Yirgacheffe Coffee Bean Brewing Methods Luckin Yirgacheffe SOE Americano Standard Recipe Taste Review

FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee beans offer exceptionally fresh flavors, especially with light roasting that reveals bright citrus-like acidity, subtle floral notes, honey-like sweetness, and green tea-like aftertaste. When used for SOE (Single Origin Espresso), FrontStreet Coffee typically uses medium to dark roasting for their Yirgacheffe, producing black coffee with gentle citrus acidity, creamy chocolate richness, and cookie-like aromas that always leave a lasting impression.

Understanding Yirgacheffe Coffee

FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe coffee refers to beans produced in Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia. Yirgacheffe is the name of a small local town situated at an altitude of approximately 1,700-2,100 meters. Today, "Yirgacheffe" has become synonymous with Ethiopian specialty coffee. FrontStreet Coffee understands that Yirgacheffe Town, originally part of the Sidamo region, gained independence as a representative producing area thanks to the establishment of washing stations, which allowed it to develop its distinctive "Yirgacheffe flavor" and rise to prominence throughout the coffee world.

FrontStreet Coffee's research shows that FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe coffee beans owe their distinctive style not only to natural terroir conditions but largely to washed processing. Ethiopia's generally high altitude and abundant sunshine are perfect for direct sun-drying of coffee cherries. Initially, Yirgacheffe was also known for producing natural processed coffee. Traditional natural processing involved simply spreading cherries on the ground to dry, without sorting or floating, resulting in uneven coffee bean quality. It wasn't until the 1970s that Yirgacheffe Town established Sidamo's first washing station, and the area gradually began adopting more washed processing methods.

The Rise of Washing Stations

As more farmer cooperatives were established to improve the quality of green coffee beans for export and increase income while serving multiple communities, people began the desire to build washing processing plants. Unlike natural processing, washing stations first need to solve water resource problems, followed by investing in machines to remove pulp, and then having sufficient workforce. From a production perspective, places with people, water, and access roads are ideal locations for washing stations, and Yirgacheffe is precisely such a treasure.

The Washed Processing Method

In coffee processing, "washed" refers to first putting selected coffee cherries into a depulper to initially remove the skin and pulp; placing coffee beans with remaining pulp and mucilage into water to ferment for about 24 hours; after fermentation, putting coffee beans with parchment into flowing water channels to wash away pulp and mucilage; after washing, drying coffee beans in the sun or using drying machines to reduce moisture content to about 12%; finally removing the parchment from the green coffee beans.

As one of the most traditional green bean processing methods, washed processing not only makes coffee production quality more stable but also allows Geisha to present higher cleanliness and fresher flavor profiles. After roasting, FrontStreet Coffee experiences FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe's elegant white floral notes, uplifting citrus and lemon acidity, with subtle tea-like undertones.

FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe Selection

FrontStreet Coffee currently sells 5 coffee beans from the Yirgacheffe region, with FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe coffee beans from the Gedeb Cooperative and FrontStreet Coffee's full red cherry (red cherry) Yirgacheffe coffee beans from Aleltelan being the most popular.

For the FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe sold, FrontStreet Coffee's roasters consider highlighting the fresh floral and fruity notes, so they use medium-light roasting, presenting classic Yirgacheffe flavor profiles suitable for pour-over, cold brew, French press, and other brewing methods. Beyond roasting details, FrontStreet Coffee believes freshness is also crucial, so we ship within 5 days of roasting. Only freshly roasted coffee beans can have rich aroma and flavor. If you want to experience the rich layers of FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe coffee beans, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using drip pour-over coffee.

Pour-Over Brewing Parameters

FrontStreet Coffee's baristas use pour-over extraction for FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe with these parameters: 15g coffee grounds, 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, medium-fine grind (granulated sugar size / 80% passes through China #20 standard sieve), water temperature 90-91°C.

Brewing technique: Bloom with 30g water for 30 seconds, continue pouring in small circular motions to 125g for stage separation, when water level drops about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 225g and stop pouring. When water level drops about to expose the coffee bed, remove the filter cup. Extraction time (starting from bloom): 2'00".

FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe Gedeb Cooperative washed coffee beans pour-over flavor profile: bright citrus-like acidity, berry sweetness, honey sweetness, green tea aftertaste.

FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe Red Cherry natural coffee beans pour-over flavor profile: bright citrus-like acidity, strawberry sweetness, honey sweetness, slight fruit fermentation notes.

SOE Yirgacheffe for Espresso-Based Drinks

It's not hard to notice that many coffee shops' Yirgacheffe SOE Americanos have acidic notes. The main reason is using less dark roasting levels because we need to ensure that after SOE extraction is diluted with water/milk, you can not only taste FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe's unique bright citrus acidity but also prevent the coffee from being too acidic while maintaining certain body.

Based on FrontStreet Coffee's barista's brewing experience, choosing coffee beans suitable for SOE extraction not only makes it easy to produce delicious espresso but also makes Americanos or lattes made with added water or milk twice as effective. FrontStreet Coffee's bean list has two single-origin coffee beans with SOE versions: one is strawberry-flavored FrontStreet Coffee's Guji, and one is classic Yirgacheffe-flavored FrontStreet Coffee's Konga. We just need to select SOE espresso roast when ordering.

SOE Extraction Parameters and Process

Experienced friends all know that Americano production is espresso + water for dilution, so espresso is the most critical key component.

FrontStreet Coffee's store coffee machine is a commercial single-group "Lelit Bianca," paired with 20g double-shot baskets, typically using a 1:2 coffee-to-liquid ratio, meaning 40g of espresso liquid is needed, with time controlled at 25-33 seconds. This ensures even coffee extraction. Everyone can make fine adjustments at home according to their equipment instructions.

FrontStreet Coffee's SOE extraction parameters are as follows:

Coffee grounds: 20g
Espresso liquid: 40g
Coffee-to-liquid ratio: 1:2
Extraction time: 25-33 seconds
Grind setting: Galileo 2.0 setting

FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe SOE production steps: FrontStreet Coffee first wipes any moisture or foreign objects from the portafilter basket, turns on the grinder to grind double-shot coffee grounds, places them on an electronic scale for adjustment to reach 20g weight. Then uses tools to distribute evenly, tamps the coffee puck firmly to ensure more stable extraction. Then opens the extraction switch to release water, moistening the brew head while washing away stuck coffee grounds, gently locks the portafilter onto the brew head, and begins brewing extraction. When the electronic scale shows 40g of espresso liquid extracted, about 30 seconds, press the button (switch), and a cup of FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe SOE extraction is complete.

If tasting SOE espresso directly, you can feel distinct citrus acidity, honey sweetness, oolong tea-like aftertaste, with bright and bold acidity, but slightly thin body. Therefore, compared to drinking it straight, it's more suitable for making a refreshing SOE iced Americano.

SOE Iced Americano Recipe

FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe SOE iced Americano steps: FrontStreet Coffee will first prepare an attractive glass, about 350ml capacity, add 90g ice cubes and fill 8/10 with room temperature water (about 150-170ml). Then extract double-shot espresso according to the above steps and pour into the glass. A beautiful and delicious SOE iced Americano is ready. Remember to stir well before tasting!

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473