The Story and Origins of Ethiopian Washed Sidamo G2 Premium Coffee Beans

Ethiopian Coffee Industry Overview

Today, Ethiopia's washing stations are increasingly developed. Small farmers sell their harvested coffee cherries to processing plants, where they are hulled and then resold through the auction system. Afterward they are transferred to the Eritrean port of Assab on the Red Sea, as well as the port of Djibouti near the Gulf of Aden. Although coffee is the country's main agricultural export, its annual domestic consumption is also astonishing, at approximately 1,500,000 bags of 60kg each, accounting for 50% of total production. Wild coffee grows in the tropical rainforests of the southwestern highlands and is mostly hand-picked. Because of this, however, many local people destroy naturally formed rainforest areas, either cutting or burning them, to reach hard-to-access rugged mountain areas, which severely affects the ecological balance.

Both washed and natural-processed beans, indeed all exported coffee, are sent to the capital, Addis Ababa, and to Dire Dawa in Harar province for auction and export. The Dire Dawa auction center typically exports the region's natural Harar coffee. Daily information about coffee from different farms can be seen at the auction site to help traders make purchases. Government-appointed Ethiopian officials also pass through this center daily to inspect and grade the coffee, each time randomly sampling 3kg of green beans from the same shipment for inspection.

Sidamo Brewing Method

Hand-poured Sidamo: 15g of coffee, ground to medium-fine (Fuji ghost tooth grinder setting 3.5), V60 dripper, water temperature 91-93°C. First pour 30g of water for a 27-second bloom, then pour to 105g and stop. Wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to halfway, then continue pouring slowly until reaching 225g. Avoid the tail section. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Product Information

Shelf Life: 90 days
Net Weight: 227g
Packaging: Bulk coffee beans
Roast Level: Roasted coffee beans
Sugar Content: Sugar-free
Origin: Ethiopia
Roast Degree: Light roast

Coffee Details

Grade: Sidamo G2 Washed

Country: Ethiopia

Grade: G2

Region: Sidamo

Roast Degree: Light roast

Processing Method: Washed

Farmers harvest bright red cherries daily, with every two days' harvest forming one unit sent or sold to washing stations for processing. Cherries that have not gone through a washing station typically undergo about 12 hours of natural fermentation, then are sun-dried to facilitate drying and hulling. Even so, farmers of slightly greater means always try to send their cherries to washing stations so they can be labeled "washed" and sell for better prices. At washing stations, the cherries undergo about 12 hours of soaking and fermentation to soften the pulp, then pass through water channels with stirring to separate the pulp from the beans, with the pulp discharged through gates.

Variety: Local heirloom varieties

Flavor: Honey, citrus, lemon

Ethiopian Coffee Agriculture

Today, large quantities of wild Arabica coffee trees still grow in many parts of Ethiopia, typically planted at altitudes between 4,200-6,800 feet. There is now a gradual trend toward small-scale cultivation, generally interplanting banana trees for shade. Thanks to a lack of agricultural technology, the use of herbicides and pesticides is also limited. Coffee is Ethiopia's main economic crop and the country's largest agricultural export and an important industry. It accounts for 60% of Ethiopia's total export value and sustains the livelihoods of many small farms. Other exports include sugar, bananas, and cotton. Coffee is also Ethiopia's largest and most important commodity export after oil, and Africa's largest Arabica export; in 1997 the total value was approximately $300 million. In terms of total production, 94% comes from small farms and 6% from government institutions. Because many farms are scattered and also grow other crops, accurate numbers have always been difficult to compile, but the country's official statistics show a total coffee cultivation area of at least 400,000 hectares or more. The Ethiopian government encourages local farmers to improve quality and productivity to help coffee farmers expand their commercial scale and increase production and exports.

Sidamo Region Characteristics

The Sidamo growing region, with altitudes of 1,400-2,200 meters, is a famous specialty coffee area in southern Ethiopia, bordering Kenya. Washed Sidamo appears light green, with beans that are not large but oval-shaped and full. Average quality is excellent, with aromatic and mellow flavor characteristics. One drop in the mouth leaves an endless aftertaste, possessing a wild beauty. Sidamo's flavors are very diverse, with different soil types, microclimates, and countless native coffee varieties creating clear differences and characteristics in the coffee produced by different towns. From 2010-2012 it consistently scored 92-94 on the authoritative American coffee evaluation website CR, demonstrating the extraordinary quality of green beans from this region. The area features towering mountains, highlands, plateaus, valleys, and plains, with diverse topography. The local geology consists of nutrient-rich, well-drained volcanic soil with a depth of nearly two meters, the surface soil dark brown or brown. The area's greatest advantage is that soil fertility is maintained through organic matter cycling, using fallen leaves from surrounding trees or plant residues as fertilizer.

Unlike typical African coffees, Sidamo has clear fruit acidity, a smooth mouthfeel, and delicate floral and herbal aromas. Washed Sidamo is elegant yet playful. The gentle, pleasant entry creates a strong contrast with the bright lemon acidity that follows. The mouthfeel is uniquely mellow, with a distinctive and pleasant sweetness in the aftertaste. The slowly rising finish carries a unique sweetness. The green coffee beans are slightly grayish, some large and some small. The acidity is both gentle and intense, the body is appropriately balanced between thick and light, and the coffee has sweet, spicy aromatics, making it one of the garden coffees of Ethiopia's southern highlands.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

The Sidamo G2 here is all about clean, delicate washed Ethiopian character, and FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopia range offers two very different ways to keep exploring that origin. The FrontStreet Ethiopia Kaffa Forest comes from the Kaffa Forest in southwestern Ethiopia, a UNESCO-recognized biosphere reserve and widely acknowledged birthplace of Arabica, where coffee grows between 1,400 and 2,100 meters under natural shade. Roasted medium-light, it shows white florals, bright lemon acidity, sweet orange and bergamot, and a green-tea finish.

For a more classic washed profile, the FrontStreet Washed Yirgacheffe delivers jasmine, citrus, and lemon acidity in a light, transparent cup. Both suit the 1:15, 91-93°C V60 recipe above.