Quetzal Mountain Coffee Company was established in 2017, when we became the proprietors of a small coffee finca in western Panama. Our goal is simple: to produce exceptional coffee. We share fence lines with world-renowned fincas that have earned some of the coffee industry’s most prestigious awards, and we grow the same coffee under the same ideal conditions. What sets us apart is our approach. We focus on small-scale production, prioritizing quality over quantity, working within a unique mountain micro-climate at the perfect elevation.
As we settled into our new home, we explored the network of trails that wind across and around the active volcano where our farm is located. Partway up a steep trail, we came across birders gathered to observe a rare and beautiful Resplendent Quetzal. The bird has a striking bright green iridescent body, red breast and a long, majestic blue-green tail. Their habitat is high up in the cloud forest from southern Mexico to western Panama and we now understand how lucky we were to have had two separate sightings that day. We decided then that the quetzal would represent our coffee because of the unique beauty it represents in our local area.
At roughly 4,000′ elevation on the south-eastern side of the incredibly majestic and fertile, Volcano Baru, the completely off-grid farm is now run entirely on solar electric power with rain water collection systems. No outside power or utilities are used, other than a WiFi internet connection that also runs on power from our solar system.
Each year our workers hand pick only the most ripe, red (and yellow) cherries. We built a large, 570 cubic meter drying facility in 2021, which has been upgraded and updated in 2025 to process the cherries right on the farm.
Situated in a unique micro-climate on the mountain at the perfect elevation and using our hands and eyes to be sure there are nothing but ripe, first-class coffee cherries going through processing. We are one of very few fincas that use no machinery to harvest or wash our coffee. Grading by the Specialty Coffee Association and other accredited organizations ranged between 86 and 89 in the first season of production. An amazing effort and accomplishment, easily putting them into the same class that ‘Best of Panama’ and ‘Cup of Excellence’ competitors are attaining.
Volcan Baru sits near the border with Costa Rica in the mountains that form the backbone of Central America. Baru is an active strato-volcano and the tallest mountain in Panama, at almost 3,500 meters (11,400ft). Due to its height and the narrowness of the isthmus of Panama, it is possible to see both the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean Sea from the summit on a clear day. The ash and lava from the volcano’s last eruption over a thousand years ago have greatly influenced the soils and ecosystem, which combine to make a unique terroir for coffee growing.
Why buy coffee from Quetzal Mountain Coffee Co?
Our coffee is from only one finca – a single, controlled source, so it delivers a more consistent level of excellence to the coffee lover. We planted the trees ourselves and now the cherries and beans are washed and handled by us, including every step from picking to hulling and drying to sacking the green beans for shipment.
