The Story Behind Sidamo Flower Queen Coffee Name and Introduction to Hambella Natural Process Coffee Varieties

Horse Champion coffee beans have been extremely popular in China's coffee community for six consecutive years since 2017. However, many newcomers to coffee still haven't discovered these exceptional beans, so FrontStreet Coffee would like to present an introduction to Horse Champion coffee beans.

Origin of Horse Champion Coffee Beans

Authentic Horse Champion coffee beans originate from the Hambela sub-region of Guji in Sidamo, Ethiopia.

Sidamo Coffee Region

Sidamo is located in southern Ethiopia. Administratively, it was originally part of the Oromia Regional State but later became an independent administrative unit at the same level as Oromia to meet the planning needs of the coffee region. Agriculture dominates the local economy, with coffee cultivation areas situated around the Great Rift Valley.

Sidamo's coffee flavors are incredibly diverse. Different soil types, microclimates, and countless native coffee varieties create distinct differences and characteristics in the coffee produced by each town.

FrontStreet Coffee believes that as a large coffee-producing region, Sidamo has seen increasing refinement with more coffee sub-regions becoming independent. The most famous coffee-growing areas in the Sidamo region are Guji and West Arsi. Most coffee in the Sidamo region is processed using the natural method, which imparts rich fruit aromas and smooth textures to the coffee beans.

Guji Region

Guji was formerly part of the Sidamo region but was designated as an independent coffee region by the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange (ECX) in 2010. Located southeast of Yirgacheffe, Guji features complex topography with towering mountains, valleys, and plains. The region's geology consists of nutrient-rich black soil (Vertisol) with depths of nearly two meters, and the average altitude exceeds 1,800 meters. The significant temperature differences between day and night, created by these geographical characteristics, provide all the terroir conditions necessary for producing high-quality specialty coffee. When discussing what made Guji famous, FrontStreet Coffee must mention the Horse Champion beans.

Horse Champion comes from Hambela, a sub-region under Guji's jurisdiction. Hambela's western side faces Yirgacheffe's Kochere across mountains, with the two regions separated by highlands reaching 3,200 meters in altitude and about 30 kilometers in width. To the southeast, east, and north, it borders Guji's Shakiso, Uraga, and Kercha sub-regions respectively, making it the highest altitude coffee sub-region in Ethiopia.

Origin of the Name "Horse Champion"

In 2017, Ethiopia's DW company submitted their coffee beans to the Taste of Harvest (TOH) green coffee competition organized by the African Fine Coffee Association. A natural processed lot from the "Buku Abel" washing station in Hambela won the TOH Ethiopia championship with its intense strawberry and cream aromas.

That year, this green coffee lot was imported to China by Beijing green coffee trader Hongshun. In the same year, Li Jianfei used these beans to win second place in the 2017 China World Brewers Cup Championship.

This Ethiopian lot stood out remarkably among many Geisha competition entries, so it was named "Horse Champion" (Geisha means "geisha" in Japanese, while "horse champion" refers to the leader among geishas, indicating the exceptional quality of these beans).

If we interpret strictly what qualifies as Horse Champion coffee, FrontStreet Coffee believes only the specific lot that won the TOH championship in 2017 can truly be called Horse Champion coffee.

Of course, if we relax the requirements, authentic Horse Champion coffee beans would be those from the "Buku Abel" washing station in the Hambela region that Hongshun continues to import. However, the reason Horse Champion became famous was its unique strawberry flavor. In subsequent years' production, this flavor became less and less pronounced, and Hongshun Trading, responsible for the imports, recognized this issue.

Consequently, they began adding "X.0" suffixes to Horse Champion based on different years. For example, the 2018 harvest was called Horse Champion 2.0, the 2019 harvest was called Horse Champion 3.0, and so on.

In terms of production areas, due to the high domestic demand for Horse Champion coffee, a single Buku washing station could no longer handle the volume. Therefore, DW company expanded to four washing stations, significantly increasing coffee procurement volume. By Horse Champion 5.0, its flavor profile had already shifted from strawberry to citrus fruits.

2022 was destined to be a year of volatile weather and numerous disasters. Panama coffee production decreased significantly, and Horse Champion 6.0 from 2022 also faced poor bean quality. When FrontStreet Coffee received Hongshun's Horse Champion 6.0, they found its appearance was much worse compared to last year, with many shell beans and flat beans that severely affected visual appeal.

However, due to the high defect rate of this Horse Champion 6.0 lot, FrontStreet Coffee found another new season processed Horse Champion coffee through the Hambela Buku washing station (the same station that processed the 2017 Horse Champion). This Horse Champion coffee was also produced in the Hambela region, processed at the Buku washing station, and featured full, well-formed beans very similar in appearance to previous years' Horse Champion coffee.

FrontStreet Coffee conducted a cupping of this Horse Champion coffee and found flavors of orange blossom, citrus, honey, and grapefruit, with intense juiciness very similar to Horse Champion 5.0's flavor profile.

FrontStreet Coffee Roasting Analysis

First, we examine the flavor descriptions provided by the green bean supplier and test the moisture content.

Freshly received Horse Champion green coffee beans have a fermented wine-like aroma of coffee flowers, completely different from the grassy aroma typical of green beans.

Moreover, Horse Champion green beans vary in size with many pointed ends, and the measured moisture content is within the ideal range (around 11%).

Due to the beans' high density and hardness, during the early roasting stage, FrontStreet Coffee plans to extend the dehydration time and rapidly increase temperature before first crack to build energy; after entering first crack, we try to minimize the loss of volatile aromatic compounds like floral notes.

FrontStreet Coffee Roasting Profile - Taiwan Yangjia 800N

To highlight the sweet fruit aroma of Horse Champion coffee beans, FrontStreet Coffee uses light roasting.

Batch size: 350g, charge at 190°C; dehydration completes in nearly 6 minutes (yellow point around 150-153°C); first crack at 9 minutes 55 seconds (note: Horse Champion's first crack is later than typical beans and the cracking sound is weak); development time should be controlled not to exceed 1 minute 30 seconds but not less than 1 minute (recommend using high heat and reduced flame to control speed), discharge at approximately 193°C. Total time is best controlled within 11 minutes.

FrontStreet Coffee Pour-Over Recommendations

V60 Pour-Over Brewing

• Coffee Dose: 15g
• Dripper: V60 #01
• Water Temperature: 90-91°C
• Water-to-Coffee Ratio: 1:15
• Grind Size: Fine pour-over grind (80% pass-through rate on China #20 standard sieve)

This time, we used FrontStreet Coffee's three-stage pour-over method.

First, preheat the dripper and server, then add 15g of coffee grounds.

First Stage: Pour 30g of water and bloom for 30 seconds (extended blooming is not recommended as it may cause bitterness).

Second Stage: Pour 120g of water in concentric circles from center outward (completion time around 1 minute).

Third Stage: Pour when the coffee bed is nearly visible. Using the same pouring method, add 90g of water. When all water has flowed into the server, remove the dripper to finish extraction. Total brewing time is 2 minutes 5 seconds.

Flavor Description

Citrus acidity, full-bodied berry juice, lemon tea-like mouthfeel, and persistent sweetness.

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style).

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee's private WeChat account: qjcoffeex

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473