not large in scale, the coffee beans it produces can always achieve results in Panama's BOP.

Carmen Estate has 60% natural primary forest, and the coffee trees are planted under this natural shade. The managers have always insisted on coexisting harmoniously with the natural ecology, using innovative agricultural management models to protect the natural rainforest ecosystem within the coffee farm as much as possible, and obtained "C.A.F.E PRACTICE" (Coffee and Farmer Equity) certification in 2014.

Like many Panamanian estates, Carmen's coffee fruit harvest period is roughly from late December to March of the following year, with fully ripe coffee cherries picked by hand. Waste generated during fruit processing, such as pulp or juice, is properly converted into compost or recycled. After initial sun-drying, the raw beans are stored in a dedicated warehouse for secondary moisture content adjustment and are not hulled until before export, in order to maintain good raw bean quality.

Currently, in addition to the familiar Geisha, Carmen also grows varieties such as Caturra and Catuai. At this year's BOP competition, the Catuai produced by Carmen Estate performed quite well; this Natural Catuai batch won fourth place in the Varietal Group with 91.5 points. In addition to traditional Washed and Natural processing methods, the estate owner also launches micro-lots using experimental processes such as controlled fermentation and ASD each year.

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