Coffee of The Day: The “Awesome” Costa Rica Geisha by Sea Island Coffees – The Malbec of Coffee!

In the last decade an increasing number of coffee cuppers have started writing about the emergence of the “Geisha” coffee variety on the world market, and from cuppers – or professional tasters – to roasters and coffee fanatics alike they cannot stop marveling over the flavor attributes in this coffee. And for good reasons! SO today, as a perfect Sunday coffee choice, SpillingTheBeans is making an evaluation of one of these many Geisha varieties available in the coffee market today.

This Geisha blend is from the London-based Sea Island Coffees, which quickly has become one of SpillingTheBeans’ FAVORITE coffee companies, not only because of its dedication to support so many tiny and rare origins, but because their selection of AWESOME coffees simply is nothing less but outstanding! So we are pleased to be able to offer a little well deserved credit here to this wonderful coffee company.

The Geisha sample from the Coffea Diversa plantation in the Biolley Valley in southern Costa Rica, was awarded a star at the Great Taste Awards 2011, due to this delicate profile with quietly complex aromatics that reward patient attention with notes of lavender, cocoa and hints of molasses. The Coffea Diversa plantation where the geisha grows is highly unique as it grows the largest number of different coffee varieties in the world.

Geisha coffee first achieved world recognition thanks to a stunning and multi-award winning sample from Hacienda Esmeralda in Panama and it’s one of the Arabica varieties that originated from the original Typica and Bourbon varieties that first was discovered growing in the wild in Ethiopia’s Kaffa province some 1000 to 1200 years ago. Named after the Gesha district in the province of Kaffa in Ethiopia, the Gesha bean qualifies for being the “Malbec of Coffees” in the world today, because much as the Malbec grape that originated from Bordeaux wine growing region in France it wasn’t until Argentina started cultivated this grape on the other side of the world in the Mendoza region that it rose to fame for its quality. Today the Gesha, or Geisha bean, is increasingly cultivated across Central America as well as back home in the Kaffe province in Ethiopia.

A MUST-TRY for coffee lovers, this coffee has a floral aroma and is silky smooth, yet is a surprisingly full-bodied bean, with a pronounced yet balanced acidity that combined leaves an exotic, sweet and delicious well-rounded aftertaste that will linger on the back of your tongue for hours after the coffee is gone.

Some cuppers has called this coffee for nothing less but “priceless” and since supply is limited, we recommend to check out this and many of the other fabulous coffees available from Sea Island Coffees at their web site: http://www.seaislandcoffee.com/geisha-coffee-gift-set-1.html
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