FrontStreet Coffee Ethiopia Natural Yirgacheffe Coffee Beans Aricha G1 Imported Premium Single Origin Roasted

Product Information

Manufacturer: FrontStreet Coffee
Ingredients: House-roasted
Shelf Life: 30 days
Net Weight: 227g
Packaging: Bulk
Taste Profile: Acidity
Bean State: Roasted coffee beans
Sugar Content: Sugar-free
Origin: Ethiopia
Coffee Variety: Yirgacheffe
Roast Level: Light roast

Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Aricha G1

Coffee Details

Country: Ethiopia
Grade: G1
Region: Yirgacheffe Gediyo
Altitude: 1900-2100 meters
Processing Method: Natural
Variety: Heirloom
Producer: Kebel Aricha
Flavor Notes: Light fermented wine aroma, sweet orange, spices, honey sweetness

This lot was produced at the Kebel Aricha washing and drying station, where roughly 650-700 smallholder farmers from the surrounding area deliver their ripe cherries for processing in exchange for cash. After the station screens out substandard cherries, the rest go straight onto the drying racks. For the first few days, the cherries are raked every 2-3 hours to prevent uneven heating and over-fermentation. After four to six weeks of natural drying, workers machine-hull the dried fruit depending on weather and temperature, then the coffee is trucked to Addis Ababa for storage. As a rule, naturally processed lots are held in their dried-cherry (pod) form until just before export, when they are hulled to protect green bean quality. This natural Aricha earned a G1 rating, the highest grade in the ECX system, and it shows in everything from green bean appearance, uniformity, and freshness to the dry aroma and the cup. If bright acidity and lush berry flavors are your thing, this one is not to be missed.

Flavor Description

Light fermented wine aroma, jujube, sweet orange citrus notes, dark berries, lychee, starfruit, peach, nectarine, longan and red date aromatics, honey sweetness, cocoa with subtle spice, full body and a persistent aftertaste.

About Project Origin

Sasa Sestic, the 2015 World Barista Champion, launched a green coffee sourcing project called Project Origin together with his team at ONA Coffee three years before this article. The project works directly with coffee farmers in some of the world's poorer growing regions, improving their production conditions and paying a 20% premium over fair trade prices.

The project's founding idea is also to tighten the link between roasters and producers while guiding farmers toward better cultivation practices. To date, Sasa has built relationships with growers in eight countries, including Brazil, Panama, India, Ethiopia, El Salvador, and Costa Rica.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If you are just starting to explore Ethiopian coffee, begin with the most classic expression of the region: FrontStreet's washed Yirgacheffe house bean. It is known for white jasmine florals, bright citrus and lemon acidity, and a distinct tea-like finish, and its friendly price has made it the first specialty bean for countless new drinkers.

Yirgacheffe itself is a small town in the Gedeo zone of southern Ethiopia, at roughly 1700-2100 meters, with most coffee planted above 1800 meters, making it one of the highest coffee regions in the world. The area was originally wetland, and the name Yirgacheffe has become shorthand for the region's unmistakable white floral character and lemon-citrus acidity. The name was so famous that in 2010 the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange formally separated Yirgacheffe from the broader Sidamo designation, giving the world the household name it is today.

FrontStreet Worka Guodingding Cooperative (Washed): The Yirgacheffe town area breaks down into many micro-regions and villages, several of them home to highly experienced cooperatives. The most representative is the Guodingding Cooperative in the Worka zone at the southeastern end of Yirgacheffe. Originally part of the Worka cooperative under the Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (YCFCU), it was later identified by coffee buyers worldwide as a single-origin micro-lot as demand for traceability grew. Using traditional washed processing, Guodingding coffee carries none of the old bitterness textbook, instead offering fresh, bright citrus and lemon acidity with jasmine fragrance. Many coffee lovers fall for it at first sip.

FrontStreet Red Cherry (Natural): From the same Yirgacheffe region, this lot uses fully red-cherry natural processing: only perfectly ripe, defect-free fruit is picked, given a first round of sorting at the station, then laid out on raised beds to dry. For the first few days the cherries are turned every 2-3 hours to prevent over-fermentation, and after three to five weeks of sun-drying the fruit is machine-hulled and moved to warehouse storage. Because the cherries dry with their fruit intact, the cup combines classic Yirgacheffe character with natural-process tropical fruit: citrus-like acidity, berry juice texture, honeyed sweetness, and a cream-smooth mouthfeel.

Brewing Suggestion: V60 dripper, 90-91°C water, 15g dose, 1:15 ratio, medium-fine grind (EK43s at setting 10, or 80% pass through a #20 sieve). Pour 30g of water for a 30-second bloom, then pour to 95g (about 125g on the scale) finishing around 1:00. When the level drops to two-thirds of the coffee bed, pour the remaining 100g (about 225g total) finishing around 1:35. Drawdown completes between 2:00 and 2:10. Remove the dripper and enjoy.