Ethiopia Washed G1 Sidamo Shakisso Micro-region Coffee Roasting

Ingredients: Self-roasted
Shelf Life: 90 days
Net Weight: 227g
Packaging: Loose coffee beans
Roast Level: Roasted beans
Sugar Content: Sugar-free
Origin: Ethiopia
Coffee Type: Other
Roast Degree: Light roast

Ethiopian Sidamo Shakisso Washed

Origin Information:
Country: Ethiopia
Grade: G1
Region: Guji Zone, Shakisso
Roast Level: Light roast

Processing Details:
Processing Method: Washed
Variety: Local Heirloom
Producer: Local small farmers
Flavor Notes: White grape juice, citrus, bergamot tea character

Sidamo

Sidamo coffee shows incredibly diverse flavor profiles. Different soil compositions, regional microclimates, and countless native coffee varieties create distinct differences from town to town and region to region. The Sidamo growing region lies in southern Ethiopia, where agriculture dominates the economy, and coffee plantations sit around the Great Rift Valley.

"Ethiopian Sidamo" is a single-origin Arabica grown in Ethiopia's Sidamo province. Like most African coffees, it is characterized by small gray beans, but it stands apart for its rich, spicy, wine-like or chocolate-like flavors and floral aromas. The most distinctive flavors found across Sidamo coffees are lemon and citrus, with bright, crisp acidity. Sidamo includes Yirgacheffe and Guji coffees, both of exceptional quality.

Washed coffees tend to show less wild flavor; they are pure and refreshing, suited to City to Full City roast levels. Some exceptional Ethiopian washed beans reveal distinct uplifted lemon, citrus essential oil, jasmine floral, and honey notes, with more pronounced acidity and a lighter body.

Region Introduction

Shakisso lies in the Guji zone of Sidamo, in the southern Oromia region, bordering Sidama and Gedeo. The area holds numerous mining pits originally dug for gold, leaving many holes throughout the coffee-growing region and making it dangerous to walk between plantations. Shakisso stands as a unique producing area within Guji/Sidamo; even within Sidamo it remains remote, far from most coffee-producing areas. Gold mining is another famous local product. Factors including miners, land, and ethnic tensions led to regional instability in 2006. As a result, the area now faces its greatest challenge: the human resources needed to maintain plantations and harvest coffee.

Local small farmers began cultivating organic coffee here in 2001, working closely with medium-sized coffee producers who understand how to grow forest coffee in highland areas. This is one of the most distinctive micro-regions within the Sidamo growing area. Coffee from here possesses remarkable uniqueness and consistently captures market attention. Ninety Plus' legendary bean (nekisse) originally means "Nectar from Shakisso," with both its region and its name derived from Shakisso.

Flavor Description: Lemon and citrus, bright crisp acidity, lemon, citrus, white grape juice, blackcurrant, with bergamot tea notes in the finish.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If Shakisso's clean washed citrus and floral character appeals to you, these FrontStreet Ethiopian selections are a natural match:

FrontStreet Washed Yirgacheffe

For an entry point into Ethiopian specialty coffee, start with FrontStreet Washed Yirgacheffe, which shows clear jasmine florals and bright citrus acidity. Yirgacheffe is a small town in southern Ethiopia, mild and misty year-round, cool and humid, where thousands of coffee trees thrive and give rise to the region's signature interwoven florals and fruit acidity. The cup is light and elegant with tea-like character, as refreshing and clean as lemon tea.

FrontStreet Gutingting Cooperative

Because most Ethiopian coffee is grown in garden plots, each smallholder delivers cherries to a village-level processing station, and the coffee is sold under the producing team's name — which is why there are so many cooperatives. Gutingting Cooperative lies in the Worka region at the southeastern edge of Yirgacheffe and was originally part of the YCFCU-affiliated Worka cooperative. As demand for traceability grew, individual "single terroir" lots were unearthed by coffee hunters, and in 2012 Gutingting, with about 300 member farmers, became an independent cooperative. Because the pulp is removed before drying, FrontStreet Gutingting's inherent aromas come through more clearly, with citrus and lemon notes and elegant white florals, bright and refined overall.

FrontStreet Sun-Dried Huakui

For a fruitier, more fermented Ethiopian profile, FrontStreet Huakui comes from the Hambella region of Sidamo Guji, where the 200-hectare farm uses a traditional natural process. Ripe cherries are dried on raised beds for 21 days, turned constantly for even drying, and checked every three to five days so defective or moldy beans can be removed by hand. After a medium-light roast, it shows light fermented wine, florals, citrus, and mango, a richer and more complex body, honey sweetness, cocoa with a touch of spice, and a long finish.