Finca Guarumo Black Jaguar Natural Geisha

I’ve met tons of amazing people in the coffee world and Ratibor Hartmann stands at the top of that list. I first met Ratibor in Panama in 2011, and we instantly hit it off. He’s thoughtful, hardworking, and quality obsessed. He is kind, generous and has a big heart. When I first started buying coffee from the Hartmann’s, their coffee was very good, but not considered the upper tier of Panama coffee. Their farms were all located at lower elevations, the varieties they grew were more “regular” and they were just starting to experiment with processing methods.

Since that time, Ratibor has become a very close friend of mine and we talk coffee weekly. I visit Panama at least once per year and spend tons of time with Ratibor and his wife Tessie. Since 2011, every time I see them, I learn about a major change or improvement to their farm. Some of these changes are at the agricultural level – varieties, farm management, new land, new plantings; while others are at the processing level – modified processing methods, new drying methods, and dark rooms.

Guarumo is special, mystical and intriguing. To get there, you have to cross a massive rainforest and once you arrive, the farm sits on the precipice of a massive valley. The rainforest has been preserved with coffee grown under the shade of the canopy, and the family continues to plant native trees to ensure the ecosystem's health. The land is famous for bird watching, with around 300 species recorded, and their coffee is bird-friendly certified.

Ratibor first planted Geisha, Chicho Gallo and a few other Ethiopian heirlooms and the farm began. The first four years were really tough - the poor coffee trees had little protection from the low-pressure systems from the Atlantic and suffered greatly. In 2020, the native shade trees the brothers planted were large enough to protect the coffee trees and suddenly the farm began to produce world-class coffees. Due to the high elevation, low temperatures at night, and heavy mountain rains, the coffee trees at Guarumo have to work hard, they are small and compact, and the coffee is super unique. The farm now looks quite striking but there’s always a small bit of the farm, where the topography dips and the trees look super happy. The first time I noticed this part of the farm, I pointed it out to Ratibor and he said: “ah, yes, you noticed? This is the part of the farm where Black Jaguar comes from”. When I tasted the coffee from this part of the farm, I was floored. It was so good! Why? How? I don’t get it - 5 meters in either direction and the coffee has a different profile. That’s crazy! This is the power and the myth of Black Jaguar.

The coffee is so good that the Geisha from Black Jaguar won First Place at the 2022 Best of Panama and the Chicho Gallo followed it up in 2023 with a consecutive First Place! That’s insane!

The process starts with a fermentation in cherry form for 36 hours. Then the coffee is then dried for a couple of days on raised beds and then moved to a darkroom for the remainder of the drying.