Geisha

Collected from the Gori Gesha forest of Ethiopia in the 1930s and later planted in Panama, Geisha sat in obscurity until a 2004 competition lot from Hacienda La Esmeralda stunned judges and shattered price records. At its best it is less coffee than perfume: jasmine, bergamot, orange blossom and tropical fruit, with a tea-like delicacy. It is finicky, low-yielding, and altitude-hungry — which is why it remains rare and expensive.