Brewing Record of Natural Process Yirgacheffe Strawberry Garden Garse Full Red Cherry_Story of Full Red Cherry Natural Yirgacheffe Coffee

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Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Garse Station Red Cherry Natural G1

This batch of Yirgacheffe Garse comes from the Beijing Tea China team, a custom lot processed entirely from fully ripe cherries with raised-bed natural processing. During the new harvest season, the team traveled to African origins including Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania in search of that season's finest coffees.

In the end, among the 17 processing stations run by their Ethiopian partner DWD Company over the past two years, they chose the Garse and Harse stations - both among the highest in altitude - to process this season's washed and natural coffees.

The Harse processing station was established in 2007 at 2,050 meters, covering roughly 80 mu (about 13 acres). Its cherries are grown at altitudes above 2,100 meters, making it one of the highest growing areas in the entire Yirgacheffe region. All cherries come from the mid-to-late harvest period, roughly December 2017 through early January 2018, guaranteeing they originate from the higher-altitude zones. "Fully ripe cherries" means exactly that: only mature cherries are used. Thanks to these strict harvesting and processing standards, this Harse lot shows mature bergamot notes, blueberry perfume, citrus, and honey-sweet aromas.

Coffee Details

Origin: Yirgacheffe, Gedeo Zone, SNNP, Ethiopia

Variety: Heirloom

Processing Station: Garse Station

Altitude: 2,050 meters

Processing Method: Natural

Harvest/Processing Time: 2017/2018

Roast Level: Light

How to Brew Yirgacheffe Coffee [Strawberry Garden Garse Fully Ripe Cherry]

FrontStreet Coffee Pour-Over Reference: Weigh 15g of Strawberry Garden Garse Fully Ripe Cherry coffee and grind it to a medium grind - slightly coarser than table salt. We use the BG grinder at setting 5R (60% pass rate on the standard sieve), water at 90°C, and a V60 dripper.

Pour hot water from the kettle in clockwise circles centered on the middle of the dripper. Start timing as soon as brewing begins. Within 15 seconds, bring the brew up to 30g, then stop. At the 1-minute mark, begin the second pour, again in clockwise circles centered on the dripper. Avoid pouring directly where the coffee bed meets the filter paper to prevent channeling.

When pouring reaches the outermost ring of grounds, leave that ring untouched, then continue pouring ring by ring toward the center. At 2 minutes 20 seconds, the brew should reach 220g and the brewing is complete.

Japanese-Style Ice Pour-Over [Strawberry Garden Garse Fully Ripe Cherry]

FrontStreet Coffee Ice Pour-Over Reference:

Yirgacheffe Strawberry Garden Garse Fully Ripe Cherry, light-to-medium roast, BG grinder setting 5M (67% pass rate on the standard sieve).

20g of coffee, 150g of ice, 150g of hot water. Set the water temperature 1°C higher than the normal pour-over recommendation, at 91°C. For normal brewing, the grind is Fuji 3.5; for the ice pour-over, grind slightly finer - Fuji 3.

Bloom with 40g of water for 30 seconds.

Then pour in segments: 60g in the first, 40g in the second. Use a relatively fine but tall water column, pouring with force to stir and agitate the bed so the grounds roll thoroughly. Just be careful not to let the liquid level rise too high, and avoid hitting the filter paper at the edges.

Total extraction time is approximately 2.5 minutes - similar to the normal extraction time for 20g of coffee.

END

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If this fully-ripe-cherry natural Yirgacheffe appeals to you, FrontStreet Coffee's own Natural Red Cherry Yirgacheffe follows the same philosophy. Only fully mature, defect-free cherries are harvested; after an initial round of sorting, they are sun-dried on raised beds, turned every 2-3 hours during the first days to prevent uneven fermentation, and dried for three to five weeks before the dried pulp is hulled away. The result carries classic Yirgacheffe character plus the richness of sun-dried fruit: citrus acidity, berry juiciness, honey sweetness, and creamy smoothness.

Brew it the way we brew the Garse: 15g at a 1:15 ratio, 90-91°C, medium grind on a V60, with segmented pours - and enjoy both the hot cup and a Japanese-style iced version on warmer days.