Ethiopia Red Cherry Project | Shilcho Cooperative | G1 Washed Local Heirloom

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Ethiopia Red Cherry Project | Shilcho Cooperative | Flavor of G1 Washed Local Heirloom Varieties?

Ethiopia is the first country where coffee was discovered, and it remains one of the most important and finest producers in terms of coffee quality and quantity. Most coffee is traditionally Arabica varieties, with an annual output of about 350,000 tons, with over 70% exported to countries worldwide. Approximately 15 million people nationwide are engaged in coffee-related industries, and over 90% of farms or cooperatives are small-scale plantations.

After 2008, Ethiopia's agricultural products, including wheat, corn, sesame, and coffee, were comprehensively integrated into the ECX trading system (Ethiopian Commodity Exchange) to replace existing auction and export methods. The practice involves coffee farmers or cooperatives delivering coffee to centralized ECX warehouses. Coffee beans of the same grade and from the same producing area are mixed together and then directly auctioned. You won't know which specific farms or cooperatives or which producing areas produced the coffee. This approach actually doesn't affect production and quality, making it easier to distinguish coffee quality by price [you get what you pay for]. What's affected is that intermediate traders cannot freely track and obtain satisfactory profits [low price, high quality], making it clearer and more transparent for consumers. Because coffee not traded through the ECX system would be heavily taxed, currently over 90% is traded through this system.

However, for buyers who love specialty coffee, the ECX trading system is not a good thing. For this reason, starting from 2010, Ethiopia launched the DST (Direct Specialty Trade) system. The DST system holds periodic Ethiopian auctions where only specialty coffee scoring above 80 points according to SCAA cupping standards can be traded with foreign green bean suppliers under the name of their own farm or cooperative.

Washed Coffee Processing in Ethiopia

In Ethiopia, washed coffees are distinguished by adding "1" and "2" after their names (with "1" being of higher quality). After coffee cherries are harvested, the pulp is immediately removed, and the coffee beans are placed in water to ferment to remove the mucilage layer. This process takes several hours, with the duration depending on coffee variety, producing area, and temperature. This process must be closely controlled, as any slight error can result in poor flavor development in the coffee beans.

After fermentation is complete, the coffee beans are washed clean through a long water channel with height differences. During this process, defective beans and foreign objects are also removed. Afterwards, the coffee beans are dried on drying beds, where they still need close attention - turned every few hours to ensure complete drying. This is the entire process for washed coffee.

Operation Cherry Red (ORC)

Operation Cherry Red (ORC) is a project aimed at improving the quality of small-scale farms, primarily to encourage coffee farmers and bring surprises to roasters. Trabocca, the largest coffee bean supplier in the Netherlands, invites all Ethiopian farms to produce small batches of about 1,500-3,000 kg (25-50 bags) of coffee before the harvest season. Women can only select fully 100% mature red cherries, which makes a significant difference in the flavor of the brewed coffee. Therefore, careful, keen-eyed, and hardworking Ethiopian women are important drivers of the Red Cherry Project.

Operation Cherry Red is also a complementary approach that encourages farms to invest more effort in the selection and sorting process. These coffees are also relatively higher in price. The Red Cherry Project includes washed, natural, semi-washed, semi-natural, and experimental coffees. The main producing areas include Yirgacheffe, Sidamo, Bench Maji, Guji, Kembata, Illubabor, Harar, Limu, and the Golocha producing area (near Harar) added in 2011. These all have unique flavors that can fully showcase the characteristics of Ethiopian coffee beans.

After receiving the coffee, Trabocca conducts further selection. Farms that pass the cupping quality tests conducted by both Ethiopian and Dutch offices and meet the standards receive high bonuses. The passing cupping score must be above 88 points to become good coffee in the Red Cherry Project. The promoter of the Red Cherry Project, Trabocca, has invested all the profits earned in recent years back into the cooperative farms. Trabocca emphasizes that this is a non-profit project, so the company only uses 4 people, including the owner and secretary, to execute the Red Cherry Project. Other administrative-related matters are supported by the parent company to reduce administrative expenses, with all profits returned to the cooperative farms.

Yirgacheffe Region

Yirgacheffe means "let's settle in this wetland" in the local language. It is located in the highlands of northwestern Sidamo province. Because of its special representative farms that are numerous and highly representative, the Shilcho Cooperative is jointly composed of three local African indigenous peoples. The traditional natural coffee process requires more control and coordination with the warmth of the sun to achieve good beans throughout the year. However, past cupping scores cannot be used as a reference for this year's purchases. Small regional climate condition changes determine the quality of this year's harvest. Because the coffee beans are traditionally wild and picked by women in the forest, this is the true way to get good coffee. If you want to skip this process, you won't get good coffee.

Property Characteristics: Farm Features

• Name: Adem Shilcho Cooperative
• Region: Sidamo region, near the town of Dilla
• Country: Ethiopia
• Grade: G1
• Altitude: 1,800-2,200+ meters
• Harvest Period: October to January each year
• Certification: No certification, all coffee is non-toxic organically grown
• Soil Type: pH 5.2-6.2 red brown laterite

Coffee Characteristics

• Variety: Heirloom cultivars - traditional Yirgacheffe local heirloom varieties
• Processing System: Washed
• Appearance: Longberry, 16-18 screen
• Top Jury Descriptions: Cupping roast level is 60 seconds after first crack begins (Cinnamon roast)
• Aroma/Flavor: Narcissus lily, chamomile, almond jam, licorice, black tea, guava, vanilla, brown sugar, honey
• Acidity: Floral and herbal acidity, preserved plum, jujube fruit acidity, deep plum
• Complexity and Other: Chamomile aroma, sweetness of kumquat preserves, smooth mouthfeel without thickness, bright mint coolness rising to the nasal cavity
• Overall Style Attributes: Light-bodied, clean, honey-sweet

FrontStreet Coffee Recommends Brewing:

• Dripper: Hario V60
• Water Temperature: 90°C
• Grind Size: Fuji Royal grinder setting 3.5
• Brewing Method: Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, 15g coffee grounds. First pour 25g water, bloom for 25s. Second pour to 120g water, then pause. Wait until the water level in the coffee bed drops to half, then continue pouring slowly until reaching 225g total water. Extraction time around 2:00.
• Analysis: Using a three-stage brewing method to clearly define the front, middle, and back end flavors of the coffee. Because the V60 has many ribs and drains faster, pausing during pouring can help extend the extraction time.

Important Notice :

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