Shoebox Coffee

Region: Santa Clara, Chiriqui, Panama
Producer: Alan and Diana Hartmann
Varietal: Paraneima
Process: Washed

Tasting notes: Raspberry, lemon juice, cane sugar.

Producer info and cup notes:
The Hachi Project is an international collaborative operation involving 4 different farms spread across Colombia and Panama, with a focus on careful scientific and agricultural guidance from the initial cloning selections to the final processing steps.Both of these coffees come from Rocky Mountain Farm in Santa Clara, Chiriqui, Panama, which sits between 1,400 and 1,600masl. Managed by 3rd and 4th generation farmers Allan and Diana Hartmann, Rocky Mountain has a very rich and biodiverse climate, employing many agroforestry techniques to maintain its rich volcanic soil. The farm acts as a centralized point for Hachi's operations and a model for scalable, sustainable farming practices that produce consistently high quality year over year. 

"Kokumitsu" meaning "black honey or molasses"  might have been fitting for this coffee if it was taken to a comfort roast level, but on our ultralight profile it is singing with one of the cleanest and brightest acidity structures we have ever tasted. This coffee was taken through a classical washed process with meticulous care and precision, evidenced by its aggressively clean cup profile. Paraneima is a varietal we have been seeking since we started roasting last year, with the main hurdle being how many of them often land quite soft, easy to burn and hard to roast well light. This one instead landed quite dense and we were able to slam it with enough heat to really focus in on that brightness. In the cup, we find an immediate burst of lemon juice, like the last few drops of lemon-water at a restaurant that you squeezed a little extra into. Following this, the cup opens into a lovely depth of fruit with raspberry, fig and plum all crossing eachother's paths. The finish is sweet, clean and long lasting with a lovely cane sugar note that sticks around. 

Source: Hachi Project

SPECIAL OTL RELEASE: Buy at your own discretion! This is for the real degenerates out there :-)

Region: Santa Clara, Chiriqui, Panama
Producer: Alan and Diana Hartmann 
Varietal: Gesha
Process: Washed

Tasting notes: Reverse protocol: "Reverse Protocol begins with whole cherries undergoing a controlled submerged fermentation before depulping and washing. The intact fruit is placed in a calibrated culture medium with selected enzymes and yeast, allowing structured development during a precisely timed 24-hour phase. Once the desired profile is reached, the cherries are depulped and washed to halt fermentation before drying under controlled conditions. The result is a coffee with refined fruit clarity, clean acidity, and balanced structure, capturing the benefits of whole-cherry fermentation without excessive intensity." - description from Hachi 

Producer info and cup notes:
The Hachi Project is an international collaborative operation involving 4 different farms spread across Colombia and Panama, with a focus on careful scientific and agricultural guidance from the initial cloning selections to the final processing steps.Both of these coffees come from Rocky Mountain Farm in Santa Clara, Chiriqui, Panama, which sits between 1,400 and 1,600masl. Managed by 3rd and 4th generation farmers Allan and Diana Hartmann, Rocky Mountain has a very rich and biodiverse climate, employing many agroforestry techniques to maintain its rich volcanic soil. The farm acts as a centralized point for Hachi's operations and a model for scalable, sustainable farming practices that produce consistently high quality year over year. 

"Keika" meaning "blessed fruit" rings quite true for us in this expertly processed Reverse Protocol Gesha. For this process, the team at Hachi chose to submerge fully ripened whole cherries underwater in a carefully temp-controlled culture medium with specific yeasts and enzymes to cause the exact chemical breakdowns and interactions that they desired. Once all of the intended metrics have been met, the coffee is fully washed and dried in a dark room at controlled temperatures. This coffee cracked quite early, and as a result landed at a very low end temp, one of our lightest production roasts ever. Despite the extremely delicate touch on the roaster, this Panamanian Gesha is highly expressive, bright, and aromatically complex. In the cup, we find incredibly loud jasmine green tea notes, complimented by a finger lime acidity and layers of bergamot, magnolia, and hibiscus. The processing here is extremely delicate, and seems to only highlight and refine the cleaner aspects of a Gesha rather than add any ferment-related flavors. 

Source: Hachi Project 

Region: Nyeri, Kenya
Producer: 839 smallholder farmers organized around Kiama FCS
Varietal: Field blend of SL-28, SL-34, Batian and Ruiru
Process: Washed

Tasting notes: white grape, black currant, puer tea orange.

Producer info and cup notes: 
Within the Kiama FCS, Kiangundo operates at a similar scale to Ichuga with 839 members delivering cherry to their site at 1,800masl. Jackson Mahu Kooro, an active member of Kiama who delivers cherry to Ichuga, currently oversees operations at Kiangundo after working as a machine operator there for 17 years. Through Jackson's dedication and attention to detail, and the hardwork of its 5 permanent on site staff members, Kiangundo's quality remains stable year over year. After the predominantly red flavors of Ichuga, we were delighted to find this classical black currant cup as a good companion coffee to it. While hot, blackberry and blackcurrant jump to the top of the palate, eventually giving way to cleaner tones of white grape, orange blossom, and black tea, reminding us of a puer tea orange.

Source: Cafe Imports

Region: Nyeri, Kenya
Producer: 835 smallholder farmers organized around Kiama FCS
Varietal: Field blend of SL-28, SL-34, Batian and Ruiru
Process: Washed

Tasting notes: lime juice, green apple, cane sugar.

Producer info and cup notes: 
Founded by the Mutira FCS in 1975, Mugaya washing station provides processing and drying, technical agriculture advice and services, and regularly checks in with its 924 members to ensure the surrounding land remains healthy and vibrant. Mugaya sits at 1570masl, and farmers are encouraged to plant shade trees and grow beans, macadamia, and other crops to maintain the health of the soil. In the cup, we find an extremely high green apple and lime acidity that absolutely knocked our socks off on the initial offer sample of this coffee. Despite this loud punchy start, this coffee contains multitudes, opening up to notes of buttery chardonnay, nectarine, and kiwi. 

Region: Nyeri, Kenya
Producer: 835 smallholder farmers organized around Kiama FCS
Varietal: Field blend of SL-28, SL-34, Batian and Ruiru
Process: Washed

Tasting notes: black cherry cola, red currant, honeysuckle

Producer info and cup notes:
Ichuga washing station, owned by Kiama Farmers Cooperative Society(FCS) is managed by Stephen Kinyua and processes cherry for over 835 smallholder farmers that live in the surrounding Nyeri county. On average, these farmers only tend to half a hectare or less than 300 trees, growing at an average 1,800masl. Kiama FCS was established in 2005 after a merger between 2 neighboring co-ops, and eventually grew to represent over 3,000 smallholders. Kiama operates 4 different washing stations including Gachuiro, Kiangundo, Ichuga and Kiamaina. After the government reforms in 2023 changed the way coffee exports are handled, Kiama was able to obtain its own export license and bargain directly with buyers, increasing its ability to better advocate for its members and ask for more fair prices for their coffee. This classically processed double-washed lot hits exactly what you'd expect from a Nyeri coffee, with a red fruit forward cup the highlights red currants, black cherry cola, and an abundance of citric aromatics like lemon and lime zest. As it cools, a beautiful honeysuckle floral tone rises to the surface and lingers long on the finish.

Source: Cafe Imports

Region: Chiriqui, Panama
Producer: Bambito Estate
Varietal: Red Bourbon
Process: Natural

Tasting notes: Pineapple, mango smoothie, ruby grapefruit

Producer info and cup notes: 
In Chiriqui, Panama, Bambito Estate has been producing coffee since the early 1900s. Now in it's 4th and 5th generation in the hands of Priscilla and her son Ivan, the trees at Bambito Estate continue to produce some of our favorite coffees. Sitting between 1660-1800masl with 2 natural springs and its own cupping lab, greenhouse, and wet mill, Bambito Estate is ideally positioned for high quality and pays extreme attention to detail, not only to their prize winning washed Gesha, but also to the Caturra, Catuai, Yellow Catuai and Red Bourbon varietals also growing on their farm. Each year, they refine their processes and tweak their fermentation protocols, always seeking out incremental improvements and new flavor profiles. We feel it also very important to note, Priscilla and Ivan are some of the kindest folks we have ever met in coffee and have truly made an impression on us with their grace and respect, even when I personally was a greenbuyer with only 3 months experience under my belt a few years back, they took the time to visit and cup with us and even discuss sample roast profiles! We got to meetup with Ivan again at WOC San Diego this year and it was a delight. Now in our second year working with them on Shoebox, we are stoked to offer this traditionally processed Natural Red Bourbon. In the cup, we find an extremely intense fruited profile with a slightly lactic body that reminds us of a mango and pineapple smoothie. While hot, this is accompanied by a bright red ruby grapefruit acidity, that eventually cools into a slightly cleaner lemon-lime note and some very ripe apricot.

Region: Huila, Colombia 
Producer: Marlon Bolaños / The Three Coffee Farmers 
Varietal: Pink Bourbon
Process: Honey, 48hours in cherry in barrels, depulped, another 48hrs bulk fermented in barrels, then dried on raised beds as a honey for 10-15 days

Tasting notes: Yuzu, raw honey, bergamot

Producer info and cup notes: 
Marlon Bolaños's project "The Three Coffee Farmers" produces some of the highest quality we have ever seen from Huila. Despite growing up in a coffee producing family, it wasn't until the age of 17 that Marlon took an interest in it, signing himself up for a Barista education course at SENA where he learned brewing, green coffee grading, and sensory analysis. Upon returning from that course, Marlon began planting differentiated varietals like pink bourbon, gesha, and chiroso while experimenting with new fermentation techniques on each subsequent harvest. Flash forward to today, and the farm is now owned by Marlon and his 2 brothers, Pedro and Hemerson. Marlon is responsible for quality control, fermentation protocols, sampling and part of the logistics operations. Marlon has also competed and won in several barista and brewing competitions over the last several years, taking spring water from his family's farm for brewing. It's especially suited for coffee due to the natural trace mineral composition, and now coveted by peers after earning the name "Champion's Water." This specific late harvest pink bourbon lot underwent a double fermentation very similar to the process he used for his washed Gesha, first being kept in sealed plastic barrels in cherry without water for 48 hours before being depulped and bulk fermented in the barrels for another 48 hours, then finally dried for 10-15 days on raised beds as a honey. In the cup, we find intensely bright and sweet citric acidity like yuzu lemonade, which quickly cools to a more rounded raw honey note in the centerline. As the cup fully cools, an array of florals rises to the surface alongside a more delicate stonefruit, reminding you of this varietal's Ethiopian heritage. Apricot, bergamot, and jasmine all settle out into a delightfully juicy but still tealike brew. 

Region: Huila, Colombia 
Producer: Marlon Bolaños / The Three Coffee Farmers 
Varietal: Gesha
Process: Washed: 48hrs held in cherry underwater in barrels, then fully drained and left to dry ferment further for another 48hrs, then fully washed and dried on raised beds for 10-15 days

Tasting notes: Yellow Fig, pineapple, bergamot

Producer info and cup notes:
As we near our 1 year anniversary of launching Shoebox, Colombia season is well underway and we are particularly interested in extremely high quality, advanced fermentation Geshas. This past harvest has truly brought us some of the best coffees we've ever had, and this fruit bomb from Marlon Bolaños's project "The Three Coffee Farmers" is amongst the best of them. Despite growing up in a coffee producing family, it wasn't until the age of 17 that Marlon took an interest in it, signing himself up for a Barista education course at SENA where he learned brewing, green coffee grading, and sensory analysis. Upon returning from that course, Marlon began planting differentiated varietals like pink bourbon, gesha, and chiroso while experimenting with new fermentation techniques on each subsequent harvest. Flash forward to today, and the farm is now owned by Marlon and his 2 brothers, Pedro and Hemerson. Marlon is responsible for quality control, fermentation protocols, sampling and part of the logistics operations. Marlon has also competed and won in several barista and brewing competitions over the last several years, taking spring water from his family's farm for brewing. It's especially suited for coffee due to the natural trace mineral composition, and now coveted by peers after earning the name "Champion's Water." This specific washed gesha lot has quite an interesting process to it, having been submerged in cherry underwater for 48 hours before being drained, left in the same barrels dry to further ferment naturally for 48 hours before being fully washed and dried on raised beds.