Tierra Blanca, founded by friends Kyle Snider and Larry Kolek, placed 5th in the Geisha Washed Category and 13th in the Geisha Natural Category at the 2024 Best of Panama, affirming the benefits of the care and dedication they have devoted to both the land and its people since 2017.
While Kyle and Larry initially acquired agricultural upland real estate in Tierras Altas, Volcán, Chiriquí, with the straightforward objective of getting optimal returns on their investment, their aim has since evolved beyond achieving business goals.
The true impact of their participation in top-tier Panama Geisha production speaks to their intent and commitment to enriching the local community, whose coffee knowledge and expertise in farming and post-harvest processing enable their plantations to be productive and sustainable, allowing Tierra Blanca to contribute to reinforcing the country’s elevated standing in the global coffee industry.
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.
While a coffee’s truest intrinsic qualities are still largely believed to be showcased best by traditional washed processing due to the demucilaging, washing, and scrubbing steps removing all traces of fruit from the bean, the expertise of seasoned and passionate producers like Kyle Snider & Marlon Martinez allows them to direct the flavor character of the Panama Geisha towards a seemingly endless diversity of delightfully surprising trajectories.
They do this through the purposeful implementation of traditional methods like the natural and honey processes, as well as intentional and innovative processing styles.
HOW TO BREW:
Before the first pour
• Prepare a dose of 15 grams of coffee.
• Heat water to around 93 - 96 degrees Celsius.
• Pre-wet the paper filter on the dripper & dispose of the water in the server.
• Grind the coffee to about 700 to 800 microns.
• Place the coffee grinds onto the pre-wetted paper filter on the dripper.
For the first pour and bloom.
• Pour 40 ml in a circular manner.
• Let the coffee bloom until 30-40 seconds.
For the second pour.
• Continuing in a circular manner, pour 70ml more, until 110 ml, by 1 minute and 10 seconds.
At the third pour and onto the last & fourth pour.
• Still in circles, pour the next 70 ml to make 180 ml within 2 minutes.
• For the last pour, focus at the center until 225 ml.
• Dripping should complete within 2 minutes to 3 minutes and 20 seconds.
After the last pour.
• If the water drains either slower than 3 minutes or faster than 2 minutes and 30 seconds, consider adjusting your grind size.
• Dispose of the coffee grounds & the paper filter responsibly.
• Pour the brew into your favorite cup — and enjoy your coffee!
