Don K was the highest ranked non-Geisha coffee in the 2011 Best of Panama competition, held in Boquete in April. Grown by Ricardo Koyner of Kotowa Farm, it is located on prime land in the Boquete area of Panama's Chiriqui province. The farm operates its own wetmill and oversees every part of the coffee cycle from nursery to finished green coffee. The formal name of this coffee is Kotowa Don K Premium Reserve. This coffee was harvested when over-ripe, an experimental and risky proposition for the farm. Ricardo Koyner describes the unique process this year's Don K underwent: "This coffee was harvested on February 9th and sundried for 13 days until February 22nd. We call this method PREMIUM RESERVE. For the process, we left the cherries go way past ripeness, until very dark red, almost prune like. The day they were harvested, they were processed and brought back to the drying patio within a few hours. Problem with this method is that when we get some bajareque in the farm (the light rain with a lot of wind) we lose those overripe beans as they tend to fall from the plant very easy after maturity (ripeness) is at peak. As a matter of fact, we did lose an approximate of 30% due to this situation. This makes for a very fine tasting coffee, but we run the risk of losing cherries that drop to the ground due to the fact that the cherry is very ripe". Once drying completes beans are rested for at least two months in wooden silos, a process to allow full flavor to develop. The result of this unique process is a very sweet, light and elegant coffee with pronounced lemon-lime citric acidity. Name: Kotowa Don K Premium Reserve
Growing Region: El Salto, Boquete
Varietal: Caturra
Elevation: 1700-1750 meters – 5500-5600 feet
Processing: Washed
Drying: Slow, African style beds
Temperature: 22C max and 15C min DON K PHOTOS Don K is named after Ricardo's grandfather who was one of the first settlers of Boquete and the person who started farming coffee in their family. He first came to Panama from Canada in 1913 after reading a newspaper article about the Boquete region, in a distant country of Central America named Panama. His curiosity led him to visit the region, where he fell in love with the area, the people, and the magic of the valley. For four generations since, his family has cultivated and processed in the same traditional way. This Kotowa farm plot where Don K is grown follows basic ecological principles but does use some other sources of fertilizer. They use calcium and magnesium in the fertilization, especially during the maturation process of the cherry. Those two nutrients are very important for the development of amino acids that develop flavor and also affects the density of the bean. No herbicides, insecticides nor any chemical pesticide is used at Don K. Kotowa Estate owns several tracts of coffee land, one of which is certified organic. All of their coffee is brought to their “ecological mill” which uses only 1/2 liter per pound of green coffee, much lower than the 10-20 liters used by many other mills in the world. All the by-products from the milling activity - pulp, waste water - are used to produce the organic fertilizer which is used in the “Duncan Farm” and in combination with other fertilizers described above, in the “Don K" farm. During harvest, they carefully hand select only the best ripe cherries, to be pulped using crystal clear water from mountain springs. Modern milling techniques allow them to properly select the beans that are then pulped and dried using traditional methods. They then slowly dry the coffee using the old and gentle sun-drying system in the cool and dry climate of our farm at 1750 meters of altitude. In 2006, The National Environmental Agency presented Kotowa Coffee as the winner of The Panama National Award for "The Year´s Environmentally Cleanest Industry". They provide free medical attention for their workers, and for the children they have a nursery with meals and a school program. Kotowa's social programs for the children and families producing this great coffee has earned them recognition from UNICEF nine years in a row. Cup Characteristics: Floral combined with lemon aromatics; background aroma of molasses. A strikingly bright and citrusy cup with lemon and lime. Silky, refined. Crisp, piquant and gentle, showing mild oolong style tannins. A very delightful and sophisticated cup. Roasting Notes: This is such a delicate coffee that to do it justice you ought really keep it light, meaning pull this coffee mid way between first and second crack. Depending on your roaster and roast size this may be thirty seconds to a minute and thirty seconds after first crack gets underway.
| Volume Price |
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| Pounds | Price LB |
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| 1 | $10.83 | | 2-4 | $10.29 | | 5+ | $9.75 |
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