STORY OF GEISHA COFFEE IN PANAMA: A Global Sensory Revolution
As we just finished the Best Of Panama 2025, let’s dive into the history of the world’s most iconic coffee variety — and why Panama became its unlikely home.
African Origins, Hidden Potential
The Geisha (or Gesha) variety traces its roots to the forests of Southwest Ethiopia, near the Gesha village in the Bench Maji zone.
Collected in the 1930s by British expeditions, it was later sent to Tanzania, Kenya, and CATIE in Costa Rica for research into disease resistance — not flavor.
Arrival in Panama 🇵🇦 (1960s–1970s)
In the 1960s, the Panamanian government and research stations introduced various coffee varieties to Chiriquí’s highlands — including Geisha from CATIE — primarily to combat Coffee Leaf Rust (Hemileia vastatrix).
But its spindly branches and low yield made it commercially unattractive. It was quietly planted and forgotten in remote plots.
The Turning Point: Hacienda La Esmeralda (2004)
In 2004, the Peterson family — owners of Hacienda La Esmeralda — unknowingly entered a lot from a high-altitude plot of old trees into the Best of Panama competition.
When cupped, the judges were shocked:
Jasmine, bergamot, honey, peach — an unprecedented sensory profile.
That lot sold for $21/lb, a record at the time. By 2023, Geisha lots surpassed $2,500/lb at auction and even 1 lot reached $10000/lb in 2024.
Geisha’s Rise: The Scientific & Sensory Perspective
Why so unique?
• Geisha has genetic traits linked to elevated monoterpenes(like linalool, geraniol) and esters, key to floral and citrus notes.
• Grown at high altitude (>1,600 m), under volcanic soilswith cool temperatures, these compounds are retained and amplified.
• Panamanian producers, led by farms like Janson, Lamastus, and Kotowa, innovated with fermentation, anaerobic techniques, and thermal shock, unlocking extreme flavor clarity.
Geisha Today: Luxury, Research & Controversy
Panama is now the flagship terroir for Geisha — a cultivar of luxury, served in Michelin-starred restaurants and used by Barista Champions.
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