NCR004 - Cascara " Panama "

BLACK TEA WITH LEMON, HONEY AND TANGERINE

Origin: Panama
Region: Volcán, Chiriquí
Producer: Carlos Aguilera, Carmen Estate
Variety: Geisha, Caturra, Catuai
Altitude: 1.700 mts
Process: washed, honey and natural

History:
Carmen Estate is located in the Volcan Valley, Chiriqui, Panamá, at an altitude of 1800 mts.
They have been producing and exporting high quality Arabica coffee for over 50 years.
Carlos Aguilera is the third generation owner of the single estate and mill set up by his
grandparents, Efrain and Carmen Franceschi
in 1960. Carmen Estate produces 1,200
bags (60 kg each) of unique quality green
coffee beans each year.
The coffee plants grow on steep hills, under
century old rain forest vegetation and with
natural springs and creeks crossing the
property, providing a great habitat for local
fauna.
Carmen takes care at every stage of harvesting and processing to maintain optimum results.
Safe and healthy conditions for workers and their families and environmentally friendly
production practices, like integrated pest management, soil conservation, protection of
natural water resources, waste management and ecosystem
conservation are all part of their contribution to sustainable farm
management: Each day during the harvest, the ripe, bright red
coffee cherries are transported from the field to the mill to be
processed as quickly as possible. Advanced, low water usage
machinery washes away the skin, pulp, and mucilage from the
parchment bean. The residues from the milling process are
recycled into the farm as organic fertilizer instead of releasing
them into the environment at concentrated levels.

The parchment beans are pre-dried in the
natural sunlight and breezes on concrete patios
whereas the natural beans are laid out on
African beds. Mechanical driers, fueled by
coffee parchment, are then used to complete
the drying process. After the beans, still in
parchment, are dried they are then packed into
individual jute bags. These bags are carefully

classified and numbered by lots, then stored in a wooden warehouses or bodegas for a 60
day resting period. Beans are cupped lot by lot in order to determine any errors or defects
from the field, harvest, or drying and milling processes. The finest lot samples are taken to
the lab and analyzed for fragrance, aroma, body, acidity, flavor and other coffee qualities
using industry standards of cupping. The beans are then graded and sorted by size and
density before being packed in the final shipping bags.
Carmen Estate offers a high consistency in the quality of their coffee year after year. One
proof of this is the fact that they have been consistently placed in the top 5 in a number of
specialty cupping contests for the past years.