Description
Mama Cata is a very top notch award winning farm that very seldom makes it to the US. Located in some of the best growing territory in Panama, Jose’s highest elevation and most renowned farm. Some of the biggest names in Panama coffee are also located in this prime territory, Hacienda Esmeralda and Elida Estate are neighbors. Since his coffee is always obtained by foreign markets, many in the US have not heard the name Mama Cata before.
Founded in 1911, one of the original premium Panama farms, currently owned by Jose David Garrido Perez (who also owns Garrido, and just happens to be decent friends with our Panamanian farmer buddy, Keith Pech). Jose has previously won the Best of Panama and his coffee place regularly in the large competitions. This farm knows how to grow/process some of the world’s best coffee.
This is a super tasty and clean washed processed coffee, very highly rated but not a competition winner, much more affordable and a bit more classic in its tones. Produced by one of the best Panama farms on the block!
Tasting Notes: Great from light to dark. Light roasts will show great depth of flavor and produce a very clean cup. Some acidity, which brings lemony and floral tones to the front end of the tastes, balances them with a sweet edged nutty/malty undertone, hints of a vegetal spice. As one pushes the roast a little darker, the body increases, as the acidity and vegetal spice dissipated. Made for a very lovely daily drinker in the medium roast range; sweet, smooth & complex. Pushing the beans darker, the citric and floral acidity drops nicely to a crisp hint or none at all, the malty tones can turn quite robust as you approach or touch 2nd crack. Sweet, smoky, roasty and malty.
Roasting Notes: An easy coffee to roast, beautiful large beans. Good from light to dark, pretty low chaff and pretty even roasting. Darkens up pretty quickly, will look a little darker than it is. We recommend trying it on the lighter side of a medium roast to get a nicely balanced cup.
Keith Pech has become a good friend over the last couple of seasons. He has some family in the U.P. (Michigan) and passes by our warehouse from time to time when visiting his family. Keith is really on the cutting edge of Panamanian coffee, he places in the the Best of Panama every year he enters.
He really hooked it up with some nice high-end Natural Processed Caturra and Typica from his farm, as well as playing our eyes and ears on the ground in Panama. His mom is actually part of the Ruiz family who we sourced a ton of awesome Panama coffees from in years past.
Turns out Keith is buddies with all the other Panama operations we have dealt with in the past as well. Elida, HI-U, Esmeralda, Mama Cata, Nuguo, Ruiz. Quite the guy to have befriended, with being able to piggyback on the shipment from Damarli, we now have easy access to the best of the best. Not only that, but with Keith playing nice and being very well-liked by these other farmers, we were able to snag top lots from the best farms in Panama, primo beans that normally never make it to the US. Nothing else on the block like these offerings!
pcrepairtech (verified owner) –
This is my coffee. I do not know how to accurately describe the flavor, so I’ll describe what it means to me. This coffee is sweet, no bitter after taste, and doesn’t make my tummy hurt. I can enjoy it with cream, no sugar needed. It has a bold taste but is not overbearing. To me THIS is the perfect cup of coffee. I know people have different tastes, but this coffee is 100% my favorite. I stop roasting at the beginning of the second crack and the flavor is heavenly. It even reheats nicely and is tasty cold. I have a sensitive stomach and I’m very happy this coffee doesn’t upset it. Feel free to try it!