Story of the Coffee
The producer of this coffee is Abedech Woody, a father of seven from the village of Adado in the Yirgacheffe region. This lot comes from local, heirloom Ethiopian varieties — Kumie, Diga, and Wilsho — grown under the shade of acacia and Sudan teak trees on 2.9 hectares of land. The coffee is then processed using the washed method: after pulping, the cherries are fermented for 36 hours and then dried for 17 days on raised African beds, resulting in a clean and refined (and, we must add — truly summery!) flavor profile.
About the Region
Ethiopia – the birthplace of coffee – is home to more coffee plant varieties than anywhere else in the world. Many of these still grow wild, and it’s believed that many have yet to be discovered. All Ethiopian coffee is Arabica, and at least 150 varieties are cultivated commercially. Traditionally, they were simply labeled as “heirloom” varieties, but that is gradually changing as the Jimma Agricultural Research Center actively works to identify specific species. Although there are a few larger estates in Ethiopia, around 95% of coffee is grown by smallholder farmers in highly diverse environments — including “coffee forests,” where coffee grows wild and is harvested by local communities. All specialty-grade Ethiopian coffee is grown above 1200 meters, and most of it — above 1800 meters. In the highlands of Sidamo and Yirgacheffe, coffee can grow at altitudes over 2100 meters.
