Geisha is a tall, low-yielding Arabica from the Gori Gesha forest of Ethiopia, prized for exceptional floral cup quality at high altitude, made famous in Panama.
Geisha (also spelled Gesha) was collected from Ethiopian forests in the 1930s, sent to a research station in Tanzania, and reached CATIE in Costa Rica in 1953. It was distributed through Panama in the 1960s after being noticed for tolerance to leaf rust. It became famous in the mid-2000s, when Hacienda La Esmeralda's lot won Best of Panama and set auction price records (sources date the competition to 2004 or 2005). The plant is tall with an average bean size and low yield, and is rated as having exceptional quality potential at high altitude, with delicate floral, jasmine and peach-like aromas when well managed. It has intermediate resistance to leaf rust and is susceptible to nematodes and coffee berry disease. It is now also grown in Colombia, Honduras, Costa Rica and Brazil.
Field notes
- i
The first real record of Geisha dates to 1936, when a British consul collected a sample near Gesha mountain in Ethiopia. It passed through Tanzania and reached CATIE in Costa Rica in 1953 as accession T2722.
- ii
The man who brought the seed from CATIE to Panama in the early 1960s remembered it as 'Geisha 2722', which a 2017 Daily Coffee News piece offers as one reason the Geisha spelling stuck.
In the cup, according to guides
- AromaMoreWorld Coffee Research associates Panamanian Geisha with delicate floral, jasmine and peach-like aromas when the plants are well managed at high altitude.
Grown in
Sources · 2 Every sentence here was checked against a source we read. Taste notes are what guides describe, not promises about your bag. Last revised 2026-11-11.
- Geisha (Panama) · World Coffee Research
- Is it Geisha or Gesha? If Anything, It's Complicated · Daily Coffee News