Yirgacheffe Coffee Characteristics Story - Yirgacheffe Koodingi Cooperative Coffee Beans Pour-over Flavor

Discovering Ethiopian Coffee

When it comes to African coffee, FrontStreet Coffee immediately thinks of Ethiopia—the birthplace of coffee. Citrus, lemon acidity, jasmine flowers, ripe strawberries, tropical fruits, berries, and honey are all common flavor descriptors used for Ethiopian coffee beans. Among these, Yirgacheffe stands out as the most renowned, with its flavor profile becoming synonymous with specialty coffee.

Yirgacheffe: A Small Town with Big Flavor

Ethiopia's coffee cultivation is primarily concentrated in the western and southern regions, with smallholder family farms accounting for 90% of total production. Nearly 1.2 million smallholder families depend on coffee cultivation for their livelihood. The local coffee production system is divided into four types: forest coffee, semi-forest coffee, garden coffee, and large plantations, with garden coffee being the most common. Due to the small production volume of smallholder farms, numerous coffee cooperatives and processing stations of various sizes handle the coffee bean processing for their regions. Farmers deliver their harvested coffee beans to nearby processing stations established near water sources for unified processing, with subsequent sales conducted under the processing station's name. Yirgacheffe is one such production region.

Yirgacheffe refers to a small town in the northwestern part of Ethiopia's Sidamo province. Located in the Gedeo zone, Yirgacheffe town sits downstream from large lakes, with abundant springs and waterways flowing through, providing ample freshwater resources for washing stations. FrontStreet Coffee also noted that in Ethiopia's ancient language, the English "Yirgacheffe" consists of two words: Yərga (ይርጋ) meaning calm and settled, and Č̣äfe (ጨፌ) referring to marsh-like wetlands. Therefore, Yirgacheffe carries the meaning "let us settle and thrive in this wetland."

Nestled among mountains and lakes, at elevations ranging from 1,700 to 2,100 meters, this area represents one of Ethiopia's highest-altitude coffee-growing regions. Originally part of Sidamo, it later became independent due to its unique flavor profile and growing reputation, establishing itself as the exclusive Yirgacheffe production region. The town enjoys misty weather, spring-like conditions year-round, gentle breezes, cool but not hot temperatures, rainy but not humid climate, and winter without frost damage—making it exceptionally suitable for coffee cultivation. The FrontStreet Coffee Yirgacheffe coffee thus develops its unique citrus and floral aromatics.

FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe Selection

FrontStreet Coffee offers multiple Yirgacheffe coffees, all processed using natural methods of both washed and sun-dried processing. Among these, FrontStreet Coffee's washed Gedeb cooperative coffee and sun-dried Red Cherry are the most representative.

FrontStreet Coffee's Washed Gedeb Cooperative Coffee

The Gedeb Cooperative, comprising 300 smallholder farmers, is renowned for cultivating Ethiopia's finest quality coffee. Their processing method follows the most traditional washed approach, earning them the reputation as "the last pure land of Yirgacheffe." Among customers who visit FrontStreet Coffee for coffee, if they wish to experience fruity washed coffee, FrontStreet Coffee's baristas will优先 recommend the FrontStreet Coffee Gedeb cooperative coffee from the bean display. The FrontStreet Coffee Gedeb cooperative coffee processed using the washed method lacks the traditional bitterness of black coffee, instead offering fresh, bright citrus and lemon acidity, along with jasmine fragrance that captivates coffee enthusiasts from the first sip.

The Art of Washed Processing

Traditionally, farmers would place harvested coffee cherries directly on patios or spread them on the ground for direct sun-drying until the moisture content reached about 12%, after which they could be sent for hulling and packaging. However, coffee beans processed this way often developed earthy flavors, over-fermentation, and rotten fruit notes. To improve these defect flavors caused by sun-drying, Ethiopia introduced washed processing technology from Central and South America.

Washed processing involves pouring coffee cherries into water tanks, removing floating unripe beans, mechanically removing the coffee pulp, then placing them in clean water tanks for fermentation. The acidic substances produced during bean fermentation help separate the mucilage layer, after which clean running water washes the surface of the parchment beans. Finally, they are dried under sunlight to completion. During the washed processing, multiple steps remove defective beans, resulting in cleaner acidity in the flavor profile.

FrontStreet Coffee's Sun-Dried Red Cherry Coffee

The "Red Cherry Project" was initiated in 2007 by the Dutch trading company Trabocca BV to improve the quality of Ethiopian coffee.

This project primarily focuses on improving processing techniques (washed, semi-washed, and sun-dried) in Ethiopia's high-altitude regions such as Yirgacheffe. Professional cuppers are involved, and different harvest volumes are determined for different microclimate zones during harvest seasons. Only 100% mature red coffee cherries must be harvested, with production quantities ranging from 1,500-3,000 KG. Trabocca Company's provision of economic loan support, new hardware equipment, and production knowledge and technology has significantly improved the quality of coffee beans in the Yirgacheffe region and even throughout Ethiopia. Consequently, coffee commands higher prices, thereby increasing farmers' income.

FrontStreet Coffee's sun-dried Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee beans are selected from the Eltelan farm's full red cherry sun-dried processing. The green coffee beans appear light yellow, with full, well-formed beans, low defect rates, and G1 grade. FrontStreet Coffee's sun-dried Yirgacheffe offers more intense flavors with richer complexity, featuring wine-like fermentation notes and higher sweetness.

The Aroma and Flavor of Yirgacheffe

For roasting, FrontStreet Coffee considers that FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe should present acidity as the primary flavor direction, thus adopting a medium-light roast. FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe Gedeb cooperative coffee beans use a light roast to preserve more bright acidity and white floral aromas, while FrontStreet Coffee's sun-dried Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee beans use a medium-light roast to present full berry sweetness and acidity. Before introducing any coffee bean, FrontStreet Coffee conducts at least one cupping evaluation. Under consistent standards, cupping allows us to more objectively perceive the coffee's strengths and weaknesses.

Cupping Profiles

FrontStreet Coffee's Washed Gedeb Cooperative Coffee Cupping Profile: Dry aroma presents fresh passion fruit, citrus, and berry acidity. Wet aroma shows citrus and berries. On the palate, citrus acidity, berry sweetness, almond, tea-like notes, with honey-sweet aftertaste. Light body, bright acidity, clean and refreshing.

FrontStreet Coffee's Sun-Dried Red Cherry Coffee Cupping Profile: Dry aroma expresses full berry sweetness and acidity. Different temperatures reveal soft berry sweetness and acidity, mature fruit fermentation, noticeable honey sweetness, and black tea finish. Smooth texture.

FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe Brewing Recommendations

Regardless of the extraction method used, FrontStreet Coffee believes that the freshness of coffee beans is crucial. Coffee roasted more than two months ago has likely lost much of its aroma, and even the most excellent extraction techniques can hardly restore the cup's fragrance. To let everyone experience coffee at its best tasting stage, FrontStreet Coffee only ships beans roasted within 5 days, so you can begin brewing shortly after receiving them.

Since FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopian Yirgacheffe uses light roasting, the coffee beans are relatively hard and require high-temperature water of 92℃-93℃ to awaken the floral and fruit flavors within the coffee. FrontStreet Coffee recommends a medium-fine grind (78% pass-through rate on China standard #20 sieve). Too coarse a grind fails to extract body substances, resulting in thin coffee. Too fine a grind can lead to over-extraction at high water temperatures, producing bitter coffee.

During cupping, FrontStreet Coffee noticed that this bean exhibits different flavors at different temperatures, so the brewing method employs three-stage extraction to allow different flavor compounds to better express themselves during the gradual temperature increase of the coffee bed. To highlight the fresh and captivating aroma of washed Yirgacheffe, FrontStreet Coffee uses a V60 dripper for brewing. The spiral rib design of the dripper allows coffee grounds to better degas, maximizing the volatilization and dissolution of aromatic compounds.

For brewing ratios, FrontStreet Coffee finds that 1:15 to 1:16 both work well. If you want a richer mouthfeel, use 1:15. If you want to more clearly perceive floral and sweet notes, use 1:16 to allow the flavors to disperse more.

Brewing Parameters

• Dripper: V60
• Water Temperature: 92-93°C
• Coffee Dose: 15g
• Coffee-to-Water Ratio: 1:15
• Grind Size: Fine sugar texture (78% pass-through rate on #20 sieve)

Three-Stage Pouring Technique

Use twice the amount of water as coffee grounds to wet the coffee bed, forming a dome for a 30-second bloom. Then use a small water stream to pour from inside to outside in circular motions until reaching 125g, then pause. Wait until the coffee bed drops to half the dripper's height, then continue with the same fine water stream for the third stage to reach 225g. Remove the dripper once all coffee liquid has filtered through, taking about 2 minutes total.

Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473