Producer: Duncan Estate
Farm: Kotowa
Region: Boquete, Panama
Altitude: 5,906 feet
Varietal: Gesha
Process: Natural w/ Double Fermentation
Roast: Light
Notes: Tamarind, Clove, Raspberry Jam

Duncan Estate's Kotowa farm is influenced by Pacific rains and is located in a consistently cloud-covered area with plentiful shade and a cool climate.

Ricardo Koyner's double fermentation process gives this natural gesha beautiful depth, with baking spice notes providing a backdrop for lively fruit flavors.

After harvest, the cherries are shade-dried in a very thin layer for around 20 days to bring the moisture content down to 22%. Then they are gathered and stored for two weeks for further fermentation activity before a final drying phase of 10 days. This system stimulates the action of natural microorganisms, including yeast, to act for a longer period of time, not only at the beginning of the drying process but also when the coffee is bagged to develop flavor at the end of the process.

Kotowa is one of a few farms owned the Koyner/Duncan family in Boquete, Panama. The family moved to Panama from Canada in the early 20th century and established one of the first coffee mills in the country, which is still operational today.

The coffee at Kotowa—"mountain" in the indigenous Gnobe Indian language—grows on the slopes of the Baru volcano, between the Pacific Ocean and the mountains of the continental divide. This location creates a microclimate of cool temperatures and optimal amounts of rain and sun. The coffees mature slowly and produce cherries with a high sugar content.

At Kotowa's Las Brujas farm there is a small creek that has an underground current. That causes the creek to sometimes be dry in some areas and wet in others. The area was called "Las Brujas" because people used to think that witches caused the stream to appear and disappear.

Kotowa offers its workers medical care and, for the children of workers, a nursery providing both meals and a school program. These social programs have earned repeated recognition from UNICEF.

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This coffee will be produced once a week, on Tuesdays. All coffee and merchandise in your order will be produced and shipped on the same day unless you specify otherwise in the Order Notes section of your shopping cart. Please see our Shipping FAQs for more details.