Yirgacheffe Kochere Coffee Beans - Kochere Processing Methods and Brewing Flavor Characteristics

FrontStreet Coffee has found that many friends who love acidic coffee specifically ask for a pour-over of Yirgacheffe when visiting our stores. So what exactly are the flavors of Yirgacheffe? Today, let's explore one of the representatives of Yirgacheffe—Kochere coffee.

Yirgacheffe Coffee Growing Region

The town of Yirgacheffe is located in the Sidama region of Ethiopia, with growing altitudes ranging from 1,700 to 2,200 meters. It serves as the administrative center for Ethiopia's coffee-growing areas and is one of the regions producing high-quality Ethiopian coffee beans, housing over forty cooperatives. Yirgacheffe is not only representative of Ethiopian specialty coffee but has also garnered attention for its unique geographical environment and climate conditions. Its high-altitude areas are consistently cool and misty, with spring-like weather year-round. These exceptional terrain conditions and cultivation systems provide the optimal environment for growing premium coffee beans.

In ancient Ethiopian language, the English "Yirgacheffe" is composed of two words: Yərga meaning calm, settled down, and Č̣äfe meaning marsh-like wetlands. Therefore, Yirgacheffe carries the meaning "let us settle and make a living in this wetland." When FrontStreet Coffee looked at the map, we discovered that Yirgacheffe town is situated in the Gedeo zone, located just downstream from large lakes with abundant springs and river channels flowing through, providing plentiful freshwater resources for the cooperatives processing coffee beans.

In the Yirgacheffe coffee-growing region, coffee trees are mostly planted in villagers' backyards or intercropped with other crops in farmland. Although each household's yield is limited, this has created a unique pastoral coffee style. These mountain villages are perpetually surrounded by mist, with gentle summer breezes and spring-like weather year-round, creating a pleasant climate. This distinctive environment cultivates the characteristic citrus and floral flavors of Yirgacheffe coffee, leaving an unforgettable impression upon first taste.

Kochere Region

Due to the complex genetics of Ethiopian coffee beans and numerous growing regions, coffee farmers primarily trade by selling fresh cherries, making it difficult to connect green bean prices in the international market with specific growing regions, and farmers' incomes cannot increase. To further detail the traceability information of coffee beans and obtain fair trade, the Ethiopian government established the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange (ECX) in 2008 to promote coffee trading in a more equitable manner. Under ECX's regional classification system, the Yirgacheffe region is divided into four sub-regions: Kochere, Gedeb, Gelana, and Wenago. Each sub-region has its own excellent production teams, and the coffees produced each have their own distinctive characteristics.

Kochere is one of the 77 Woredas (Ethiopian administrative regions) in Ethiopia's SNNPR. Kochere is a small growing region located about 25 kilometers southeast of Yirgacheffe. The harvested coffee beans come from local small-scale coffee farmers, forming a collective of numerous small coffee farming individuals. These small farmers have an average coffee cultivation area of about 1 hectare, with growing altitudes of approximately 1900-2000 meters. It belongs to the Gediyo part of Yirgacheffe and is also one of the most important regions in Yirgacheffe.

Because this region has relatively advanced green bean washing equipment, it has consistently demonstrated high-level performance in washed processing. The clean sweetness with complex notes of honey and citrus is widely praised. The local main production model involves small coffee farmers directly delivering each harvest of red cherries to nearby cooperative washing stations for unified processing. Other famous regions adjacent to Kochere include Wenago, Gelena, Abaya, and Gedeb.

Yirgacheffe Coffee Grading System

Since Ethiopia established the Commodity Exchange (ECX) in 2008, the exchange has adopted an innovative grading method. This approach comprehensively considers both the physical properties of green coffee beans and cupping flavor characteristics, combining both for scoring to ensure optimal coffee quality and taste.

ECX defines all coffees into three types according to processing method:

• Specialty: Few defects, high cupping flavor quality

• Commercial: Does not reach specialty grade but is higher than local/domestic consumption grade

• Local/Domestic: Many defects (unripe beans), off-season, and poorly stored coffee with relatively poor flavor. (Consumed internally in Ethiopia, not circulated in international markets)

Among these, Specialty and Commercial are for export to international markets. Different grading standards vary slightly for each type.

1. Commercial Grade Classification

ECX divides green coffee beans into nine grades based on the total score of physical property characteristics and cupping flavor characteristics, where physical characteristics account for 40% and cupping quality accounts for 60% (SCAA cupping standards).

2. Specialty Grade Classification

The basic requirement for this grade classification is built upon the commercial grading system. When commercial grading reaches Grades 1-3, specialized cupping evaluation is conducted. Evaluation standards should refer to SCA standard cupping basic requirements.

Yirgacheffe Coffee Bean Processing Methods

The washed processing method is a way of processing coffee beans that includes removing the skin and pulp of the coffee cherry, then placing them in fermentation tanks for 12-36 hours. During this process, the acid produced by fermentation breaks down the mucilage. After decomposition, the coffee beans are rinsed with clean water and then dried. Through this series of steps, the washed method effectively removes impurities and defective beans from the coffee, making the appearance of green beans more uniform.

Therefore, it is widely believed that coffee beans processed by the washed method are of higher quality and command relatively higher trading prices. Although the washed method is generally considered representative of high-quality coffee, this does not mean that all washed-processed coffees are necessarily of high quality. FrontStreet Coffee believes that washed-processed coffees typically have more prominent acidity, better cleanliness, medium body, and consistent green bean quality. The Yirgacheffe Kochere coffee beans on FrontStreet Coffee's shelves are processed using the traditional washed method.

Coffee Production Model in Kochere Region

The Kochere production model mainly involves local small farmers delivering their batches to cooperatives for unified processing. The local Chalalacktu village has about 100,000 people who depend on coffee for their livelihood, and related production activities have become their main source of income. Due to the revenue from coffee production, the local standard of living is much better than many Ethiopian villages, with more complete health facilities. Advanced processing equipment allows the Kochere region to consistently demonstrate high-level performance in washed processing, with clean sweetness carrying complex notes of molasses and citrus.

FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe Kochere has strong regional flavor characteristics, with clean and fresh lemon aroma and delicate, elegant jasmine fragrance, along with rich aromas and flavors of cantaloupe, citrus, and spiced tea.

FrontStreet Coffee Ethiopia Kochere Coffee Beans

Region: Yirgacheffe Kochere

Altitude: 1650m-1800m

Variety: Heirloom

Processing: Washed

Grade: G1

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Suggestions

FrontStreet Coffee's roasting philosophy is "freshly roasted good coffee," ensuring that every customer receives the freshest coffee beans when placing an order. The coffee degassing period is generally 4-7 days, so when you receive your ordered coffee beans, it's exactly when the flavors are at their best performance. However, from the perspective of understanding coffee, even if the degassing period is insufficient, you can still try it, as this allows you to know the aroma of coffee beans at different stages.

FrontStreet Coffee's brewing parameters for Yirgacheffe Kochere coffee beans:

Dripper: V60 #01

Water temperature: 90-92°C

Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15

Grind size: Medium-fine grind (80% pass-through rate on Chinese #20 standard sieve)

The brewing method uses three-stage extraction, using twice the amount of water for blooming—30g of water for 30 seconds. When the water level drops to about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to 225g and stop. (Timing starts from the beginning of blooming) Extraction time is 2 minutes and 10 seconds.

FrontStreet Coffee experiences from this coffee bean mostly lively lemon and citrus acidity, with overall smoothness and some jasmine fragrance upon entry, along with fruit-like sweet and sour sensations.

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