Panamanian, a very special coffee

Rhythmic music was heard in every corner of the bar and in the nearby restaurant. While a number of guests were focusing on dishes that would satisfy their hunger, a group of living people, almost all young, have kept their attention on a television screen reflecting very important information in the economy. from one country.

At six o'clock in the afternoon of Thursday, July 19, the electronic auction of The Best Of Panama began: 38 special coffee lots with the best scores obtained during a day of tasting conducted by international judges, carried out a little over a month ago.

Around seven o'clock in the evening, I heard someone say, "Let's go, we pbaded Costa Rica," one of our Geisha had already hit $ 300 a pound. The atmosphere of the group of fans, consisting of producers, roasters, baristas and coffee enthusiasts, began to rise while they watched the different lines change color, advertising a higher bid per batch .

Around 8:35 applause filled the place. The record set last year of $ 601 for a pound of geisha had been broken.

The next morning, it was announced that the offers had increased significantly. Elida Estates' natural green geisha won an offer from China's Black Gold Coffee for $ 803 a pound. Elida Estate also won the second best bid for its $ 661 washed geisha from Japanese Saza Coffee.

On Instagram, Lamastus Family Estates, owners of Elida, said, "16 years ago, Elida Estate won the best of Panama and the coffee was auctioned for $ 2.37 a pound … … the industry has changed in an unimaginable way. "

And it's true, the panorama for coffee growers has varied a lot, while commercial plantations have lost ground due to the low profits and land interest of traditional coffee-growing communities, a group of producers opted for a special coffee and devoted themselves to strengthening it.

CAFÉ IN PANAMA

In the viewpoint located at the entrance of the Boquete community, the Panamanian Tourist Board has set up a tourist information center which presents on its upper floor a detailed exhibition on coffee and its relations with our country.

Coffee is ar riveted to the isthmus in 1780. It was first planted near Portobelo and then extended to the whole country. In Chiriqui it began to be produced approximately in 1836, while in 1873, it began to be grown in the Boquete region.

The city of Boquete was founded in 1911 and in 1914 a railway line had begun to be built Facilitating the arrival of crops in the city of David

"There are coffee plantations Older than the Republic, but few know that Panama produces one of the best coffees in the world, "says Manuel Alexander Barsallo, coffee taster. And it was that at those times, the activity of coffee was limited to commercial plantations with loosely sound systems, at least not as much as those established for special coffee.

A special coffee has the best flavor characteristics and is usually grown in specific microclimates. According to the Association of Special American Coffees (SCAA), are those who receive 80 points or more on a tasting scale of 100 points.

And it makes sense to focus on special coffee because Panama does not do it. It can compete in quantity, but it can compete in quality because of the variety of microclimates that the Panamanian highlands offer. However, it is not enough to have an excellent terroir.

"We have a very good product, but we do not know how to treat it," says Pedro Moss, from La Huella, Café de Panamá. For the producer, the end product is the result of the way we treat and cut the diamond, the problem is that we have a rough diamond, but we know how to cut it. But if we study the whole process, we can badyze every detail to get a very good cut, "he adds

and that is what has been done in recent decades, especially with the Momentum of the Special Coffee Association. Panama (Scap), founded in 1996.

The Scap, according to information from the ATP, was established in 1996 during an international crisis of coffee prices, as the special coffee began . to be recognized as a different category. Seven Chiriqui producers came together to promote their product. The badociation today counts more than 50 members.

That same year was carried out the first version of The Best of Panama

Panama made its way over these Last 22 years. The Panamanian specialty coffee is one of the most sought after in the world, especially in the geisha variety, most appreciated by the Asian market whose expansion has sparked great interest in the participation of The Best international tastings of Panama. 19659002] "The geisha or gesha was first collected in 1936, in the district of the same name in southwestern Ethiopia. Samples were sent to Tanzania and from there to Costa Rica, where Francisco Serracín & # 39; Don Pachi & # 39; and Frank Tedman, among other producers, have introduced it to Panama for its resistance to coffee rust.

Daniel Peterson of the hacienda La Esmeralda harvests and processes these grains separately and in a tasting all its attributes and potential are revealed in 2004. The same year, she sends a sample to The Best of Panama who wins the competition and sets the highest price record achieved in an auction. Since then, his fame has grown to the point of setting the record this year, higher than $ 800.00 a pound.

INTERNATIONAL TASTINGS

The 2018 tasting of the Best of Panama was so different from previous years. "This year we have expanded the event, the previous years we had to reject people, like this year, but in addition to the jury we have a group of buyers, no less important than the judges, who want come and taste the cafes during the event, "said Wilford Lamastus, president of Scap at international tastings held in the last days of May at Valle Escondido

The aroma of ground coffee floods the room where the pool was covered with wooden plates to welcome guests from abroad. An intense china sound is heard on the voices of the audience – mainly Asian – who begin to gather around the tables. First place the cups with the ground coffee identified with your serial number. Then a group of women approach with teapots, surround the table and, at the same time, serve water in all the cups. The judges approach, but wait a moment for the water to enter the cafe. A layer of coffee stays on the water and does not allow the steam to escape in large quantities. It's a time of concentration and is waiting to end when one of the tasters' breaks the cup & # 39; putting the spoon in it.

It's time to bring the face to perceive the aromas of coffee. Later, with an absolutely round spoon, they will take a very strong sip and pbad it in the mouth. Then they will wait a moment and sip again. Coffee generates a second wave of flavors when the temperature drops. Finally, they record all their impressions.

Judges have an electronic template as an app that allows them to register their qualifications automatically in a computer system, everything is checked by the auditors.

& # 39; s There is a long list of waiting to be a judge. In principle, you must be a good taster, be a geisha buyer in Panama, have a solid experience and a growing market, "says Lamastus, adding:" The quotas are very limited, about 18 per year and must come from different parts of the world. world Most are Asian, China is a huge and expanding market, the judges who come from there are very enthusiastic, dedicated. They are always looking for the best. "

" They are very happy here, because they have the opportunity to taste excellent coffees because we are always improving, we want to do it better and better, "Lamastus says. José David Garrido, national judge, "distinguishes and discerns between a product that has been developed with all the rigorous standards and that can be reproduced: repeat the flavor, the same roasting profile." It is not a question of finding any something that you have tried once and only remember the coffee that you can preferentially drink. "

Of course, we do not all have the same preferences and each of these judges looks for ways to please your market.

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The tour ends and the judges meet in a room where they share their opinions. some sort of preview of the partitions is done.

"I want to thank you for the opportunity to be here, for me it's an honor," said one of the Chinese judges at the scene. Australian Will Young, senior judge of the event took note of the scores. "Did someone score higher?" He asked and a hand was raised in the background. During the awards gala, three nights later, Young revealed to participants that four judges had given the highest score that they had offered at a café throughout his career. One of them even scored with a 97.

"No coffee has exceeded 96 points", Roberto Brenes, of Auromar Geisha Coffee, would explain a few days later during a discussion about the producers. Brenes was present, as were the rest of the contestants when Young said at the awards ceremony, "I'm sure the first [puntaje de] 100 will be for a Panamanian coffee." The Australian has described his participation as chairman of the jury as "the greatest honor I've had in my life."

The Best of Panama has qualified 131 batches of specialty coffee from 40 farms. The highest score would be obtained by the washed geisha of Elida Estate, with a 94.66 coffee, which would auction at an offer of $ 661.00 a pound. The natural geisha of Elida Estate would reach 93.35 and, at auction, an offer of $ 803.00 a pound.