Region: Nueva Suiza, Chiriqui
Producer: Helen Russell, Brooke McDonnell, Catherine Cadloni, & Willem Boot
Relationship: 2023
Altitude: 2,175 masl
Tasting Notes: Fragrance and aroma of cherry and bergamot orange. In the cup powerful floral and citrus notes to be expected from a washed geisha, with a layer of fresh fruits - black cherries, currants, and plums – finishing with a creamy mouthfeel.
While this was the first year purchasing a coffee from the famed Finca Sophia, our relationship with one of the farm's owners goes back to the very beginning of Proud Mary Coffee. In those early days, before the big roasting facility in Collingwood, before the move to the United States, before Austin, Texas, when Proud Mary was a scrappy little roasting company in Melbourne, trying to find the absolute best coffees we could get our hands on. Proud Mary founder, Nolan Hirte, took his very first trip to Panama – the trip was organized and coordinated by a certain Mr. Willem Boot, of Boot Coffee in Northern California, and now, one of the owners of Finca Sophia. It’s funny how things always tend to come full circle.
Finca Sophia was founded in 2008, by a group of coffee professionals and friends from California. It’s something of a grand experiment; with altitude exceeding 2,100 meters above sea level, it is one of the highest elevation farms in Panama and aims to test the limits of coffee cultivation in the region.
Prior to 2008, Finca Sophia was a small vegetable and cattle farm that had been intensively farmed, having much of its biodiversity stripped away. One of the first things Helen, Brooke, Catherine, and Willem did, was to start an ecological regeneration program, that continues to this day. The aim was to restore the farm to its wild and natural state, full of biodiversity and life – a buffer zone was established, between Finca Sophia and the neighboring National Park, where thousands of trees were planted, both providing shade for the farm and much needed habitat for local wildlife.
Finca Sophia is an experimental farm and was established to test the limits of coffee cultivation in Panama. While higher elevation promotes slow fruit maturation and high quality, it also presents a myriad of challenges, stressing the coffee trees to an extreme not seen on farms just a couple hundred meters lower in elevation.
“Establishing coffee production on Sophia has been an epic adventure to say the least, with successes often followed by setbacks. Yet, our determination to produce a world class coffee has led us to respond to challenges with innovation and creativity, learning to grow coffee better with each harvest.” – Helen Russell, Brooke McDonnell, Catherine Cadloni, & Willem Boot, owners of Finca Sophia
After a challenging start, Finca Sophia has become one of the most renowned farms in Panama, under the watchful eyes of Helen, Brooke, Catherine, and Willem, along with farm manager Kelly Hartmann, and farm director David Pohl, Finca Sophia has been awarded numerous top finishes in the Best of Panama competition.
This lot was harvested on March 15th and began the drying process on raised beds. On March 20th, the coffee was moved to a dark room to finish drying slowly and uniformly. On April 10th, the coffee was removed from the dark room and began its resting period.
“La Roca” is named after a rock formation found at the top of Finca Sophia that provides spectacular views to those adventurous enough to climb it.
How to Drink: Just like you wouldn't add soda your best whiskey, this amazing coffee is meant to be drank black with no sugar or cream.
