ETIOPIA Yirgacheffe Idido specialty coffee beans

Our take: 

peach, almond

Roast profile: light

Region:

Yirgacheffe, literally known as “the land of many springs”, has ideal topography, high-altitude terrain and abundant water sources, creating perfect conditions for growing and processing high-quality coffee. It lies in southern Ethiopia, in the Southern Nations, Nationalities and Peoples' Region (SNNPR), and is part of the Gedeo Zone. Yirgacheffe is well known among coffee lovers as one of the finest coffee-growing areas in the world.

Part of Yirgacheffe's rich history is that many regard it as the birthplace of coffee. This is home to naturally evolved heirloom coffee varieties, grown alongside other plants in local coffee gardens and coffee forests. The region is also notable for being where Ethiopia's first wet mill was built in the 1970s, introducing washed coffee production to the country. Washing technology made it possible to further refine the coffees' flavour profiles, which are now sought after worldwide.

Yirgacheffe's land is held by multi-generational smallholder farmers who typically grow their coffee on just a few hectares. Most of the coffee is sold as cherry to central washing stations, which produce coffees with distinctive flavour profiles. Farmers often grow other crops as well, such as Ensete ventricosum, known as “false banana”, an important food crop in the area.

Yirgacheffe's warm, temperate climate and well-balanced rainfall provide an ideal environment for growing coffee. The average annual temperature is 18.4 °C, with an average of 1,525 mm of rain a year. The summer months are the wettest, while winter brings considerably less rain. This particular climate helps give Yirgacheffe coffees their rich, complex flavour, celebrated by coffee lovers around the world.

Washing station:

The Idido Cooperative Washing Station is located not far from the bustling town of Yirgacheffe. Here, coffee from seven small high-altitude communities is washed and prepared to reach coffee lovers around the world. Yirgacheffe ranks among the world's ten best coffee regions, and this coffee faithfully reflects the love and care with which it is made. During drying, the beans are dried under artificial shade for 21 days, after which the husk is removed to preserve the rich, unique flavour notes of the growing area.

ORIGIN: ETHIOPIA
REGION: Idido washing station, Yirgacheffe region, Kochere district
VARIETY: Heirloom, Typica, JARC035
ALTITUDE:  2060 MASL
PROCESS: Natural