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The Lamastus Family\u2019s Elida Estate. Specialty Coffee Association of Panama photo.<\/span><\/pre>\n[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”3.26.3″]<\/p>\n
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The 23rd\u00a0Best of Panama\u00a0specialty coffee auction resulted in astounding prices, including a BoP auction-record-breaking natural-process Gesha variety from the\u00a0Lamastus family\u2019s Elida Estate\u00a0that fetched $1,029 per pound.<\/p>\n
The\u00a049 lots sold\u00a0at the auction generated nearly $560,000 for farmers, with per-pound averages reaching just above $100. Among the forty-three 100-pound lots sold, none fetched less than $28 per pound, reflecting the high prices buyers were willing to meet across the board.<\/p>\n
Such prices are in stark contrast to the global commodity coffee market, where, as of this writing, the\u00a0ICE coffee futures price, a.k.a. \u201cC price\u201d for September contracts sat at a dismally low $1.076 per pound.<\/p>\n
For the BoP auction, coffees were divided into five categories: natural- and special- process Geshas; washed-process Geshas; natural-process Pacamaras; traditional natural- and special-process coffees of other varieties; and traditional washed-process coffees of other varieties.<\/p>\n
If not the genetic birthplace of Gesha, which\u00a0originated in Ethiopia, Panama has been ground zero for the fame and economic rewards associated with the Gesha variety (referred to by most Panamanian producers as Geisha) at the very high end of the specialty coffee trade.<\/p>\n
A longtime competitor in the BoP auction, the Lamastus family has been a major force in Panamanian specialty coffee, with owner Wilford Lamastus (Sr.) being a key figure in the formation of auction organizer the\u00a0Specialty Coffee Association of Panama. The family\u2019s natural-process \u201cElida Geisha Green Tip\u201d took the highest score ever at the BoP competition in May before breaking the auction price record this week.<\/p>\n
\u201cLast night Elida Geisha ASD achieved a record of $1029 per lb of coffee. The same coffee achieved 95.25 points, another record in points\u00a0[sic],<\/em>\u201d Wilford Lamastus Jr.\u00a0wrote on Instagram\u00a0following the auction. \u201cSince the days my father started pushing with his few colleagues the creation of the Specialty Coffee Association of Panama to 29 years later achieving the records and making Panama Geisha a global brand. Today, Elida won as the best coffee, but in reality is about Panama because in the long run people will remember the origin and variety and not individual producers #PanamaGeisha.\u201d<\/p>\nJapan\u2019s\u00a0Saza Coffee\u00a0was credited by the producers for leading the buying consortium, while U.S. buyers included\u00a0Klatch Coffee\u00a0(Rancho Cucamonga, California),\u00a0Willoughbys Coffee & Tea\u00a0(Branford, Connecticut) and\u00a0Dragonfly Coffee Roasters\u00a0(Boulder, Colorado).<\/p>\n
Earlier this year, Klatch Coffee\u00a0made headlines\u00a0throughout the world for pitching last year\u2019s BoP top lot \u2014 yet another natural-process Gesha from the Lamastus family\u2019s Elida Estate, which\u00a0sold for $803 per pound\u00a0\u2014 as the priciest cup of coffee ever sold. It offered individual tasting experiences\u00a0in San Francisco\u00a0for $75 per cup.<\/p>\n