The results of the 2018 Best of Panama (BOP) auction have been officially revealed. The natural Geisha shattered the historical record with a staggering price of $803 per pound, becoming this year's top lot. Elida Estate, with its double victory in both the washed and natural Geisha categories, became the first "double champion" in BOP history. This year's auction not only witnessed the continued dominance of the Geisha variety but also reflected the profound impact of reduced production in the Panama region on the scale of the competition. Front Street Coffee takes you through a comprehensive review of the highlights and changes of this world-class green bean event. [more…]

The 28th Best of Panama (BOP) competition and auction of 2024 have successfully concluded. The top lot this year was won by Hacienda La Esmeralda's natural Geisha, fetching a bid price of $10,013 per kilogram (about 71,898 RMB), setting a new world record once again. Meanwhile, Elida Estate's washed Geisha followed closely at $10,002 per kilogram, with prices in the multi-variety category roughly tripling compared to last year. From $2.37 per pound in 2002 to today's five-figure US dollar level, BOP auction prices have continued to climb, and the prices of top-lot pour-over coffee in domestic coffee shops have also risen accordingly. This article will provide a complete overview of this year's competition, the highlights of each category, and the historical context, giving you a comprehensive look at the market trends of Panama's top coffees. [more…]

Coffee auctions are an important force driving the development of specialty coffee, and Panama's BOP is precisely the benchmark among them. This article begins with the founding background of BOP and its first auction, sorting out how it helped Panamanian coffee emerge from a price crisis, and focuses on the Volcan region, which has performed brilliantly in recent years, introducing the region's altitude, climate, and flavor characteristics. It then delves into Hartmann Estate to learn about its history, forestland protection, and cultivated varieties, and finally brings a brewing flavor description of the Hartmann Geisha anaerobic natural beans purchased by Front Street Coffee, suitable for coffee enthusiasts to systematically understand the context of Panamanian specialty coffee. [more…]

Beijing time this morning, the results of the BOP "Best of Panama" competition, known as a bellwether for the specialty coffee world, were announced. Hacienda La Esmeralda, which once discovered and promoted the Geisha variety in Panama, once again became the biggest winner, sweeping the top scores in three categories: the Varietal group, the Geisha Natural group, and the Geisha Washed group, with 97 points for Natural Geisha, 98 points for Washed Geisha, and 92.88 points for the Varietal group, earning it the title of Best Producer of the Year. The competition leaderboard also featured many well-known estates such as Sofia, Nugu, Totumas, Elida, San Ignacio, Lerida, Maya, and Dark Moon. With its slender bean shape and floral characteristics, Geisha rewrote the landscape of origin after appearing on the BOP stage in 2004, with auction prices climbing all the way from $21 per pound. In 2024, Elida Natural Geisha even set a new record at $10,013 per kilogram. This article walks you through this year's results, the historical context, and the market significance. [more…]

A few days ago, the much-anticipated online bidding event of BOP (Best of Panama) in the coffee industry came to an end. At this top-level auction that attracts the attention of coffee lovers worldwide, the Geisha from the renowned Hacienda La Esmera [more…]

Every year, some coffee beans sell for jaw-dropping prices, sometimes with a single cup being hard to come by. These high-priced beans mostly come from auctions, among which BOP and COE are the two most closely watched platforms. How auctions actually work, and why they can fetch such high prices, is a fascinating entry point for understanding the specialty coffee ecosystem. BOP: Baha [more…]

The third place in the 2024 Best of Panama (BOP) Geisha Washed category was claimed by Nuguo Estate, once again bringing this small farm located in the remote rainforest region of Renacimiento into the spotlight. Nuguo Estate covers only 5 hectares, yet through meticulous cultivation of the Geisha variety and rigorous processing, it has repeatedly achieved outstanding results on the BOP stage, including the record-breaking top lot price in 2021. This article will guide you through the terroir conditions of Panama's coffee-producing regions, introduce the Gallardo family and the heritage story of Nuguo Estate, and review its BOP competition results over the years. At the same time, Front Street Coffee also brings related product recommendations for coffee enthusiasts to taste and reference. [more…]

At the 2024 Panama BOP Geisha auction, Elida Estate's natural Geisha once again set a new record with a sky-high price of $10,013 per pound, claiming the top lot. This century-old renowned estate is not reaching the summit for the first time; it is not only the first double-crown Geisha champion in BOP history, but also second only to Hacienda La Esmeralda in number of wins. Elida Estate was founded in 1918 and has now been passed down to the fourth generation of the Lamastus family. In addition to Elida, the family also owns well-known plots such as El Burro Estate and Luisito Estate, and in recent years has even purchased the high-altitude El Toro Estate. Front Street Coffee cupped this champion bean this time, and it displayed the captivating flavors of pomegranate, peach, white floral notes, and black tea. This article will give you a comprehensive understanding of Elida Estate's history, plot distribution, and flavor performance. [more…]

Panamanian specialty coffee enjoys a global reputation, and the 2023 BOP Washed Group champion, Carmen Estate, set a new record with 96.5 points and created a new high for green bean auctions at $10,005 per kilogram. Located in the Volcán region at an altitude of 1,750 meters, this estate is tied with Elida as the highest-altitude Geisha estate in Panama, with more than 60 years of history and 60% primary forest. Today, Front Street Coffee takes everyone to gain an in-depth understanding of Carmen Estate's terroir conditions, cultivation management, processing methods, and how it has repeatedly achieved excellent results in the BOP competition. [more…]

When selecting Ceylon black tea, you will often see labels such as OP, BOP, BOPF, and D—what exactly do they represent? Does a higher grade mean better quality? In fact, these letter combinations mainly describe the form and particle size of the tea leaves, and they do not simply correspond to better or worse flavor. This article will break down the definitions and characteristics of Orange Pekoe, Broken Orange Pekoe, Broken Orange Pekoe Fannings, powdered black tea, and the CTC process one by one, explaining the differences among different grades in raw materials, processing methods, and suitable applications, so as to help coffee and tea enthusiasts understand black tea grading logic more clearly and make more suitable judgments when choosing tea bags or loose tea. [more…]

In 2024, the Best of Panama (BOP) introduced the Best Producer of the Year award for the first time, which was won by the Lamastus family, whose three estates—Elida, El Burro, and Luito—are all located in the Boquete region. This article will guide you through the background of Panama coffee's rise, the development of the BOP competition, and the history, altitude conditions, cultivated varieties, and terroir characteristics of these three estates, along with a brewing and flavor reference for Front Street Coffee's Elida Estate Catuai beans. [more…]

In the 28th Best of Panama (BOP) competition in 2024, the champion of the multi-variety category was won by Hacienda Black Moon's Chiroso variety with a score of 94.1. Hacienda Black Moon is located in Boquete, a famous producing region in Panama. After Hunter Tedman, the current SCAP chairman, took over, he transformed a vegetable plantation with depleted soil into a bio-friendly coffee estate. The first coffee tree was planted in 2018. In 2022, it entered the competition for the first time and won 9th place in the natural Geisha category and 11th place in the washed Geisha category, while Chiroso even won second place in the multi-variety category. This year, it went a step further and won the championship. This article will introduce you to Hacienda Black Moon's transformation process, the terroir advantages of the Boquete producing region, and how the Chiroso variety promotes the development of Panama coffee diversity. Front Street Coffee will also continue to follow the estate's subsequent performance. [more…]

The results of the 2024 Best of Panama (BOP) competition have been announced. In the Washed Geisha category, Elida Estate's Lorenny Estate claimed the crown with a score of 95.5 points, and this emerging estate under Adela Coffee is rising rapidly. The reason Panamanian coffee has long occupied the pinnacle of the specialty coffee world is not only the legendary flavor of the Geisha variety, but also the decades of promotion by the SCAP association and the BOP competition. This article will guide you through an in-depth understanding of Panama's coffee-growing regions and terroir, the unique microclimate of Boquete, and the cultivation background and estate owner's story of the champion estate Lorenny. It also includes Front Street Coffee's recommendations and purchasing advice for this champion bean. [more…]

Following the heated discussion sparked by a cup of coffee priced at 4,988 yuan, a coffee shop in Shanghai has once again reset perceptions of pricing by offering a cup for 6,200 yuan. The shop says the beans used are this year's Best of Panama (BOP) washed Geisha champion beans, with a score of 96.5, setting a new record for the washed category. From the green bean auction price, international shipping, tariffs, and roasting loss to store operating costs, how exactly does the value of this cup of coffee pile up layer by layer? Is high-priced coffee truly worth the money or just hype? This article will break down the cost logic and market phenomenon behind this sky-high-priced cup of coffee. [more…]

The results of the 26th Best of Panama (BOP) green bean competition in 2022 have been announced. The champion of the Washed Geisha category was won by Aurora Estate, while the crown in the Natural Geisha category went to Guarumo Estate under the Hartmann family. Front Street Coffee had already acquired the 2022 harvest Guarumo Estate Natural Geisha coffee beans before the competition. This article will take you into a deeper understanding of the estate's historical origins, cultivation philosophy, and the flavor performance and brewing suggestions of this champion-level Geisha. From the Hartmann family's story of European immigration, to Guarumo Estate's impressive results in the BOP competition for two consecutive years, and then to Front Street Coffee's light-roast strategy and pour-over parameters, this article will help you understand the complete picture of this charming Natural Geisha. [more…]

How much can a cup of pour-over coffee sell for? Recently, a coffee shop in Wenling, Zhejiang, sparked heated discussion with a hand-brewed coffee priced at 2,888 yuan on its menu, with the original price even marked at 3,888 yuan. Netizens joked, "Did they forget to mark the decimal point?" The owner responded that the high-priced beans are all BOP auction lots, and the pricing is based on international competition auction prices, not set arbitrarily. One of them, a 2021 Panama Geisha, once set a record at $2,568 per pound, and now a single cup sells for 3,888 yuan with a 10-day advance reservation required. Besides the top auction beans, the shop also offers affordable options ranging from 18 to 188 yuan, with an average spend of about 47 yuan per person. Front Street Coffee takes you behind the story of this cup of coffee that "ordinary workers don't deserve to drink." [more…]

The Panama BOP (Best of Panama) is the world's first green coffee competition. Since its inception in 1996, it has profoundly advanced the development of specialty coffee, and Hacienda La Esmeralda's Geisha shot to fame in 2004. Hacienda La Esmeralda meticulously grades its Geisha by altitude and plot, forming a three-tier system of Red Label, Green Label, and Blue Label. This article systematically reviews the origins of the BOP competition and auction, the history and plot divisions of Hacienda La Esmeralda, analyzes in detail the definitional differences between Red Label, Green Label, and Blue Label, and includes Front Street Coffee's brewing parameter recommendations and flavor descriptions, providing coffee lovers with a complete guide to Geisha knowledge. [more…]

Although Panama is a small country, it occupies a pivotal position in the world of specialty coffee. This article begins with an overview of Panama as a nation, then traces its coffee-growing history, the three well-known producing areas in Chiriquí Province, its main varieties and processing methods, and focuses on the Specialty Coffee Association of Panama (SCAP) and the Best of Panama (BoP) competition. It also details the family heritage of Hacienda La Catoiva, the flavor differences between the Duncan and Don Hé plots, and the cupping performance of the 2017 BoP auction lot of natural Geisha. Front Street Coffee recommends paying attention to the charm of Geisha from this producing region. [more…]

The results of the 2022 Best of Panama (BOP) green bean competition are in, and beyond the rankings of the various estates, one coffee bean that broke the historical high-score record in the Traditional category—Chicho Gayo from Hartmann Estate—has sparked heated discussion. Is it actually a Geisha variety? Why was it disqualified last year, yet this year won the Traditional category championship? This article will take you deep into the origins of this coffee bean, the story of its variety cultivation, and its connection to and differences from Geisha. At the same time, we will also share the overall performance of this year's BOP competition under climate challenges, as well as Front Street Coffee's attention to and recommendation of this bean. Whether you are a coffee enthusiast or a professional in the industry, this article will unveil the mystery of Chicho Gayo for you. [more…]

The Best of Panama (BOP) is the world's first green coffee competition, using blind cupping to conduct sensory evaluation of Panamanian specialty coffee, and it has greatly promoted the specialty cultivation of Panamanian coffee. This article begins with the history of the BOP auction and provides a detailed introduction to the Geisha legend of Hacienda La Esmeralda, including the grading criteria for Red Label, Green Label, and Blue Label, their plot origins, processing methods, and flavor differences, along with Front Street Coffee's brewing parameter recommendations to help coffee enthusiasts gain a comprehensive understanding of the origins and evolution of this top-tier Geisha. [more…]