Characteristics and Flavor Profile of Yirgacheffe Black Coffee Differences Between Washed and Natural Processing

Introduction to FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe

Ethiopia's FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe is celebrated as a specialty coffee, cherished for its distinctive lemon and citrus acidity, as well as its floral and fruity aromas. FrontStreet Coffee's daily selection includes a washed Yirgacheffe. The FrontStreet Coffee daily selection series aims to provide coffee enthusiasts with the highest cost-performance coffee beans, allowing them to experience the most classic coffee flavors. FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe represents one of the most classic coffee flavors. As the saying goes today, you may not have tried FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain, but you absolutely cannot have missed FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe.

Today, FrontStreet Coffee will explain the differences between FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe coffee beans and sun-dried Yirgacheffe coffee beans. These differences are clearly visible not only in appearance—FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe has more silver skin, while FrontStreet Coffee's sun-dried Yirgacheffe has less—but also in flavor. FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe offers lighter, brighter acidity, while FrontStreet Coffee's sun-dried Yirgacheffe adds fermented notes and sweet aromas.

Yirgacheffe Coffee Growing Region

Yirgacheffe has always been one of Ethiopia's most important coffee-growing regions. Formerly part of the Sidamo coffee region, it later became an independent coffee-growing region due to the unique flavor of Yirgacheffe coffee beans. It can be said that Yirgacheffe is not just a coffee region name but also a term describing specific coffee flavors. The Yirgacheffe coffee region is a high-altitude growing area, with elevations around 2,000 meters. The Yirgacheffe coffee region has over 40 cooperatives, primarily managing coffee cultivation through family-operated models.

Within the Yirgacheffe coffee region, there are many well-known micro-regions such as Kochere, Fog Valley, and Gedeb. These micro-regions all have excellent cooperatives, and their produced Yirgacheffe coffee beans each possess distinctive flavor characteristics.

Yirgacheffe Coffee Bean Grading

Yirgacheffe coffee varieties are local indigenous, small-grained types with relatively round shapes and very small beans, mostly between 14-15 mesh. The ECX (Ethiopian Commodity Exchange, established in 2012) has a two-tier grading system for Ethiopian coffee beans.

On one hand, there's a grading system based on defect rates. For both washed and sun-dried processed coffee beans, export-grade green beans with 3 or fewer defects per 300g are classified as G1, while those with 4-12 defects per 300g are classified as G2.

On the other hand, there's a flavor evaluation grading system. G1 and G2 grade coffee beans are evaluated using the SCA (Specialty Coffee Association) cupping method. Beans scoring 85 points or above are rated Q1 grade, while those scoring 80-84.75 points are rated Q2 grade.

Yirgacheffe Coffee Processing Methods

Ethiopia traditionally used ancient sun-drying processing methods, but after introducing washed processing in 1972, over several decades, the adoption rate of washed processing became much higher than sun-drying. Washed processing reduces coffee bean defects and results in cleaner, brighter flavor expression.

However, some farm owners still prefer sun-drying processing. Coffee merchant Bagheshi, nostalgic for traditional sun-dried bean flavors and unwilling to let sun-drying techniques be gradually replaced by washed processing, improved the sun-drying method to enhance flavors and reduce defect rates. He introduced several coffee beans from Fog Valley, which achieved remarkable success, and sun-dried Yirgacheffe coffee regained its prominent status.

The most fundamental difference between sun-dried and washed processing methods is that sun-drying preserves the fruit pulp flavors, while washing removes them. This creates noticeable differences in mouthfeel—washed coffee is cleaner and brighter, while sun-dried coffee offers richer complexity.

They are also easily distinguishable by appearance. Raw washed coffee beans are typically greenish-blue, while sun-dried beans are yellowish-green. After roasting, washed coffee beans show obvious silver skin, while sun-dried coffee beans have almost no silver skin residue, with smoother bean surfaces.

Roasting Recommendations

The most iconic flavor of FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe coffee is its refined acidity and rich floral-fruit aromas. To maximize this flavor profile, FrontStreet Coffee uses light roasting. Whether using sun-dried or washed processing for FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe coffee beans, light roasting maximizes their special characteristics. However, there are also medium to dark roasted Yirgacheffe coffees on the market today, which slightly weaken the acidity while enhancing body thickness—this depends on personal preference. Mainstream preference still favors light-roasted Yirgacheffe coffee.

Roasting Machine: Yangjia 800N (550g batch size)

FrontStreet Coffee Sun-Dried Yirgacheffe

FrontStreet Coffee's roasting approach: Preheat to 200°C, set damper to 3, heat to 150, maintain damper setting. Return temperature at 1'35". When drum temperature reaches 140°C, adjust heat to 180, open damper to 4. At this point, bean surface turns yellow, grassy aroma completely disappears, entering dehydration phase. When drum temperature reaches 170°C, reduce heat to 150°C, maintain damper setting. At 9'01", bean surface shows ugly wrinkles and black spots, toast aroma clearly transitions to coffee aroma—this can be defined as the prelude to first crack. Listen carefully for the first crack sound. At 9'25", first crack begins, reduce heat to 120°C, adjust damper to 5. Develop for 1'40" after first crack, discharge at 196°C.

FrontStreet Coffee Sun-Dried Yirgacheffe Red Cherry Coffee Bean Roasting Curve

FrontStreet Coffee Washed Yirgacheffe

FrontStreet Coffee's roasting approach: Preheat to 200°C, set damper to 3, heat to 160, maintain damper setting. Return temperature at 1'32". When drum temperature reaches 151°C, adjust damper to 3.5. When drum temperature reaches 140°C, adjust heat to 180, maintain damper setting. At this point, bean surface turns yellow, grassy aroma completely disappears, entering dehydration phase. At 8'35", bean surface shows ugly wrinkles and black spots, toast aroma clearly transitions to coffee aroma—this can be defined as the prelude to first crack. Listen carefully for the first crack sound. At 8'53", first crack begins, maintain heat at 180, adjust damper to 4. Develop for 1'45" after first crack, discharge at 195°C.

FrontStreet Coffee Washed Yirgacheffe Gedeb Coffee Bean Roasting Curve

FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Brewing Recommendations

To fully extract the fruit acidity characteristics of Yirgacheffe, FrontStreet Coffee uses higher water temperature and finer grind size for extraction. However, to avoid over-extraction caused by high temperatures, faster flow-rate brewers like V60 are used.

The V60 dripper features a 60-degree conical shape. The conical angle allows coffee grounds to concentrate distribution, and during pouring, water flow automatically converges toward the filter center, ensuring sufficient contact time between water and coffee grounds, thus achieving proper coffee extraction.

Additionally, the spiral ribs inside the V60 dripper extend clockwise from bottom to top, creating sufficient space between filter paper and dripper. This promotes good water flow, and combined with the large bottom hole, results in relatively faster flow rates compared to many other drippers.

FrontStreet Coffee's specific brewing parameters: V60 dripper, water temperature 90°C, water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, coffee dose 15g, grind size BG#5F (80% pass-through rate on China No. 20 standard sieve)

FrontStreet Coffee uses segmented extraction. Bloom water volume is twice the coffee dose—that is, 30g water for 30 seconds bloom. Using small circular pours, extract to 125g, then segment. When water level drops and is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 225g and stop. Total extraction time is 2 minutes.

Flavor Descriptions

FrontStreet Coffee Sun-Dried Yirgacheffe Coffee: Subtle fermented wine aroma, rich mouthfeel, with citrus fragrance, honey sweetness, cocoa flavors, and persistent aftertaste.

FrontStreet Coffee Washed Yirgacheffe Coffee: Brighter, livelier acidity, lemon acid, citrus fragrance, refreshing mouthfeel, with black tea notes in the finish.

In summary, both FrontStreet Coffee's sun-dried Yirgacheffe and washed Yirgacheffe coffees feature fruit acidity, with obvious fruit juice characteristics similar to lemon and citrus fruits.

FrontStreet Coffee's Washed Yirgacheffe Selection

FrontStreet Coffee has systematically explained the differences between washed and sun-dried Yirgacheffe above. As mentioned earlier, Yirgacheffe is a large coffee-growing region, and different small areas and plots within the region produce Yirgacheffe with different flavor expressions. FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe series is generally divided into washed and sun-dried series. Let's introduce what washed Yirgacheffe coffee beans are available.

FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Kochere

Region: Yirgacheffe Kochere
Altitude: 1650-1800m
Variety: Indigenous

Processing: Washed
Grade: G1
Flavor: Jasmine, lemon acidity, caramel, berries

FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Konga

Region: Yirgacheffe

Washing Station: Worka Konga Washing Station

Altitude: 1300-2000m

Variety: Indigenous

Processing: Washed

Grade: G1

Flavor: Jasmine, citrus, lemon, honey, green tea

FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Gedeb

Region: Yirgacheffe Gedeo Zone

Altitude: 1900-2300m

Variety: Indigenous

Processing: Washed

Grade: G1

Flavor: Initial notes of citrus and black tea, floral aromas that reveal cream, caramel, and almond notes as temperature changes, with obvious sweet aftertaste and clean, sweet mouthfeel

FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Worka

Region: Yirgacheffe Region

Altitude: 1800-2000m

Variety: Indigenous

Processing: Washed

Grade: G1

Flavor: Initial notes of lemon, plum, and Tieguanyin oolong tea, with prominent caramel notes as temperature changes, bright acidity, and obvious sweet aftertaste

FrontStreet Coffee's Sun-Dried Yirgacheffe Selection

FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Aricha

Region: Yirgacheffe

Processing Station: Adorsi Processing Station

Altitude: 1900-2000m

Variety: Indigenous

Processing: Sun-Dried

Grade: G1

Flavor: Ripe fruit aroma, obvious fermented notes on entry, green grapes, as temperature slightly drops, reveals lemon acidity and cream, with grape juice-like notes in the finish

FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe Red Cherry

Region: Yirgacheffe

Processing Station: Aletaland

Altitude: 2300m

Variety: Indigenous

Processing: Sun-Dried

Grade: G1

Flavor: Lemon, licorice, citrus, berries, sweet orange, overall high sweetness, with caramel and cream notes in aftertaste, and black tea fragrance in the finish

For more specialty coffee beans, please add private WeChat: FrontStreet Coffee, WeChat ID: kaixinguoguo0925

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473