Is Yirgacheffe an Arabica? Yirgacheffe Coffee Flavor Profile

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FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe Variety and Flavor Description

Yirga Cheffe is a small town in eastern Ethiopia, situated at an altitude of 1800-2000 meters. In the ancient language, "Yirga" means "settle down" and "Cheffe" means "wetland." Yirgacheffe belongs to the Sidamo growing region and is highly cherished among specialty coffee enthusiasts worldwide for its unique jasmine fragrance and citrus acidity. This distinctive flavor profile has been acclaimed as the "Yirgacheffe" taste. Based on green bean defect rates, Yirgacheffe is classified from best to worst into five grades: G1 to G5. It's typically processed using the washed method, but a small amount of premium beans is intentionally processed using natural methods to enhance the delightful fruity aroma and body.

Ethiopia's Yirgacheffe coffee beans may be small in size, yet they possess a gentle elegance and delightful sweetness. As the birthplace of coffee, Ethiopia's thousand-year history of cultivation and processing traditions has produced high-quality washed Arabica beans. Light roasting reveals unique lemon, floral, and honey-like sweet aromas, with soft fruit acidity and citrus flavors, creating a fresh and bright taste profile. Without milk or sugar, the rich texture and unique soft floral notes glide across your palate, leaving an endless aftertaste.

Ethiopian Coffee Varieties

Ethiopian coffee varieties are divided into two categories: JARC varieties and regional local varieties.

JARC varieties are those developed by the Jimma Agricultural Research Center, an institution under the Ethiopian Agricultural Research System, primarily established to research pest resistance and improve yields. There are about 40 varieties within this system. Regional local varieties are wild varieties that grow in the Ethiopian wilderness. Getu indicates that these wild varieties may exceed 10,000 types. This means when consumers purchase a bag of Ethiopian coffee and see the label "Heirloom," the coffee could be a combination from among these 10,000+ varieties.

Ethiopia has nearly 2,000 recorded coffee varieties, including 1,927 native varieties and 128 introduced foreign varieties. So in terms of appearance alone, Ethiopian coffee varieties are like a "grand garden" - they have everything: long, short, thin, round...

Coffee Bean Morphology

Long-shaped beans: Found throughout Ethiopia's coffee-growing regions. Based on observed proportions, western areas like Jimma, including Limmu and Kaffa, have more long-shaped bean varieties, while they are less common in Sidamo or Yirgacheffe.

Small-bean varieties: These have a more rounded appearance with very small beans, mostly between 14-15 screen size. This variety should be the most familiar to us, as we often see them in Sidamo and Yirgacheffe. I have also seen them in a Harrar sample and in green coffee sold locally in Jimma. Compared to other regions, Sidamo, Yirgacheffe, and surrounding areas like Arsi and Guji have more plantings of these small-bean heirloom varieties.

Ethiopian Coffee Cultivation

Ethiopia's coffee cultivation is primarily concentrated in the western and southern regions, with smallholder family farms accounting for 90% of total cultivation. Nearly 1.2 million smallholder families depend on coffee cultivation for their livelihood. Each household cultivates less than 4 hectares, with an average growing altitude between 1,000-2,300 meters, planting density of 1,000-1,800 coffee trees per hectare, yielding approximately 600kg per hectare.

Coffee Profile

Country: Ethiopia

Region: Kochere, Boli Village

Processing Method: Natural

Variety: Local Heirloom

Altitude: 1,900 - 2,000 meters

Roast Level: Medium-Light

Flavor Notes: Dried peach, sweet citrus tones and orange fruits, cocoa, rich acidity, full aroma, smooth and delicate

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