Roasting our La Palma coffees took almost longer than selling them. We brought the Gesha into the shop in spring and the Castillo in late summer. Both coffees are cultivated in the eastern part of the Canary Island of La Palma. There is the small but fine Finca Anthea Café, which is run by the two Germans Rosa Pombrol and Jens Kimmel. In addition to specialty coffees, exotic fruits are also grown on the finca. These include mangos, avocados, custard apples, guavas, figs, passion fruit, bananas and citrus fruits. And now the new harvest is coming into our roaster and thus also into the shop!
Coffee from La Palma - Which varieties await you
On the Finca Anthea Café Two different varieties are currently cultivated: Castillo & Gesha! Castillo is a variety that is typically grown in Colombia. A friend of the farmer, José, brought this variety to La Palma around 20 years ago and thereby ensured the return of coffee cultivation on the Canary Island.
Castle
As already mentioned, the Castillo variety is typically cultivated in Colombia. Castillo is a typical Colombian coffee variety. It is also the most widespread there. The variety was developed in 2005 by the Cenicafe Research Center in Colombia. In terms of taste, the Castillo variety has a very fruity cup profile, which is accompanied by floral accents. Fine notes of berries, grapes and exotic fruits can also be detected. Another classic: the finish, which comes with a subtle caramel note. This week we are roasting the Castillo and bringing it to the shop – if you want some, you have to hurry, because we only have about 30 packs.
Gesha
Anyone who has already looked into the subject of coffee or specialty coffee has certainly come across the term Gesha coffee. Gesha is a real specialty among specialty coffees. The variety originally comes from Ethiopia. However, the unusual variety only became really well-known through a subspecies that was bred and developed in Panama. Gesha is a variety that is truly unique in terms of taste. The taste can be classified as crazy. In the cup profile, a tea-like taste can be recognized, which comes with fine notes of jasmine, orange blossom and bergamot. The overall package is rounded off by a mild body. Gesha varieties regularly win competitions and cuppings. This is also why this variety is one of the most expensive in the world. The Gesha coffee from La Palma is the first from Europe. The Gesha will soon be in the roaster – and here too you have to be quick. Because the Gesha is also limited!
Coffee from Europe - La Palma
In general, coffee is very important on the Canary Island of La Palma. The people of La Palma like to drink a lot of coffee. Therefore, there are numerous small cafés and bars where you can enjoy a wide variety of coffee specialties. The many different variants of Cortado are particularly popular, as in the whole of Spain. Coffee was already being grown on La Palma in the middle of the 20th century. As industrialization progressed, the demand for coffee naturally increased. Countries of origin such as Brazil and Colombia, which had started early on with the expansion and further development of technical support for the harvest on their plantations, benefited the most. Only they could meet the high demand for coffee worldwide. Smaller growing areas such as La Palma could not keep up with this technical progress. As a result, coffee cultivation in La Palma also stagnated and was eventually even forgotten.
Coffee from La Palma is slowly returning
At the beginning of the 21st century, during the 3rd coffee wave, interest in coffee cultivation in La Palma slowly returned. The island government, known as the Cabildo, tried to get coffee cultivation back on La Palma by holding regular workshops and information days. The first successes have only been seen recently, however. The two farmers Rosa Pombrol and Jens Kimmel are responsible for the first new coffees from La Palma. A friend of the two, José, brought 20 green coffee beans from his Colombian homeland around 15 years ago, which the three of them raised as seedlings. Over the past few years, there have been several plants, which have slowly but surely become accustomed to the climate, the land and the sun on the Canary Islands. A real finca has now been created.
La Palma Castle
The green coffee for our La Palma Castillo comes, as described above, from the Finca Anthea in the east of La Palma. The Castillo variety is grown here at an altitude of 354 meters. After the harvest, the cherries are processed in our own processing station using a specially developed fermentation process. The processing works via cryo-lactic acid-containing anaerobic maceration for 480 hours. The water from the Taburiente boiler filtered in volcanic rock is also added, as well as some ash from the volcano. The entire processing is managed and monitored by a professional coffee producer. The end result promises a chocolatey-walnutty taste with fine notes of fruit and flowers. The exquisite green coffee is then gently, lightly roasted in our roastery. This makes this specialty coffee ideal for preparation as filter coffee. But you can also prepare excellent light espressos with the La Palma Castillo.
La Palma Gesha
The La Palma Gesha is a real speciality. The coffee also comes from the Finca Anthea in the east of the Canary Island of La Palma. This coffee is also prepared using milk fermentation. After harvesting, the cherries are placed in a tank for 240 hours and fermented using anaerobic maceration. In addition, water from the Taburiente boiler filtered in volcanic rock and the ash from the volcano are added. The entire processing is managed and monitored by a professional coffee producer. The La Palma Gesha coffee is lightly roasted in our coffee roastery. This exquisite specialty coffee is ideal for preparing as filter coffee. You can expect a taste of roses with fine notes of red apple and caramel.
How to prepare the two coffees from La Palma
Both coffees from La Palma are best suited for preparation using any filter method. This allows the fruity nuances of these specialty coffees from Europe to come through best.
To prepare it you need: 20 g La Palma Gesha or La Palma Castillo, your hand filter equipment & 300 ml approx. 90 degrees hot water
- Place filter paper in your hand filter and rinse with hot water. Then pour in the ground coffee.
- Pour in about 60 ml of water in circular movements and let it steep for about 30 seconds.
- Add the remaining 240 ml of water slowly and steadily in circular movements.
- The brewing process should last between 2:30 - 3 minutes.
- Enjoy
If the coffee does not taste perfect to you yet, then change the grind size, brewing time or the amount of coffee. We hope you enjoy your coffee from Europe!
Conclusion
Coffee from Europe is finally possible again thanks to the coffee from La Palma. And thanks to us and our roasting master also available again. Probably around the middle of the week! We will notify you via newsletter and social media.
