Coffee Review’s list of the Top 30 Coffees of 2019 represents our seventh annual ranking of the most exciting coffees we tested over the course of the year. This annual effort supports our mission of helping consumers identify and purchase superior quality coffees and, in the process, helping drive demand and increase prices to reward farmers and roasters who invest time, passion and capital in
SEARCH RESULTS
Anaerobic Fermentation and Other Palate-Bending Processing Experiments
I recall that, in high school, teachers graded essays based on various conventional writing categories — grammar and diction, clarity, organization, etc. But most also gave credit for originality. Often, some friend’s paper would show weaknesses in regard to comma placement, word choice, and clear organization but attract a high grade for originality. Perhaps you could say that some of the
Panama Perci Geisha Natural
This exceptional coffee was selected as the No. 10 coffee on Coffee Review’s list of the Top 30 Coffees of 2019. This coffee also earned the highest rating in a cupping of coffees produced using reduced oxygen (“anaerobic”) processing methods for Coffee Review’s November 2019 tasting report. The intensity and complexity of this extraordinary coffee are owing both to tree variety and processing
Geisha Coffees Continue to Shatter Sales Records — Are They Worth The Hype?
When we last wrote in depth about Geisha (also spelled Gesha) coffees in 2017, a 100-pound lot of this prized variety of Arabica, grown at Hacienda La Esmeralda by the Peterson family, had just broken the then-current record for the highest price ever paid for a green coffee: $601 per pound. Flash forward to July of this year, when that record was shattered by the Lamastus family, whose Elida
Ninety Plus Gesha Estates JBC Custom Lot #252
This coffee is a collaboration between brothers Michael Johnson of JBC Coffee Roasters and Joseph Brodsky of the Panama producer Ninety Plus Coffee. It was produced entirely from trees of the celebrated Gesha variety of Arabica, and processed by an unconventional, proprietary variation of the wet method in which the whole coffee fruit is subjected to fermentation and washing before drying. JBC
Panama Baru Geisha Black
Produced from trees of the celebrated Ethiopia-derived botanical variety Geisha (also spelled Gesha). “Black” refers to a proprietary method of drying and fruit removal developed by innovative boutique exporter/importer Ninety Plus Coffee. Kakalove Café is a nano-roaster located in the small city of Chia-Yi in Taiwan that strives to procure and roast the finest quality coffee. Visit
Panama Ninety Plus Perci Lot 50
The intensity and complexity of this extraordinary coffee are owing both to tree variety and processing method. The variety is the rare Ethiopia-derived botanical variety Gesha (also spelled Geisha). With its generally elongated beans and distinctive floral and crisp, often chocolaty cup, the Gesha continues to distinguish itself as one of the world’s most unique coffee varieties. Joseph Brodsky
2018 Holiday Gift Coffees
Every year in November, we put out a call for special coffees that roasters around the world are featuring for the holidays. It's always a surprise and a delight to discover what surfaces during this weeks-long cupping. And what we learn never fails to be compelling in multi-faceted ways. Some roasters approach seasonal offerings by composing creative, often unique, blends, while others prefer
Flowery Nekisse
This coffee earned the second-highest rating in a tasting of holiday coffees for Coffee Review‘s December 2018 tasting report. Nekisse is a proprietary brand of Ethiopia coffee developed by Ninety Plus, a distinguished boutique developer and importer of innovative small-lot coffees from Ethiopia and Panama. Grown near Neji in the Sidama/Sidamo growing region, this is a dry-processed or “natural”
Baru Gesha
This coffee earned the highest rating in a tasting of holiday coffees for Coffee Review‘s December 2018 tasting report. Produced from trees of the rare Ethiopia-derived botanical variety Gesha (also spelled Geisha). With its elegantly elongated beans and distinctive floral and crisp, often chocolaty cup, the Gesha variety continues to distinguish itself as one of the world’s most unique coffees.
Lycello by Ninety Plus
Produced from trees of the rare Ethiopia-derived botanical variety, Gesha. With its generally elongated beans and distinctive floral and crisp, often chocolaty cup, the Gesha variety continues to distinguish itself as one of the world’s most unique coffees. This is a wet-processed or “washed” version, meaning the fruit skin and pulp were removed from the beans immediately after harvesting and
Lotus by Ninety Plus
Produced from trees of the rare Ethiopia-derived botanical variety Gesha. With its generally elongated beans and distinctive floral and crisp, often chocolaty cup, the Gesha variety continues to distinguish itself as one of the world’s most unique coffees. This is a particularly refined dried-in-the-fruit or natural presentation of the Gesha variety developed by boutique exporter/importer Ninety
Guji Allona Ethiopia Natural
This coffee tied for the third-highest rating in a cupping of coffees roasted by women for Coffee Review‘s April 2018 tasting report. Southern Ethiopia coffees like this one are produced from distinctive traditional Ethiopian varieties of Arabica long grown in the region. This is a dry-processed or “natural” coffee, meaning the beans were dried inside the fruit rather than after the fruit has been
Women in Coffee: Why It Matters That “She’s the Roaster”
Last summer, we began our exploration of women's roles in the complex coffee supply chain by looking at the work of farmers—women who work in coffee production as pickers, managers, members of cooperatives, and owners of small farms. In this month's report, we turn our attention to those women who are crucial in the next step of the supply chain: turning green coffee into roasted. We structured
Panama Baru Geisha Honey by Joseph
Produced from trees of the rare Ethiopia-derived botanical variety Gesha (also spelled Geisha). With its elegantly elongated beans and distinctive floral and crisp, often chocolaty cup, the Gesha variety continues to distinguish itself as one of the world’s most unique coffees. This is in extremely refined presentation of the Gesha variety developed by boutique exporter/importer Ninety Plus
Panama Baru Geisha Natural by Joseph
Produced from trees of the rare Ethiopia-derived botanical variety Gesha (also spelled Geisha). With its elegantly elongated beans and distinctive floral and crisp, often chocolaty cup, the Gesha variety continues to distinguish itself as one of the world’s most unique coffees. This is an extremely refined presentation of the Gesha variety developed by boutique exporter/importer Ninety Plus
2017 Holiday Gift Coffees
Each year, we ask roasters to send us exceptional coffees available only during the holidays, coffees that might make particularly gratifying gifts or splurges for coffee-lovers. In past years, approaches have ranged from particularly fine lots of classic coffees that roasters reserved for the holiday season, to rare and often expensive seasonally available micro-lot coffees, to ingenious and
Gesha Coffees 2017: Still Pricey, Still Amazing
I was at one of the Specialty Coffee Association’s Re:co Symposia a couple of years ago, where Jay Ruskey of Goodlands Organic, the pioneer of California coffee-growing, was displaying fresh branches of two varieties of coffee trees at his table outside the meeting rooms. Some of the branches were from the respected mainstream Caturra coffee variety, which is producing some very nice coffees on
Ninety Plus Gesha Estates Limited Batch #227
This exceptional coffee was selected as the No. 5 coffee on Coffee Review’s list of the Top 30 Coffees of 2017. This coffee is a collaboration between brothers Michael Johnson of JBC and Joseph Brodsky of Ninety Plus Coffee. It was produced entirely from trees of the celebrated Gesha variety of Arabica, and processed by a proprietary variation of the wet method in which the coffee fruit is
Ninety Plus Estate Panama Gesha Lycello
Produced from trees of the rare Ethiopia-derived botanical variety Gesha (also spelled Geisha). With its elegantly elongated beans and distinctive floral and crisp, often chocolaty, cup the Gesha variety continues to distinguish itself as one of the world’s unique coffees. This Gesha, produced in tiny lots, is a wet-processed or “washed” coffee, meaning the fruit skin and pulp were removed from
