The Drink: Panama Elida Estate Natural From Kuma Coffee Roasters
Type: Whole Bean Direct Trade Full City Roast
Overall Rating: 4.25 Out Of 5 Coffee Mugs
I had a feeling that the Panama Elida Esate Natural from Kuma Coffee Roasters going to be a good cup of coffee even before I opened up the bag. They had the date the coffee was roasted, but they didn’t stop there. The label listed everything from what elevation the coffee was grown to what kind of processing was used to remove the pulp and even the farmer’s name. It was the first time that I saw that much information on a bag of coffee, it was a distinctive sign that the roasters really cared about the beans inside of the bag and the customer drinking their coffee. (Learn all the details about their coffees at the Kuma Coffee Roasters website.)
Panama Elida Natural had an unforgettable aroma, that I can still smell even though I finished the last beans from the bag a few days ago. It had an extra sweet aroma, that smelled like dessert for breakfast. There were smells of blueberries and honey, almost like a good, homemade syrup.
The aroma was almost like a flavored coffee, but the taste of Panama Elida Natural had a more mature flavor. It was a nutty, medium-dark roast flavor with an exceptionally smooth sip. I picked up just hints of the blueberries and honey that had dominated the aroma. There was also a tiny hint of cherries. In the after taste, the nutty flavor came back and lingered on my tongue.
The coffee seemed to have a light body, or in other words it felt lighter on my tongue.
This coffee earns bonus points (not that it needed it) for being direct trade. Direct trade takes fair trade one step further, it’s when the roaster buys the coffee directly from the farmer. It cuts out the middle men, allowing the roaster to pay the farmer more in many cases.
A 12 ounce bag of Panama Elida Estate Natural From Kuma Coffee Rosters costs $14. It’s on the higher side of coffee prices, but is well worth it.
Overall, the Panama Elida Natural From Kuma Coffee Roasters earned an exceptional 4.25 on the Daily Shot Of Coffee scale. It woke up my nose and gave a workout to my tongue. If you like coffee with a lot of natural flavors, this is a coffee that you have to try at least once.
If you want to try Kuma Coffee Roasters out for yourself, they sent me this coupon code “dailyshot” for 20% off orders of $25 or more.
—
{ 11 comments }
i guess my tongue needs a workout.
i’ll order and try. (Mikes twisting my arm again)
i often wonder at the middle man price gouging
or markups in this business. coffee at $ 14 per
12 ounces still seems pretty reasonable on
a per cup brewed basis.
This is definitely a cup of coffee that I could see you liking. Let me know what you think of it!
more coffee ish info… ( just reading this gives my mouth a vacation
it must be all the thoughts of happy chirping birds in the sun and the mist.)
=============================================================
Owned: Thatcher Lamastus and family since 1918
Varieties: Catuai 85%, Typica/Bourbon 15%
Location: Alto Quiel, Boquete, Panama
Altitude: 5500-6000 ft (1670-1825 m)
Growing Conditions: Foggy and misty during the first half ot he dry season which begins in late December. Shade grown and surrounded by a private virgin-forest reserve and National Park. The soil is rich young volcanic soil. The unique growing conditions of low temperatures, fog and mist extend the coffee cherry ripening time one month longer than average. This micro climate conditions show in a very dinstinguised cup.
Conservation: It is a bird and mammal sanctuary. Native trees have been planted to provide shade and feed the birds. Cuttings from coffee plant pruning are used is firewood by the Nobe Bugle or as ground cover.
Applications: Hand applied chemical fertilizer, 2 or 3 times per year, NO insecticide, NO herbicide and fungicide 2 times per year.
Processing: traditional washed method and sun/screen drying on the farm.
============================================================
http://www.coffeefrompanama.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=ELIDA&Show=TechSpecs
This sounds like a Panama coffee I need to try. It’s good to hear the there have been better roasting of this region. $14 is still a great price too. Especially with all the coffee price increases lately.
It’s really good to see roasters going in this direction of offering the consumers more details about what they drink. This is a big deal brewing in the industry to help distinguish “specialty”.
I agree. I really wish more roasters would include more information. It really gives a story to the coffee.
So my question is, is this considered “free trade: coffee? I think it should be at that price. The people who grow the coffee beans on a majority, live in wretched conditions and do not get the money they should for the work they provide. Free trade coffees ensure the farmer gets a reasonable price for their product. I have been buying a brand of free trade coffee call Kaffe Magnum Opus of KMO Coffee. I feel like if you want to reap the benefits of other people’s labor, they should get a good wage for their efforts.
I’m not really sure about free trade. First that I’ve heard of free trade coffee. However, this coffee is direct trade so that the coffee roaster is paying the farmer directly.
Hi Mike
Just love the information found at your blog and have featured your blog over at my site titled “My Favorite Blog Of The Week”
I saw that! Thank you very much for featuring me! It’s a honor.
i did try this late in the week after my bag arrived.
the open the bag aroma was something between
a high end very elusive cherry aroma and
ovaltine-milkduds to my nose.
(the bag mentioned cream tastes)
it is a very good coffee… i almost forget it
was roasted. they did a nice job on this
both on the growers side and the roasters side.
this is the type of coffee that someone will
smell brewing at work and then ask me what it is.
what it is is good.
so i agree with your rating Mike.
I’m glad you had a good experience with this one. It really was a stand out to me and maybe one of the best that I’ve tried this year.
Comments on this entry are closed.