Lot GN-17: GARRIDO GEISHA PROCESS
HISTORY: MAMA CATA is over a 100-year-old coffee farm. Filled with veiled tastes at its core. Lately everything has been about gathering precise information about historical facts. They have proved to be important in understanding our present. *Special thanks to Johnny Collins, Plinio Ruiz and Maria Ruiz for the recovered and revised historical data*.
This farm has had many owners from it’s beginning as a farm (early 1900’s) till today, and many stories to go along with it. Surprisingly, some have proven to be just that: stories. In the search for coffee truths new findings have been made. The historical data available till now states that MAMA CATA had already existed by 1907 as a farm while Boquete still belonged to the David District. Its farmhouses were taken in account as being part of the Quiel region by the time Boquete was legally founded as a District in 1911.
The farm original founders where most likely the Quiel family from whom the micro region took its name. Though, a different lead from research, but least possible, points to the Morales or Sitton family.
From that point on (early 1900’s) the farm was property of the Fischer’s family. Mr. Louis (apparently no widowing from a previous wife as we misbelieved) and Catalina Fischer where a nationalized Panamanian couple originally from Jamaica with a daughter that grew up in the farm. They had a couple of things going. Meanwhile they where establishing the coffee plantation in Boquete, Mr. Fisher was also attending their banana farm in Bocas del Toro.
The Fischers were amongst the first to produce coffee in the
actual Alto Quiel micro region. Known coffee buyers during their
time being were Mr. Plinio Ruiz Senior, and a German company for
the exports <still to be determined>.
It’s recorded that Julia and Tollef Monniche and Miss Archer
where contemporaries of same period after the Panama Canal
construction ended (1914). But, the Fischers seemed to have settled
the coffee farm in Quiel first.
Stories of the cows pulling between bushes and the muddy
ground sliding the two, new to their time, 1915’s kerosene big
wheel motors making their way to the farm mill are still alive.
They moved the peeling and the pulping under the two stories house.
Is said that to peel off 1,000 pounds took them over two days. Some
remember the pool, hose and pump working for spraying the whole
farm. They had the latest tech available at their time for
producing the best coffee possible.
Even today someone remember the fragrance of the “jorón
<shaded patio-slow dry>“ dried parchment coffee from the
Texas farm. Yes. We definitely are recovering this tradition, in
some way with the implementation of the permanently shaded green
houses.
TEXAS was the name by which MAMA CATA ESTATE was originally
known. This named lasted for some time after Mr. Fischer died
(1940s), till Catalina sold the farm to the actual owner Teodoro
Garrido. The TEXAS name suited so well Mrs. Catalina who was a fan
of a 9 shot .22 caliber revolver and a 30-30 carbine for her
teatime shoot out with her favorite neighbor Carmela over dead
chickens. I think its not casual the Mokkita CASA ABAJO PLOT is
just there were these shootings took place. In a sense, it has been
a one of a kind shootout for us. Hey, the TEXAS fighting spirit
seems to be flowing patiently through us too.
As proof of TEXAS farm’s existence, there is a coin picture
in a Boquete history book that show how things where done back in
the day: reads out “worth one lata”. These coins where tradable for
goods in the town or in the estate store.
Now some genetics history: Verbal gathered history makes
reference to Mrs. Catalina “Doña Cata” bringing coffee seeds from
Jamaica and elsewhere to the farm for planting. It did not have to
do anything related with many Typicas, Catuais, Caturras and Geisha
(that we owe to Don Pachi) from the local nursery that provided
certified coffee plants from C.A.T.I.E. collections attended by
government agronomists. It seems that this part of the story is
true, and many other seeds including the Mokka and Jamaican Blue
Mountain Typica amongst made their way to our farm due to their
seriousness in their coffee production effort.
Now a days: Since the mid 1970’s the actual owner is TEODORO
GARRIDO. He named the farm “MAMA CATA” after Catalina. Now a days a
2nd Garrido generation is sharing the thrill: Gissell, Liliana and
Jose David are involved to the bone and a 3rd one is near to meet
their destiny in the family coffee tradition.
In relation to the Mokkas: How did MOKKA made its way to MAMA CATA? Did it come from Yemen or is it a Bourbon mutation from the Reunion Islands? We don’t have these answers. There is no record of any of this to that level of specification. It is uncertain. But there is another part that is certain for sure. Hard work but also beautiful.
We made a learning investment visiting INBIO Costa Rica. This was incredibly relevant. Why? They had so much old coffee trees information registered and stored for decades, from different parts of the Americas. It included drawings from every part of the coffee tree, and from various genetic materials. They taught us about coffee phenotype observation, analysis and determination. We immediately cross-referenced cupping with these new information after learning that flavor was a dominant trait just like baldness or skin color. When we came back to work it was just another level. Now science and time are working for us. At our labs we had cupped by 2019 over 700-test samples of very old trees that have different phenotypes and cup profiles. We are looking inwards. This cupping effort made a breakthrough even during Mamoru Taguchi San from Bach Coffee of Japan’s visit. At the moment he was the president of the SCAJ and probably the most varietal experienced specialty coffee cupper, with over 60 years of cupping baggage. His life’ passion has been dedicated to serve to an extent of recognition that at that moment he performed as the Emperor of Japans coffee advisor. During cupping in a visit back in the late 2000’s, which was focused on Geisha, he was overwhelmed with this coffee finding. Once he examined the greens he taught us that it was a Mokka. That the taste profile and aspect of the coffee clearly was remembering him a coffee he cupped from an African Coffee Station 60 years back at that moment. He wanted to buy it. But, we only had what he was cupping. So, he encouraged us to plant it fast. That it was a great discovery. So we planted it in his honor. But, this is an understatement. It has taken us over fifteen years to purify and define through cupping, field observation and selection four different phenotypes from the original single tree. These four strains share huge similarities and differences in cup and even more of both in terms of production, resistances and most important cup. Now is MAMA CATA MOKKA’s time to meet the world.
TERROIR: MAMA CATA ESTATE farm has numerous coffee plots that show its full potential when combined with the right varietal and process. Though these particular coffee comes from the TOÑA plot. The ecotopes share a solid weather pattern bathed by the pacific influenced northern rain and breezes. They have the proper gentle sunlight and a fair amount of cold weather. This helps all the other variables the coffee cultivar needs like the different volcanic soil compositions, plant distance, genetics, shade, soil slope degree, plot orientation and so on… Together they shape the coffee cup to delight.
Contact Information:
Jose David Garrido Perez
cell: +507 66170201
email: panamense@gmail.com
instagram: @mamacataestate @cafegarrido
@garridospecialtycoffeeroasters
Lot Description
Reference Number: | GN-17 |
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Opening Bid: | $20.00/lb |
Increment: | $0.50 |
Weight: | 100 lbs |
Process: | Fermented Washed |
Harvest: | March-13-2020 |
Boxes: | 2 |
Coffee details
Description: | Floral: Jasmine, roses, orange blossom and honeysuckle. Fruits /Green: Green grapes. /Yellow: Peach and mango. /Red: Strawberry, syzygium jambos <rose apple>. /Purple: Figs. Herbal: Tea like and lemongrass. Layered Sweetness: Maple syrup, sugar cane, honey, candy, brown sugar, caramel, molasses and dark honey. Citric Acidity: Bright, bergamot, grapefruit, red grapefruit, rich in orange. Creamy Body: Butter, cacao nibs, spices, dark rich chocolate and marshmallows. Round cup with increasing intensity as it cools and a good balance of attributes. Is consistent and juicy with a cider like finish. GEISHA GEISHA. |
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Farm details
Producer Name: | Teodoro Garrido/Garrido’s Coffee & Estates |
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Farm Name: | Mama Cata Estate |
Region: | Alto Quiel, Boquete |
Farm Elevation: | Toña Plot: 1,675 - 1,700 masl. Farm: 1,500 - 1,700 masl. |
Average Rainfall: | 2,750 mm. 108.26” |
Producer Story:
PROCESS: ASSSD. <Anaerobic Sumatran Style Slow Dry> aka <SUMATRAN ASD>. This delicious geisha has the most particular of processes. Due to the confidence in years of various learning curves (measurements, detection of key moments, intuitive processing and controlled cupping) made out of controlled trial and errors. You can say this coffee was literally drowned, clothed, naked and uncovered. The complete process has so many stages that you can define the coffee as a multi process one. Starting with a classical perfect picking, post harvest hand cherry selection at farm, immediate transport to milling headquarters while the night is cold, hand cherry reselection wet re-re selection (cherry floated, water chased) to finally start with a wild and special yeast temperature, time, sugar and pH controlled process. To fall into the all controlled solar patio (sun, shade, temperature, humidity, air flow.. so on…) drying beds gallery for further consented caresses. Then pealed and dried naked. Total madness. Passing from whole dry pulp to just bare bean for further drying with no night covering.. just the freezing night temps and the controlled daily aerated drying of the solar dryer till its humidity reduction to perfection is done. Nevertheless the Key process at its core is the ASD combination: gentle at taste and balanced at varietal and process components. Enjoy it!
Other info
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