Panama Organic Coffee Brands
Some of the world’s best organic coffee comes from Panama. Panama mountain grown organic coffee b enefits from the rich volcanic soil at the base of the extinct 11,000 foot volcano, Volcan Baru. A frequent cloud cover at high altitudes and forested slopes provide an ideal location for shade grown coffee. Whether you are looking for coffee for individual consumption or if you would like Panama wholesale organic coffee , look to the country on the isthmus joining the Americas for excellent coffee. There are a number of Panama organic coffee brands. The easiest way to find out about and to receive any of the excellent Panama organic coffee brands is to contact Panamá Natural Organic Coffee for availability and pricing.
Organic Coffee from Panama
The Cordillera Central of Panama, its mountainous spine, is an extension of the mountains of the North. Here, in the tropics, the highlands are referred to as the land of eternal spring. The elevation provides a relief from the coastal heat but, because Panama is in the tropics, it does not get cold. The highlands of Panama are ideal for growing coffee. The highlands around Boquete and Volcan in the province of Chiriquí have rich volcanic soil and a coffee growing culture going back a century. Small family owned farms grow coffee on the slopes of the mountains and hills of Panama. Many of these coffee farms produce shade grown coffee as growers have left much of the natural habitat in place. In addition, many growers have used sustainable growing techniques for coffee for years. Thus it was a small step for many to receive Bio Latina organic coffee certification . Bio Latina certifies producers and processors in behalf of the United States Department of Agriculture, the Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, and agricultural authorities in Canada and the European Union. The highlands of Panama can be your source for individual bags of coffee or large shipments of Panama wholesale organic coffee.
Panama Organic Coffee Brands
If you are looking for a cup with great organic coffee aroma and healthy organic coffee antioxidants consider Panama organic coffee. There are many available organic coffee growers and processors. If your interest is in green coffee beans, Panama wholesale organic coffee may be for you. If your interest is in processed, bagged, and labeled organic coffee that is always an option. Here is a list of Panama organic coffee brands:
- Asociación de Caficultores Orgánicos Ngöbe Ascon
- Finca Dos Jefes
- Finca El Remedio – Ama de Casa
- Finca Ramon Arauz
- Finca San Miguel de La Montaña
- Finca Señor Ramón Arauz
- Hacienda Barbara Jaramillo
- Hacienda La Esperanza
- Leap Of Faith Farms, Inc
- Los Lajones Estate Coffee S.A.
In general you will need to speak Spanish in order to contact these folks so, if you are interested it will be easier to work through a local, bilingual company, to buy one of the excellent Panama organic coffee brands. If you interest is in purchasing either coffee for your own consumption or Panama wholesale organic coffee in bulk please feel free to contact us at Panamá Natural Organic Coffee by way of www.BuyOrganicCoffee.org today.
Are You What You Eat?
That old saying, “You are what you eat” has been around for a while. I am kind of inclined to believe that there is a lot to the concept.
Our food supply is filled with toxic substances. I know, I know. The government has established safety guidelines for how much of the toxic substances we can safely eat. Wait! EATING any toxic substances doesn’t sound all that safe to me. When I read that the levels of “safety” were determined for grown men who weighed at least 154 pounds, I was shocked. What about all of the people who are smaller? Are the same levels “safe” for women? When was the last time you saw a little kid that weighed 154 pounds of either sex? Are these “guidelines” relevant – much less effective? If we really are what we eat, right now most Americans would be toxic.
What is called “conventional” food production techniques include the use of chemical fertilizers (some of which end up IN the food), toxic pesticides (some of which end up ON the food) and drugs like antibiotics and growth hormones. Food that is processed and packaged is filled with artificial flavor enhancers and preservatives, many of which are known to be unsafe at high levels of consumption. Have you ever looked at the list of ingredients on packaged food? Good grief! I can’t even pronounce most of those words. What ARE they?
Well, if we really are what we eat, all of those things are us. They are in our bodies. They circulate through our systems. The question is, are they really safe? I’m not so sure that they are. We are what we eat – or so “they” say, and I choose to be nontoxic and drug free. What do you choose?
San Francisco Coffee Roasters
Whether your preference is healthy organic coffee or regular roasted coffee the best coffee flavor comes from freshly roasted beans. For a cup of coffee free of many unwanted impurities, full of healthy antioxidants, and good for the environment choose one of the San Francisco coffee roasters for organic coffee. Remember that in a cup of freshly roasted coffee from one of the San Francisco coffee roasters you will find natural ingredients that can cut the risk of Type II diabetes in half and make prostate cancer, endometial cancer, and colon cancer less frequent as well. All this just because you routinely visit one of the San Francisco coffee roasters for a fresh batch of roasted coffee.
Freshly Roasted Organic Coffee
When you check on San Francisco coffee roasters inquire about whether they offer freshly roasted organic coffees. These coffees are USDA certified or certified by a USDA affiliate. For example Bio Latina organic coffee certification tells you that coffee beans from Panama, Colombia, and elsewhere in Latin America were grown according to sustainable agricultural practices, processed separately, and stored separate from regular coffee. When you see a USDA seal or seal of a certifying agency such as Bio Latina you can be sure that you are getting genuine organic coffee. Ask for organic coffee and skip the 150 or so impurities that often show up in regular coffee. No pesticides, herbicides, synthetic fertilizers for you!
Other Sources of Roasted Organic Coffee
If roasted organic coffee from Panama interests you please contact us a www.BuyOrganicCoffee.org . Whether your interest in in wholesale coffee of coffee that is roasted and sent to you a bag at a time check with the folks at Buy Organic Coffee who speak English, Spanish, and organic coffee.
Tips for Storing Coffee
- Green coffee beans properly stored last for about two years
- Roasted coffee beans retain their flavor for up to six months when vacuum packed
- Once you open the container of roasted coffee beans do not refrigerate
- These beans will retain their flavor for up to two months
- Once you grind coffee beans the coffee retains its flavor for a few hours at the most
For a local roaster in San Francisco or the greater Bay Area here is a list of local vendors for both freshly roasted organic or regular coffees.
- Blue Bottle Coffee
- Caffe Roma Coffee Roasting
- Caffe Trieste
- De La Paz Roasters
- Ecco Caffe
- Four Barrel Coffee
- Flywheel Coffee Roasters
- Graffeo Coffee
- Ritual Coffee Roasters
- Rogers Family Coffee Company
- San Francisco Coffee Roasting Company
- Sight Glass Coffee
- Toper Coffee Roasters
- Wrecking Ball Coffee
Remember not to stock up on large quantities of roasted coffee beans from San Francisco coffee roasters, at least not more than enough for a couple of months or you will see a decline in flavor from the first cup to the last. And, certainly, do not grind a large quantity of freshly roasted coffee as the decline in flavor will be precipitous over just a few days.
Houston Coffee Roasters
In search of high quality, freshly roasted healthy organic coffee ? There are Houston coffee roasters from whom you can purchase a wide range of regular and organic coffees. Freshness of coffee comes down to a few facts.
- Properly stored green coffee beans last for about two years.
- Roasting coffee brings about a number of complex chemical reactions in the coffee bean.
- Antioxidants formed in roasting coffee are responsible for its unique taste and many health benefits.
- Anti-oxidants break down with exposure to oxygen.
- Roasted beans can maintain most of their flavor for up to six months if vacuum packed.
- Once they are exposed to air but kept in a cool and dry place roasted coffee beans maintain flavor for no more than two months.
- Once you grind roasted coffee beans you expose all of the inner antioxidants to the air and you lose flavor by the hour if not the minute.
So, if you want to preserve those organic coffee antioxidants buy and store green coffee beans to roast and grind at home or, better yet, purchase small quantities of freshly roasted coffee of your choice from any of a number of Houston coffee roasters. If you buy your own green coffee store it in a bag that breaths, paper or burlap, and not in plastic. If you visit one of the Houston coffee roasters save your roasted coffee beans in a sealed glass jar in a cool place. Remember that a place like the handy cupboard right above the stove heats up when you are cooking. Pick a handy spot away for heat sources. Coffee fresh from one of the Houston coffee roasters will keep its flavor for a couple of months. Just make sure that you only grind enough for a serving or two at a time.
If you are looking for good wholesale organic coffee, green beans that is, feel free to contact Panamá Natural Organic Coffee or other suppliers through www.buyorganiccoffee.org . Panamá Natural Organic Coffee can supply naturally grown organic and sustainably grown coffees from Panama as well as Colombia. From Panama mountain grown organic coffee to Juan Valdez organic coffee from Colombia Latin America produces a number of fine coffees, available as green beans or freshly roasted coffees put in the post to mail to your home almost before the beans have cooled.
If you would just as soon walk down the street to a local vendor for your freshly roasted organic or regular coffee, here is a list of Houston coffee roasters:
- Java Pura
- Fusion Beans
- Whole Foods
- House of Coffee Beans
- 3 Cups
- Purple Turtle Coffee Company
- Duncan Coffee
Remember not to stock up on large quantities of roasted coffee beans from Houston coffee roasters, at least not more than enough for a couple of months or you will see a decline in flavor from the first cup to the last. And, certainly, do not grind a large quantity of freshly roasted coffee as the decline in flavor will be precipitous over just a few days.
Dry Coffee Beans to Stop Fermentation
A recent news release regarding coffee production in Honduras refers to the need to dry coffee beans to stop fermentation. Coffee, whether regular of healthy organic coffee, needs to ripen to the right degree and no more. Remember that the coffee that we drink comes from the seed of the coffee berry and not the fruit. An integral part of processing coffee is to remove the fruit down to the coffee seed. This is often done by immersing the coffee in water for sixteen to thirty-six hours. At that point the fruit has loosened and can be washed away. The ripening or breakdown or fermentation of the fruit makes this possible. However, the seed also ferments and this process needs to be stopped before it results in unwanted changes in coffee flavor. So, processors dry coffee beans to stop fermentation. The problem mentioned in the article about Honduras is that they have ramped up coffee production in that country and have run out of space in existing facilities to dry coffee beans to stop fermentation. The article mentions that one processor rented a soccer stadium, spread plastic sheets and dried his coffee where the local “futbol” team usually played.
Drying machines can be used as well as air drying in the sun. The problem for coffee processors in a country like Honduras is cost. Honduras is relatively competitive in the Arabica coffee market, behind Brazil and Colombia and in a tie with Mexico. Land prices are cheap as is labor in the countryside. During the dry season the cheapest way to dry coffee beans to stop fermentation is to spread them out in thin layers in the hot tropical sun. When the rainy season starts processors need to use machines, typically natural gas, diesel, or electric driven and there goes the cost advantage. To dry coffee beans to stop fermentation the beans are dried to eleven to twelve percent moisture content. If coffee is soaked too long (past 36 hours) or drying is not started promptly individual coffee beans develop an offensive aroma and are referred to as stinkers. In fact the entire batch will eventually go bad if not dried. Bad coffee can be sold at very low prices in the country of origin but there go any profits the processor may have dreamed of getting for his organic whole bean coffee.
Perception is important in the coffee business. If an exporter sends out an occasional bad batch of coffee his reputation suffers. He does not get orders the next year. This problem works back up the supply chain to growers. If the processor does not adequately dry coffee beans to stop fermentation the work of the small organic coffee farmer goes to waste. Organic coffee certification is not any good if buyers get a bad bag of coffee. The small grower needs to pay for Bio Latina organic coffee certification but the money goes to waste if processing is not up to par. In the end the processors in a growing market like Honduras need to buy $70,000 coffee driers and absorb the cost of fuel to dry coffee beans to stop fermentation and maintain coffee quality.
Store Coffee and Preserve Freshness
If I cannot use the freezer for a bag of coffee that I am using, where can I put the coffee? Remember that the warmest place in the kitchen is above and beside the stove. So, don’t put coffee in containers in this kitchen hot spot. Although your refrigerator is cool the top may be warm from heat bleeding off. Try a cupboard away from heat and sunlight.
Once I Open the Container
Many coffee containers are fine for shipping and until opened. After first use it is often wise to put remaining coffee into an container with an air tight seal. The cost is worth it as you will store coffee and preserve freshness away from the air.
Does Coffee Age?
The answer is yes! The reason that Panama Mountain Grown Organic Coffee is often shipped to the USA for roasting is not because they cannot roast coffee in Panama (or Colombia, or Brazil, or Vietnam). It is because coffee starts to lose its flavor as soon as the roasting process is completed. Thus roasting takes place close to the market where coffee will be sold. You will want to store coffee and preserve freshness but you will also want to purchase small quantities of coffee, enjoy our coffee, and buy more when you run out. Coffee is not a fine wine. It does not improve with age.
If you purchase a large quantity of wholesale coffee put the larger amount in an air tight container and take your daily coffee out of a smaller container, replenishing as needed. Small and airtight containers can be store in the freezer but only until the first use. The same rules apply for regular coffee and healthy organic coffee. Coffee ages and it ages more if it is warm, wet, and exposed to the air. For more useful information about organic coffee feel free to browse through our articles at www.BuyOrganicCoffee.org.
Ways to Prepare Coffee
There are many ways to prepare coffee. Coffee prepared at home is typically brewed coffee. Coffee house coffee is espresso and espresso plus other ingredients. A tried and true means of making coffee for large family gatherings is to put coffee grounds, water, and maybe a cracked egg or two into a very large pot and boil. If you live in the coffee growing regions of Latin America you probably have a wire ring on a handle which holds a cotton bag in which you place ground coffee. Boil water; pour through the suspended ground coffee into a pot or right into the cup. Add sugar or milk to the cup and enjoy. Which of the various ways to prepare coffee is best? Is regular coffee better is USDA organic coffee what you should use?
Start with the Bean
If you purchase whole bean coffee you will need to grind it before using any of the various ways to prepare coffee. Coffee comes in two general varieties, robusta and Arabica. Both varieties can be grown under sustainable growing conditions to produce healthy organic coffee. The differences between organic coffee and regular coffee are two. Organic coffee has many fewer impurities as it is grown without the use of synthetic fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides. And organic coffee helps save the earth. The sustainable practices used in growing organic coffee preserve wildlife habitat, watersheds, and small coffee farming operations in the remote areas of the world. Now that you have decided on a type of coffee bean and have ground it what are the ways to prepare coffee?
Home Brewing
Filtered or bottled water is best if your tap water is not good or has too much chlorine. A good rule of thumb is to use one to two tablespoonsful of ground coffee for every six ounces of water which is a cup. You can adjust this to your own taste. Temperature is important. Usually the most effective brewing temperature is right around 200 degrees. The most effective brewing time is around 5 minutes of a drip system, two minutes for a French press or plunger system, and thirty seconds for making espresso with very finely ground coffee. No matter which of the way to prepare coffee you use make sure to drink your coffee right after it is made. The regular or organic coffee antioxidants provide a great flavor. Enjoy your coffee fresh.
If you like the idea of the cloth bag approach, make sure to grind your coffee very fine. Boil water and let it rest just for a minute at sea level. If you are in the mountains, the land of eternal spring, in Latin America your water will boil at less than 212 degrees so boil and pour.
Making good espresso really requires an espresso maker. You make espresso by forcing nearly boiling water through very finely ground coffee beans. This gives the coffee a stronger taste, thicker consistency, and higher caffeine concentration. It is served in one ounce quantities. If you want to jazz up your espresso add chocolate syrup to make mocha or steamed milk to make latte. By the way, if you want “Americano” it is just half espresso and half water. The GI’s in Europe after World War II remembered Mom’s coffee and asked the barista to water down their espresso to taste.
Coffee House Coffee
Still confused when you request coffee house coffee? Don’t know the differences between espresso and Americano, latte and cappuccino? Here is our primer for coffee house coffee. It starts with the fact that all coffee in a coffee house starts with espresso. Hopefully they use healthy organic coffee in making their espresso but you probably have to ask for it.
Espresso is very concentrated coffee that retains a lot of dissolved as well as suspended solids from the roasted coffee bean. It is made by forcing steam (boiling water) through fine ground coffee. It has a thicker feel because of the suspended solids and foam because of the pressurized steam. Espresso concentrates the flavors of coffee and is served in a small cup, usually an ounce (30 cc). A cup of espresso typically has between 40 and 75 milligrams of caffeine while a standard cup of percolated coffee contains about twice this much but in an 8 ounce cup. Thus coffee house coffee espresso is about four times more concentrated than the cup of coffee that you had a home for breakfast. Because espresso contains more coffee per ounce also contains more organic coffee antioxidants if you insist on organic for your espresso.
But there are more varieties of coffee house coffee than just espresso and you may find yourself confused looking at the list on the back wall above the barista working at the espresso machine. Here are the derivatives of espresso that you can typically find at your local coffee house:
- Americano
- Breve
- Cappucino
- Latte
- Mocha
Americano
Americano is a coffee house coffee made from espresso and diluted with water. This goes back to the World War II era and after when GI’s who were used to Mom’s home perked or boiled coffee asked the barista to add water to their espresso to make it less strong. Think “weak espresso.”
Breve and Latte
Both of these are made with espresso and foam. Latte is made with steamed milk and breve is made with half and half. For latte think “coffee with milk” or café au lait and for breve think “coffee with milk and cream.”
Cappuccino
Cappuccino is made with espresso plus hot milk plus lots of steamed foam.
Mocha
Mocha is for coffee and chocolate lovers. It is made with espresso plus chocolate syrup plus milk.
All coffee house coffee is made with espresso. If you want your espresso made with USDA organic coffee you probably have to ask for it. For those interested in strong flavor and aroma espresso is probably the ultimate. Likewise espresso and each other coffee house coffee made from espresso has a high concentration of the antioxidants that give coffee much of its flavor and many of its health benefits. But, if you want authentic organic coffee as the base for your espresso, cappuccino, or mocha make sure that you ask.
Hope that you are no longer confused about that list of coffee house coffee at the coffee shop. If you have not tried one or the other feel free to experiment, and enjoy.