Producer: Lamastus Family EstatesFarm: Elida Estate FarmLocation: Baru Volcano Boquete, PanamaVariety: GeishaProcess: WashedAltitude: 1,700 - 1,950 masl Fermentation ▪▫▫▫▫ Sweetness ▪▪▪▪▪ Acidity ▪▪▪▫▫ Roast ▪▫▫▫▫ The Lamastus Family Estates have accrued the most Best of Panama awards to date. They won the Producer of the Year Award in 2022, which followed their two peat victories in 2018 for the Washed Geisha category and in 2019 for both Washed and Natural. <br/> <br/> A coffee company founded in 1918 by Robert Lamastus, they have evolved with the times under the leadership of Robert's son Thatcher, grandson Wilford Sr., and great-grandson Wilford Jr. Their four farms are Elida, El Burro, Luito, and Lulo. Each one benefits from discrete microclimates which, together with variety, are primarily responsible for the intricacies and flavor potential of their coffees. <br/> <br/> Elida Estate is the foremost and flagship farm. It is also the company's headquarters, where the family spends most of their time and where Wilford Sr. would be found working every day. It was named as a tribute to the Lamastus family matriarch, Elida, who single-handedly raised her children and took charge of all farm operations after her husband Robert passed away in the early 1930s. It would take almost two decades before any of her children could assist. <br/> <br/> About half of Elida Estate is located within the Volcan Baru National Park, one of Central America’s highest volcanoes, which is also a protected ecological reserve and sanctuary for exotic flora and fauna. 

Among the Estate’s unique world conditions are: high elevation, volcanic soils, low temperatures, beneficial microorganisms, mist during the dry season, and virgin-native cloudy rain forest surrounding the coffee trees. The low night-time temperatures allow for protracted ripening of the coffee cherries, which help make them healthier and the resulting coffee beans sweeter. <br/> <br/> The Plano Lot within Elida Estate is a partially shade-grown area situated at the entrance of Elida, where the mill is located. Recognizing they have been blessed with the ideal terroir, the Lamastus family profoundly believes their coffees are a gift from Mother Nature. Respectful of that, they favor innovations in drying techniques and experiment with fermentation but without the use of additional, external materials. They also implement traditional methods such as the classic washed, natural, and honey processes. No matter the method, Lamastus Family Estates enforce strict protocols at every stage to achieve excellent quality consistently. <br/> <br/> A coffee’s truest intrinsic qualities are still largely believed to be showcased best by traditional washed processing. The main reason is that the demucilaging, washing, and scrubbing steps remove all traces of fruit from the bean — which in natural or honey processing would have provided more sugars and allowed for fruitier and sweeter qualities to come through.

As a result of traditional washed processing, the Panama Geisha simply reveals the flavors it has captured from the land where it was grown, as created by the interaction of variety and terroir.

 <br/> <br/> The Panama Geisha cherries in this lot were harvested when they were burgundy-ripe. Following the conventional washed method, they were first fully fermented amid cool nighttime temperatures of 13°-15° C and 18°-20° C in the day for a total period not exceeding 36 to 48 hours, allowing the mucilage to impart as much flavor precursors as possible to the seed or the coffee bean before the cherries were de-pulped, demucilaged, and fully washed. After which, the coffee beans were laid out on raised beds to dry from 15 to 20 days. <br/> <br/> Panama Geisha is a rare, delicate, and complex variety well-loved for its sweet florality and citrus highlights. Since its debut win at the Best of Panama auction in 2004, it has kept specialty coffee lovers everywhere captivated by its endless possibilities, delicacy, complexity, and clarity of flavors. As such, it is often showcased on coffee competition stages by a great number of coffee champions, and it also continues to fetch the highest prices.