Janson Family Coffee

Los Alpes and Hacienda Las Lagunas

Origin: Volcan, Panama
Elevation: 1350 — 1750 m.a.s.l.
Varietals: Geisha and Pacamara
Processes: Washed, Natural, and Natural Anaerobic

The Story, Three Generations, Cattle First

The lower land was his father's cattle ranch, Las Lagunas, named for the lakes on the property. Michael Janson diversified into coffee about 35 years ago, starting with four hectares of catuai and caturra, then ten, then twenty, and built his own beneficio to capture more value. Buyers told him Panama coffee could be as good as Colombia but had no name. In his telling, Geisha is what gave Panama the name, and it took almost eighteen years to make Janson a name buyers seek out.

Michael, 81 and second generation, is the patriarch and the soil man; he gave our tour on his birthday and calls himself the king of the mountain. His daughter Janette runs the processing, led our cupping, and is the one he is handing the farm to; the washed versus natural call is his, made with her. Her son Miguel, about 32, is the roaster; Kai, a cousin of Janette, is the face of Janson at events.

He was not an early believer; he thought Geisha would be a fad.

He stayed because the coffee proved itself.

Macro to Micro

Janson is one family name over two separate farms at very different elevations, so picture it in three layers. Get the layer right and the lot numbers stop being confusing.

The Estate • Janson Coffee Farm

The whole Janson operation at Volcan, on the slopes of Baru. It began as cattle, and now also grows avocado, produces honey, raises Angus beef and horses, and grows its own vegetables. When a customer says "Janson," this is what they mean.

Los Alpes

1,600-1,750 m.a.s.l. • to 1,900 in trial

The premium high farm. Steep, hard to reach, planted almost entirely to Geisha with a little pacamara.
Michael named it because walking up it "is like walking up the Alps." Our two top naturals come from here, and so did the Geisha the 2023 World Barista Champion used.

Hacienda Las Lagunas

1,350 — 1,400 m.a.s.l.

The home farm, the diversified land Michael's father named for its lakes. Michael sometimes calls the coffee section Hacienda Cafetalera; for us the farm name is Hacienda las Lagunas.

Feed the Soil

Michael's craft comes down to one idea, repeated all day: feed the soil, and the variety will express itself.

Feeding is everything

Geisha's roots are weak, so he fertilises about six times a year rather than in one or two heavy doses; one hard rain after fertilising washes it all down. Soil analysis yearly, foliar analysis after every harvest, mixed per plot with a soil engineer.

Quality comes from the farm

"You can make different processing, drying, roasting, but the quality has to come from the farm. You cannot make up quality by processing." He is wary of chasing processing fads, and notes the wider move back to less processing.

The Nursery, and Renewal

About 100,000 new Geisha seedlings raised in the farm's own nursery, unusual in Panama. Two seedlings per hole, the healthier kept after six or seven years; seed by massal selection from the best trees, marked with spray paint at harvest.

Clean farming, drying by feel

No pesticides, no fumigation; EM microorganisms instead of nematicides. Michael calls washed or natural lot by lot, Janette runs the processing and dries to about 10 percent moisture, never above 12: "we do not decide, the coffee lets you know."

FARM'S AWARDS

2019, BOP 2nd Place: Pacamara, Natural Processed
2023, BOP 3rd, 94.5: Geisha Natural; Geisha Washed 5th t h e same year
2023, WBC: Boram Um competed with a Janson Los Alpes Geisha, producer credited Kai Janson • say the champion used a Janson Geisha, never that Janson won
2025, GN-20: Best of Panama auction lot • "La Higa, Janson Reserve"