Panama's Geisha Coffee Sets A Record Price. Its Source Is Worth A Trip
If there was any doubt that specialty coffee is a luxury good—one whose aficionados prize origin, process, story and excellence—that was extinguished last week. At the international Best of Panama auction, a lot of Geisha coffee from Hacienda La Esmeralda in Boquete was sold for $30,204 per kilogram.
That was more than three times the previous record, which was set at last year's auction by the nearby Elida Estate, part of Lamastus Family Estates. The auction, which is organized by the Specialty Coffee Association of Panama, was a success by any measure. Thirty of the auction's 50 lots sold for more than $1,000 per kilogram, and Esmeralda alone took home more than $1.2 million for about 60 kilograms of coffee.
'This result is a testament to the commitment, excellence and global reputation that Panamanian coffee has built,' said Ricardo Koyner of Kotowa, the president of SCAP, in a statement after the auction. It's also the latest leap of a remarkable ascent for a product that barely existed 40 years ago.
Aficionados visit Hacienda La Esmeralda during La Cosecha Francesco Assenza
With its small growing areas and high labor costs, Panama was never going to be a major player in producing coffee as a commodity. In 1989, during a time of crisis for global coffee markets and the early days of specialty coffee, a small group of Panamanian coffee producers created SCAP, launched the Best of Panama competition and auction (inspired by similar initiatives in Hawaii and Jamaica) and positioned their product as a luxury good.
Things took off in 2004, when the Peterson family of Esmeralda introduced the Geisha variety—known first for its delicate, floral flavor profile, and now for its connoisseurship prestige—sparking the rise of Panama on the global stage. In 2007, the auction platform crashed when prices exceeded two digits. Since then, tbey've been climbing ever higher.
The families that run the top estates can sometimes seem astounded that they're so far into the five-digit numbers. But they're also leaning into their role as purveyors of an ultra-premium product—and one they're producing in an extraordinarily beautiful place.
Members of the Peterson family and coffee pros lead a tasting at Hacienda La Esmeralda Francesco Assenza
And just as luxury tourism has taken root among the châteaux and vineyards of Europe's top wine regions, Boquete is emerging as a destination for sipping, tasting and savoring a different beverage—with an excellent coffee-focused visitor center, tasting rooms, historic and contemporary small hotels, and some very good dining.
Boquete is a small mountain town in the northwestern province of Chiriquí, less than 40 miles from the border with Costa Rica. Adventure travelers already know it for the Barú Volcano National Park and Los Quetzales Trail, which offers a chance to see the elusive quetzal bird. Old-school luxury hotels like Hacienda Los Molinas cater to them with an outstanding location at the edge of the Cochea River Canyon and a full roster of hikes, tubing and other tours.
The region's connoisseurship side shines in other projects, like the historic Hotel Panamonte, which has been a bastion of the good life since 1914. (Queen Elizabeth II was among the notable international guests.) It's still imbued with the personality of one of its original owners, Swedish journalist Vera Elliot, who fell in love with Boquete while on a trip with her husband, 'determined and eager to know the world.' Now it's overseen by her grandson, Charlie Collins, who had already gained international experience as a chef and hotelier when he got involved in 2002.
Hotel Panamonte Courtesy of the hotel
Collins is one of the most respected chefs in Panama. He's been recognized by international publications, prepared banquettes during the last five presidential administrations and overseen the culinary side of major events like the transfer of the Panama Canal to Panamanian control in 1999. But he runs the place with a gracious simplicity, particularly the restaurant.
He named it T'ACH, a word from the indigenous Emberá-Wounaan language and also the title of his last two cookbooks, and uses it to showcase Panamanian cuisine and the hotel's specific, classic style, including Swedish pancakes on the menu at breakfast. An outstanding version of those pancakes appears on the dinner menu as well, topped with local mushrooms and truffles and eaten like tacos.
Further up the hill, the new Finca Panda offers a more contemporary take on coffee tourism. Its five freestanding casitas are built among the bushes of its coffee farm, and they have ample decks with jacuzzis and fire pits. Unsurprisingly, the brewing bar in each room is impressive, with different roasts of Geisha and other varieties, and all the highly specific kettles, grinders and other paraphernalia found in serious cupping rooms. (But if it gets overwhelming, you can simply ask them to prepare some for you when they deliver the in-room breakfast.)
Reception at Finca Panda Courtesy of the hotel
Of course, serious coffee lovers will do their drinking at the source. While Hacienda La Esmeralda is generally not open to the public—with the notable exception of the annual La Cosecha, a multi-day event organized by Panamanian gastro-entrepreneur Jorge Chanis to bring together tourists, producers and aficionados for tastings of the Best of Panama competition winners, education and pop-up restaurant experiences with international guest chefs—a number of the area's other coffee families open their doors.
Apart from La Cosecha, the Lamastus family gives tours of its Elida Estate, the previous record holder and a farm where they've been growing coffee for four generations, and the Peréz family uses its Aventura Coffee Estate as a base for guided tastings and tours, breathtaking hikes and a specialty coffee bar. Chanis also recommends the Altieri Specialty Coffee shop in town, Janson Family Farms in Volcán and the farm visits from Café Suárez.
Finally, don't expect that $30,000 record to stand for very long. Lamastus and Esmeralda are both having private auctions in the next few weeks, meaning the prices for Geisha coffee could rocket even higher. But the region around them is unlikely to lose its low-key, nature-rooted charm. MORE FROM FORBES Forbes Lisbon's New Fine Dining: 6 Restaurants That Are Better Than Ever By Ann Abel Forbes This Wildly Creative Restaurant Turns Campfire Cooking Into Fine Dining By Ann Abel Forbes This Maverick British Chef Is Rewriting The Rules Of Fine Dining By Ann Abel
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