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The Coffee Atlas
Panama Chiriqui Highlands
Panama's Chiriqui Highlands, from Boquete to Volcan and Renacimiento, with a sourced altitude band, a Coffee Review washed lot score and citations.
Flavor profile
avg. of 1 published reviewScale: 1-10, Coffee Review / SCA-classic-form convention. Taken from a single Coffee Review score (August 2026) of Rusty Dog Coffee's washed Panama Chiriqui, from Finca Los Cantares in the Chiriqui Highlands. With N of 1 this is one lot, not an average, and Coffee Review reports whole-number attribute scores, so the nines are rounded. Individual-lot variance applies, and the highlands span several districts with different cups; read this as one well-regarded washed example, not a regional norm.
What it tastes like
Chiriqui is Panama’s dominant specialty coffee region, on the slopes around Volcan Baru, and “Chiriqui Highlands” on a label can mean several districts. Dulce Tropical’s regional guide separates them: Boquete sits at roughly 1,200 to 1,800 meters, Volcan at 1,100 to 1,700, and Renacimiento, the lowest of the three, at 1,000 to 1,400. Harvest runs roughly November to March.
Geisha gets the headlines, but much of the volume is Caturra and Catuai. A Royal Coffee lot from Finca Santa Teresa in Renacimiento, for example, is washed Catuai and Caturra at 1,400 to 1,600 meters, with white grape juice, citrus and chocolate listed as its notes.
For a concrete cup, Coffee Review scored a washed Chiriqui Highlands lot from Finca Los Cantares 95 in August 2026, tasting bergamot, guava, cocoa nib, nutmeg and honeysuckle with crisp, sweet-tart acidity and a plush, syrupy mouthfeel. That is one lot, so treat it as a good example rather than a rule; when buying, look for the farm, district and variety on the bag.
How to brew it
Method fit for this origin · editorial guidance from roaster convention
Filtered clarity suits the crisp, sweet-tart acidity and floral top notes typical of washed highland lots.
The syrupy body and cocoa-and-fruit sweetness can pull a good shot, though bright acidity may read sharp without dialing in.
Immersion emphasizes the sweeter, rounder side of Caturra and Catuai lots, at some cost to aromatic lift.
⚠ Fit tiers are editorial guidance drawn from roaster convention; no industry standard scores brew fit, so we show tiers, never invented numbers. Reflects brew guidance commonly published by specialty roasters for washed Central American highland coffees, not an SCA-defined standard.
Altitude & region
Growing elevation, meters above sea level · this entry vs comparison bands
The 1,000-1,800 m band is a district-level span built from Dulce Tropical's regional figures (see Sources & data), not a measurement of the lot reviewed above. Some estates sit above this band; for example, lead roaster Press Coffee lists its Volcan Valley farm at 1,800-2,300 m. Kenya AA and Brazil Cerrado are shown for scale using commonly published origin altitude bands.
Caffeine content
Caffeine by dry weight · each gold dot = 0.1%
Caffeine content tracks species rather than origin, altitude, or processing, with robusta generally higher than arabica. This entry is 100% Arabica; no credible per-origin caffeine figure exists at a category level, so this is a species-level statement only, not a measurement of this specific lot.
Where to buy it
Transparency: some links on this site are affiliate links; if you buy through them we may earn a commission at no cost to you. Roasters are picked for genuine, current sourcing of this coffee, never for who pays us.
Phoenix roaster that owns a farm in the Volcan Valley, in the western Chiriqui Highlands, and sells its Press Estate Panama Volcan Valley coffee.
View lot→Pearl Reserve program rotates Panama lots; check the label for district and variety.
View lot→Competition-circuit roaster that rotates Panama lots; check farm and district on the label.
View lot→Wide selection; check roast dates, 100%-origin labeling and seller reviews, and confirm the label names Chiriqui rather than just Panama.
View lot→Sources & data
- Coffee Review: Rusty Dog Coffee Panama Chiriqui (washed)Cupping scores, August 2026, overall 95: aroma 9, acidity/structure 9, body 9, flavor 9, aftertaste 9; Finca Los Cantares, Chiriqui Highlands, washed; bergamot, guava, cocoa nib, nutmeg, honeysuckle (1 of 1 used)
- Dulce Tropical: Panama Coffee Growing RegionsAltitudes for Boquete (1,200-1,800 m), Volcan (1,100-1,700 m) and Renacimiento (1,000-1,400 m); harvest roughly November to March; Caturra, Catuai, Bourbon, Typica and some Geisha
- Royal Coffee: Panama Chiriqui Finca Santa Teresa Caturra CatuaiRenacimiento, Chiriqui lot at 1,400-1,600 m, Catuai and Caturra, fully washed, harvested November to March
- Perfect Daily Grind: A guide to specialty coffee in PanamaNames Boquete, Tierras Altas and Renacimiento as Chiriqui's main growing areas; gives Boquete elevation as 1,000-2,800 m; Geisha alongside Catuai, Caturra, Maragogype, Pacamara and Mundo Novo