Most of the Panamanian coffees I’ve tried have been ridiculously expensive Geishas (and I sure do love those!), but I also am quite fond of beans from Panama in general. One of the first beans I reviewed for this blog was the Klatch Panama Elida Honey, and that bag still stands out in my memory as one of my favorites of all time. I don’t often see Panamanian beans available, but I was exceptionally lucky to see this Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters bag at Whole Foods that was just a day post-roast! Talk about fresh!!
Incidentally, I was in Tyler, Texas just a few days after purchasing this bag (and I hadn’t had a chance to open it yet), and when I visited The Foundry Coffeehouse for a cup, they had this exact coffee available as a pourover (Kalita Wave). I mentioned to the barista that I had an unopened bag of these beans at home and she replied enthusiastically that I was gonna love it.
Whole bean: Lime, floral fragrances. High notes. Very strong aromas.
V60: Considering how strongly perfumed the beans were, I found the coffee brewed in this manner to be surprisingly subtle. It was gentle and soothing to drink.
AeroPress: Nice flavors of raspberry and lime. I drank this straight out of the brewer with no need to add any additional water for dilution.
Chemex: My favorite of the four methods for these beans. Soft, powdery finish, delicate and gentle flavor. While it’s not fair to compare this to a Geisha coffee, it has some of the same delicacy and subtleness to it that my favorite Geishas do, but with less layered flavors.
French press: Creamy, full-bodied texture with a raspberry flavor. Delicious.
Summary: I enjoyed this coffee thoroughly in a Chemex, and it was also really good in a French press if you want a bit more fruit/berry flavor.
From the roaster: Raspberry, cream, velvety
This coffee isn’t listed on the OCCR website, but their online store is here: Oak Cliff Coffee Roasters Shop
Review conducted 7-10 days post-roast.