What Makes Casa Ruiz Geisha Coffee Beans Distinct?
Casa Ruiz is a cooperative in Panama's Boquete region, founded in 1979 and now run by three generations of family management. It brings together more than 300 small family farms and owns estates such as Berlina, Maunier, and Panamaria. Its Geisha coffee beans come from shade-grown cultivation and strict green bean processing, and the cooperative has repeatedly placed well in a reliable of Panama auction.
Auction results show the reputation behind these beans: Casa Ruiz green beans sold for 20 US dollars per pound at the 2004 international auction, and in 2013 the cooperative reached a record 350 US dollars per pound. Geisha coffee varieties grown on its estates are known for a recognizable aroma and consistent, fresh green beans, supported by careful sorting, storage, and layer-by-layer quality review.
The Casa Ruiz cooperative in the Boquete producing region of Panama has passed through three generations since its founding in 1979, bringing together more than three hundred family farms, and is a frequent winner in the Best of Panama auction. It owns estates such as Berlina, Maunier, and Panamaria, and is renowned for environmentally friendly shade-grown cultivation and rigorous green bean processing. This article will guide you through the history of Casa Ruiz, the characteristics of its estates, its award records, and the flavor performance of varieties such as Geisha, while also recommending related products from Front Street Coffee, providing coffee enthusiasts with a complete reference on the producing region and purchasing.
Panama | Casa Ruiz Estate
Casa Ruiz
The Casa Ruiz cooperative of Panama was born in 1979, located in the valley area of the Boquete region of Volcán Barú, and is one of the most representative cooperatives in the producing region. After three generations of family management, more than 300 small family farms and estates have now joined its cooperative system of cultivation, processing, and sales. Most of these estates have a century-long history, including estates under its banner such as Berlina, Maunier, Panamaria, and Cafe Ruiz.
Unlike some cooperatives that destroy the environment and expand cultivation areas to increase yield, Casa Ruiz and its partners adhere to the environmentally friendly traditional cultivation methods of the Boquete producing region. At the same time, in order to improve green bean quality, they have established stricter systems than before at every stage, including planting, processing, sorting, and storage.
Casa Ruiz has repeatedly achieved excellent results in the Best of Panama auction. With superb technical strength, they exercise strict control over every detail, filtering, recording, and reviewing layer by layer, so that the green beans perform outstandingly in appearance, consistency, freshness, and dry aroma and flavor, with a particularly recognizable aroma.
At the 2004 international auction, its green beans were priced at 20 US dollars per pound; in May of the same year, it made its first appearance at the Panama cup testing competition and began a dominant run; in 2013, it set a historic record high of 350 US dollars per pound.
Small estate coffee farmers join the cooperative system covering cultivation, post-processing, roasting, and marketing, overcoming the limitation that a single estate finds it difficult to expand production scale. Varieties include Typica, Caturra, Catuai, Mundo Novo, and Bourbons. The producing region has an average annual rainfall of 3000 millimeters (concentrated from May to November), an average annual temperature of 14 to 24 degrees Celsius, and an altitude above 1400 meters.
The Casa Ruiz family has been growing coffee in Panama for more than a century and is the most prestigious coffee family in the Boquete region of Volcán Barú. The current heads are Maria and Plinio Ruiz. Originally it was only a single family farm, but later, in addition to operating its own estate, Casa Ruiz also established cooperation with more than three hundred independent farms, assisting them with coffee-related business such as cultivation, processing, packaging, and sales.
The practice adopted in the vast majority of producing regions worldwide is to cut down all tree species, clear the farmland, and then plant high-yield hybrid varieties. Casa Ruiz is different. They follow the traditional farming methods of the Boquete region, preserve the biodiversity of the farm as much as possible, and choose the varieties most suited to the local natural environment for cultivation. This method may not achieve large-scale mass production, but under the premise of sufficient shade and a reasonable number of coffee trees, the biodiversity of each geographical block and microclimate can be preserved, and soil quality will not deteriorate. Shade crops and coffee trees grow intermingled, which not only provides a food source for local residents, but also helps birds and other animals inhabit and reproduce.
Casa Ruiz is not only a frequent winner in the Best of Panama auction, but also an important partner in Panama's specialty green bean sector. Coffee varieties include Typica, Caturra, Catuai, Mundo Novo, and Bourbons.
Recent award records of estates under Casa Ruiz:
2017 Best of Panama (BOP) competition, Washed Geisha category, 12th place (Baby Geisha)
2016 Best of Panama (BOP) competition, Natural Geisha category, 15th place (Baby Geisha)
2015 Best of Panama (BOP) competition, Washed Geisha category, 9th place (Finca Maunier)
2015 Best of Panama (BOP) competition, Traditional Natural category, 7th place (Berlina Organico Natural)
2014 Best of Panama (BOP) competition, Traditional Natural category, 2nd place (Berlina Orgánico Natural)
2013 Best of Panama (BOP) competition, Washed Geisha category, 16th place (Baby Geisha)
2013 Best of Panama (BOP) competition, Natural Geisha category, 5th place (Baby Geisha)
Casa Ruiz Family La Berlina Estate
Altitude: 1500 meters
Harvest time: November to February of the following year, one harvest per year
La Berlina Estate under Casa Ruiz has a legendary past. In the 1900s, Colombian soldier Mr. Segundo Diaz was sent to Panama with the task of resolving the issue of Panama's separation and independence from Gran Colombia. As a result, Panama became independent peacefully, and these Colombian soldiers faced two choices: return home with the troops, or stay and become Panamanian citizens. He chose to stay because he fell in love with the land of Boquete, and more importantly, he fell in love with a local young woman. After his family life stabilized, he found a piece of high mountain land and began growing coffee from then on.
In 1920, their first batch of coffee seeds was discovered around the nearby wild tropical rainforest. They speculated that these seeds may have been dropped by local animals, the "Jujunas" (monkeys), after eating the coffee fruit pulp, and the seeds sprouted and grew into wild coffee trees. In addition to growing coffee, they also once raised cattle and pigs and grew corn on this land. By the 1930s, the coffee of La Berlina Estate was already quite famous locally.
However, several years later, the first coffee price crash occurred, and his son Don Manuel was forced to sell the estate that had been the lifelong effort of his father Mr. Segundo Diaz, leaving in sorrow. In 1997, another economic downturn occurred, and Casa Ruiz S.A. seized the opportunity to purchase this estate, making it one of its own.
Maunier Estate
Maunier Estate, which belongs to the same Chirqui district, Boquete producing region of Chiriqui Province as Hacienda La Esmeralda, was sold in 1985 to the well-known Panamanian coffee company Casa Ruiz. The farm grows multiple varieties, of which Caturra accounts for 40%, Bourbon 30%, Typica 25%, and Catuai 5%. All coffee is shade-grown, no chemical fertilizers are used, and many details reflect care for the environment, making it an excellent brand farm under Casa Ruiz for competing in Panama coffee competitions.
Fine Natural:
Pour the harvested coffee cherries into a large water tank; plump, ripe cherries will sink to the bottom, while floating beans are removed. Then place the whole coffee cherries, with pulp, skin, and seeds, onto raised beds for sun drying, turning them from time to time, and allowing them to dry naturally to a moisture content of about 12%. The entire process takes about two to four weeks. Finally, use a hulling machine to remove the dried hard skin, pulp, and parchment layer, and the green beans are revealed.
Front Street Coffee recommendation: Geisha coffee beans from Casa Ruiz Estate, with delicate flavors of citrus, jasmine, and honey, suitable for pour-over extraction. You are welcome to visit Front Street Coffee to purchase and experience them.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
