Flavor Characteristics of Yirgacheffe Coffee. What is the Sherba Coffee Cooperative?

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Ethiopia: The Birthplace of Coffee

Ethiopia is the country where coffee was first discovered. Today, many wild coffee plants can still be found in the primary forests, where farmers continue to harvest them. Ethiopia is a country plagued by poverty, drought, and constant civil war, yet it remains one of the most important coffee-producing countries in terms of both quality and output.

Ethiopian Coffee Processing Methods

Ethiopian coffee can be divided into two main processing methods: 1. Natural washed processing method 2. Natural sun-dried processing method. Today, in every coffee-producing region, cooperative, and even small coffee farms in Ethiopia, both of these processing methods are simultaneously employed. For example, in the well-known Yirgacheffe region or the Sidamo province.

Flavor Profiles: Washed vs. Natural

Coffee beans processed using the washed method have mild, deep aromas, soft and understated lemon acidity, with high flavor consistency and appealing mouthfeel. In contrast, coffee beans processed using the natural method exhibit intense, prominent aromas, less obvious lemon acidity, and complex, varied flavors.

The Rapid Development of Ethiopian Coffee

Ethiopia is currently the fastest-developing country in coffee production and advancement. Different regions not only create variations in coffee through processing methods, but the same processing method can also produce different aromas and mouthfeels due to different processing techniques, often creating surprising impressions. For example, FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe natural beans and FrontStreet Coffee's Sidamo natural beans differ in aroma. FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe natural beans have a higher moisture content, consist mostly of small beans, have relatively low and stable aromas, and a richer mouthfeel. FrontStreet Coffee's Sidamo natural beans have an intense, overflowing strawberry aroma that leaves a deep impression, but a thinner mouthfeel.

Emerging Coffee Regions and Brand Building

In recent years, many emerging small regions or cooperatives in Ethiopia have been marketing their coffee under their own cooperative names. This shows confidence in their produced coffee and their desire to establish brand reputation and loyalty in the coffee market. Coffee farmers insist on harvesting mature coffee beans and meticulously handle every process step. Whether using natural washed or natural sun-dried methods, they produce unexpectedly fragrant aromas and excellent mouthfeel. I believe this is why Ethiopian coffee is anticipated by coffee enthusiasts every year.

Chelba Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union

The Chelba Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union's coffee beans show little variation in size, achieving the perfect flavor consistency that washed beans are known for.

The Chelba Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union, like the previous Yirgacheffe Coffee Cooperative, is located in the Yirgacheffe region of southern Ethiopia. It is composed of 490 coffee farmers and is a partner of the Rainforest Alliance in Ethiopia. Through direct cooperation with the Rainforest Alliance, they obtain better prices to help local communities, establish schools to assist impoverished families, and consumers can also help poor coffee farmers through purchasing this type of coffee.

The Chelba Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union produces Rainforest Alliance certified coffee beans. The raw beans are deep green with some defective beans showing a long rice shape, similar to the previous Yirgacheffe cooperative's coffee beans.

The Chelba Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union's coffee beans grow in primary forests at 5,700 feet altitude. High-altitude coffee beans mature with difficulty each year, with September and February being the coffee harvest periods. They are native Arabica coffee beans. The 2009 new season Chelba Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union beans are Rainforest Alliance (R.A) certified, using the natural washed processing method with a G2 grade. The bean shape is long and rice-shaped, different from the previous batch of Wangdao coffee beans which were small-grained. Similar to the Yirgacheffe from the YCFCU Coffee Cooperative, they follow the floral aroma school, distinct from the multiple processed fruit fermentation aromas of sun-dried Ethiopian coffees. The citrus acidity is delicate, jasmine aroma is prominent, and good jasmine fragrance is the most important way to identify Yirgacheffe.

The Chelba Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union produces Rainforest Alliance certified coffee beans, with the Rainforest Alliance logo pattern (green frog) on the bean bags.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473