Legacy Series - Panama, Carmen Estate
ORIGINALLY RELEASED
December 2023
HIGHLIGHTS
Legacy Series: Spotlights family-owned farms
Origin: Panama - Paso Ancho, Volcán
Farm: Carmen Estate, operated by the Franceschi family
WHAT YOU CAN EXPECT
The Volcán region of Panama is well-known in the coffee-growing community for its high elevation, rich volcanic soil, and tropical highland environment. What you’ll get from this roast is a nice mellow coffee, primarily with notes of bittersweet cocoa and caramel, and just a touch of sweet citrus. It’s an easy daily-drinker that’s tasty straight out of an automatic brewer, and will pull a beautiful and fun espresso shot!
ORIGIN STORY
Our LEGACY SERIES highlights coffees produced in family-owned farms. Now in its 3rd generation, Carmen Estate is owned and operated by Carlos Aguilera Franceschi. The story of the farm begins with Carlos’s grandmother Carmen Franceschi – the matriarch of the family and the Estate’s namesake. The Franceschis immigrated from Corsica, France to Panama in 1800. When they arrived, they partook in multiple enterprises from cattle ranching to ship-building. In 1950, Carmen suggested to her husband Efrain that they start a coffee plantation, and the rest is history.
Today, Carmen Estate prides itself on not only its dedication to producing high quality specialty coffee, but also doing so in a way that prioritizes the community and the environment. For instance, workers are provided with access to healthcare and safe/healthy working conditions, while their children are provided an education (and specifically not allowed to work on the farm).
As for its environmental commitment, Carmen’s agricultural practices are based on a set of principles which ensure the best output of the farm while maintaining ecological awareness of proper insect management, soil conservation, protection of natural water resources, waste management and overall ecosystem conservation.
Today, with the family’s dedication to quality and sustainability, coffee from Carmen Estate consistently places in the top 10 of the annual Best of Panama competition.
MORE ABOUT THE LEGACY SERIES
Our Legacy Series shines a light on coffee from family-owned farms. Beans featured in this series come from family farms that have been passed down for generations, and others that may just be getting started. With each roast, we feature one farm/one family at a time, giving each the spotlight they deserve. Growing coffee takes tremendous skill, physical strength, mental fortitude, and just the right amount of luck. Layer on top of that: high production costs and volatile market prices, thin (or negative) margins in a global supply chain that has traditionally never prioritized its growers, and the pressure of providing for your family. The Legacy Series is about passion, hard work, resilience, and grit. True legacies aren’t born, they’re cultivated.
