The La Torcaza Estate mill and farm (tel. 771-4306, www.estatecafe.com [1], tours: 8:30 A.M.–noon, 1–5:30 P.M. Mon.–Sat., open Sun. by arrangement only, free), near Volcán [2]’s decaying and more-or-less abandoned airstrip, offers free tours of its facilities, in English or Spanish.
La Torcaza Estate is run by the Janson family and is still known to some as Janson Family Coffee. There’s also an espresso bar/shop on the premises where one can sip a cup and watch the beans roast. You can buy souvenir packages of coffee here or, if you want to avoid schlepping kilos of coffee around the country, you can wait until you get home and buy it (for a heftier price) through the Internet.
To get to the mill, turn left off the main road toward Río Sereno [3] about 300 meters past the crossroads, at the sign for the Oasis Place Hotel. Pass the hotel and go straight for 0.9 kilometers. Turn right at Mini Super Casa Elsa and continue straight for 1.7 kilometers on the torn-up road until you get to the old airstrip. Turn right onto the airstrip and drive for another kilometer.
Look for a gate marked “Janson’s Coffee House,” which leads to a large building off in the distance to the right. That’s your destination. A taxi from central Volcán [2] costs about US$2.50 each way.
Links:
[1] http://www.estatecafe.com
[2] http://www.moon.com/destinations/panama/western-highlands/volcan
[3] http://www.moon.com/destinations/panama/western-highlands/volcan/rio-sereno