This outstanding coffee comes from a privately-owned washing station in the small village of Werka, in the Nensebo district of Sidamo. The total yearly production is only six containers of specialty grade coffee, three of which are processed using a fully washed approach, and three using a natural one, as the coffee proposed here.

Faisel Abdosh is the owner of seven washing stations, as well as the owner of the export business. He was joined by his cousin Adam in 2014. Adam used to live in Texas and he moved to Ethiopia to be involved in the family’s growing business. They believe focus on each block of their operation is essential to achieve excellence. 

The Lot #1 is composed of handpicked cherries delivered by several smallholders, who carry tiny daily amounts of Ethiopian Heirloom cherries to the station.

Most farmers in the area grow their coffee organically on tiny plots of land, 2-5 hectares in size. Coffee is grown to be sold, but the farmers also grow other produce to feed their families or sell at the market.

This lot has been prepared according to a dry process (natural).

This apparently simple process requires that the cherries, harvested strictly by hand, are placed on raised beds to ferment. They stay there until the residual moisture reaches the desired value, typically between 10% and 12%. However, the cherries must be placed in very thin layers, ideally composed of single cherries, as well as turned several times a day to expose all sides of the same to the sun and obtain a homogeneous fermentation process.

Finally, it is necessary to cover the cherries with plastic clothes during the hottest hours of the day and during the night to prevent inconsistent drying or accumulation of moisture that may cause unwanted fermentations or, worst, molds formation. Once the fermentation is complete, the now dried skins and the parchments are mechanically removed to obtain the green coffee beans, which are packaged in GrainPro bags, which are in turn stored in jute bags.

In the cup, this coffee presents fruity notes of sweet dried fruits, like prunes, figs, along with vanilla and a lingering and long finish of pineapple.

Minimum resting period: 10 days from the roast date for espresso roast, 5 days for filter roast.