Summary

An Ethiopia coming from Boji station, Kochere, worked according to the natural process.

Very intense and sweet, it has notes of strawberry, red fruits, and ripe fruit.

Details

Origin

The micro-lot comes from the district (woreda) of Kochere. This woreda is located a few kilometers south of the legendary city of Yirgacheffe in the Gedeo area, more precisely in a small village named Kore.

The coffees in this region are among the best in the world. In the area the altitudes are considerable, and the taller trees keep the underlying coffee plants in dim light.

Manufacturer

The micro-lot is from a private mill located in Boji, close to Kore, Kochere that collects cherries from the smallholders, about 3000, in the area. Each of them grows no more than one hectare.

Until recently, coffee grown by small owners and cooperatives in Ethiopia had to be sold through ECX, the "coffee exchange", where the lots were classified by region of origin and quality (grade 1-5), but they were not in most cases traced to the source.

In 2017, a change to the law allowed the processing stations owned by Co-Ops to export coffee directly. Such change pushed for a better separation of the lots, higher prices for farmers able to reach better quality levels and therefore it was a strong impulse to obtain higher quality.

Process

The process followed for this lot is the classic natural Ethiopia.

The coffee is collected by hand and delivered to Boji station, where a first selection, still manual, of cherries, is made to remove those over- or under-ripe.

The cherries are then placed on raised beds exposed to sunlight. Fermentation is controlled by frequently turning the cherries and covering them with sheets during the hottest hours of the day and at night.

It takes 15 to 20 days for the residual moisture in the bean to reach the desired levels. At this point, skin and mucilage, now deteriorated by fermentation and dried out, are removed mechanically. The parchment is finally removed mechanically, before packaging the coffee in GrainPro bags which, in turn, are inserted into the classic jute bags.

In the Cup

In the cup, the coffee shows notes of strawberry, red fruits, and, more in general, ripe fruit. Very intense and sweet, as typical of natural Ethiopia, it is available with differentiated roasting profile: for espresso and filter extractions.