Sidamo Coffee Region Introduction & Flavor Profile Analysis

As one of Africa's most prominent coffee-producing regions, Ethiopia is home to numerous specialty coffee representatives, among which Sidamo coffee has captivated the taste buds of coffee enthusiasts worldwide for years with its rich floral aromas and fruit notes, becoming a must-try region for coffee connoisseurs.

For a long time in the past, coffee lovers from around the world were accustomed to calling coffee from this region Sidamo. Today, however, many in the coffee community have begun using Sidama as the name. Why is this?

Historically, Sidamo was the old provincial name of Ethiopia before the administrative reorganization in 1995. The Sidama people had settled in southern Ethiopia as early as the ninth century AD, with their own culture, religion, and language. At the end of the nineteenth century, due to the invasion by Ethiopian Emperor Menelik II, the Sidama were defeated and incorporated into the Ethiopian Empire. The name "Sidamo" was given to the Sidama people by the Ethiopian Empire's rulers, thus carrying somewhat derogatory connotations.

After 1995, Ethiopia adopted a federal system of governance while showing respect for the cultures of various ethnic groups within its borders. The local government also reorganized according to the residential areas and languages of major ethnic groups. Consequently, Sidama was incorporated into the new Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region (SNNPR), and the area was officially renamed to its historical name: Sidama.

However, it's important to note that before the administrative reorganization, Sidamo Coffee had already gained worldwide fame for its unique aroma. Therefore, compared to "Sidama," people were more accustomed to calling it Sidamo. Additionally, when the Ethiopian government protected coffee from this region through trademark registration, it chose the old name Sidamo® as the registered trademark for Sidama coffee. Until now, domestic consumers have always been accustomed to calling coffee from this region "Sidamo."

In the coffee region maps drawn by the well-known specialty coffee bean merchant Trabocca, the so-called Sidamo coffee region is not entirely within today's Sidama region but belongs to the Oromia Region and the SNNPR Region. In other words, what people refer to as Sidamo coffee actually refers to a coffee with "Sidamo-style flavor characteristics." From a traditional definition perspective, Sidamo coffee features bright citrus acidity, smooth texture, and a fuller body compared to Yirgacheffe coffee.

Coffee Production and Processing

Similar to other Ethiopian coffee regions, Sidamo coffee is primarily cultivated by small-scale farmers. Small-farmer coffee production yields are relatively low, and the region has various coffee cooperatives and processing stations responsible for handling green coffee beans from the area. During the coffee cherry ripening season, surrounding farmers deliver their harvested coffee cherries to nearby processing stations (cooperatives) built near water sources for unified processing, and finally sell them under the processing station's name. Today, with the development of specialty coffee, many producers also directly purchase from farmers, strengthening management and traceability of coffee micro-lots, thereby further improving coffee quality and yielding more finely processed micro-lots.

Horse Queen Coffee (花魁咖啡)

In China, whenever Sidamo coffee is mentioned, most people first think of the increasingly famous Horse Queen Coffee in recent years, as well as several Sidamo sun-dried coffees with suffixes from the same series.

In 2017, Ethiopia's DW company won the TOH (Ethiopia National Taste of Harvest competition) championship with a sun-dried lot from the "Buku Abel" processing station, which impressed judges with its rich strawberry and cream aromas. In the same year, at the World Brewers Cup China competition, Li Jianfei from Beijing CREMA Coffee Training used "Horse Queen" coffee to defeat competing Geisha coffee, winning the national runner-up title in the brewing competition. Since then, Horse Queen Coffee from Sidamo has frequently appeared on everyone's coffee menus.

Brewing competition runner-up Li Jianfei revealed in an interview that he believed this Ethiopian coffee's outstanding performance could compete with Panama's "Geisha" (瑰夏) in the same arena, vying for attention. At the same time, he hoped this Ethiopian coffee could become the top-tier "Geisha," thus naming it "Horse Queen" (花魁). "Hundred flowers competing for supremacy, graceful and enchanting" - this is the origin of our coffee bean's name. The English version of Horse Queen Coffee is its production area, namely Hambella.

Sidamo Region Characteristics

As one of Ethiopia's main specialty coffee-producing regions, Sidamo is located in southern Ethiopia, spanning the highlands south of Lake Awasa in the East African Rift Valley. With elevations between 1500-2200m, significant day-night temperature differences extend the time needed for coffee beans to mature, allowing them to absorb more nutrients, resulting in coffee fruits with rich sweet and sour layers. Moreover, the diverse terrain and varied soil types, along with multiple microclimates, contribute to the highly diverse flavor profiles of Sidamo coffee.

Hambella is a sub-region of the Guji zone, currently with approximately 20 processing stations of various sizes. Horse Queen coffee beans come from the Buku processing station in Guji. The Guji zone was originally under the management of the Sidamo region, but due to its relatively remote location and backward development, the rise and fame of Guji coffee came relatively late. Initially, its reputation was not as prominent as regions like Yirgacheffe and Harar, but later it was independently separated into a new region due to the high quality of its coffee beans.

This area features fertile black soil with an average elevation above 1800 meters, and unique geographical characteristics have created terroir conditions highly favorable for coffee tree growth. The Buku processing station is located in the Buku Abel village at an altitude of 2200 meters. In addition to favorable natural terroir conditions, local farmers also take meticulous care of each coffee tree. They plant shade trees beside the coffee trees, allowing Horse Queen coffee to receive sufficient sunlight without consuming excessive nutrients, preserving more essential nutrients in the coffee fruits.

During the annual coffee harvest season (December-January), the Buku processing station organizes farmers to pick fully red coffee cherries with sugar content values above 30. The selected coffee fruits are placed on African drying beds for sun-drying. Due to the large day-night temperature differences, coffee farmers use shading methods at noon to avoid excessive fermentation from high temperatures, while at night, they wrap the coffee in plastic to prevent sudden rain showers. The coffee is turned continuously throughout the day while ensuring the fruits don't pile up too thick, allowing for uniform drying while preventing sunburn or unpleasant fermentation flavors. After approximately 18 days of sun-drying, until the moisture content of green coffee beans reaches only 13%, machines can be used to remove the outer shells and package the beans.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

FrontStreet Coffee: Ethiopia Horse Queen 7.0

Region: Sidamo, Guji Zone

Processing Station: Buku Abel Processing Station

Altitude: 2250-2350m

Variety: Local Heirloom

Processing Method: Natural Process

Flavor Notes: Strawberry, Passion Fruit, Berries, Citrus

Lightly roasted coffee beans have a harder texture, and FrontStreet Coffee uses high-temperature water at 92℃-93℃ to stimulate the floral and fruity aromas in the coffee. FrontStreet Coffee recommends a medium-fine grind size (Chinese standard 20-mesh sieve with 78% pass rate). Too coarse a grind cannot extract the full-bodied substances, resulting in thin coffee. Too fine a grind can easily lead to over-extraction at high water temperatures, resulting in bitter coffee. Regarding brewing ratio, FrontStreet Coffee believes 1:15 to 1:16 are both acceptable. If you want a richer taste, use 1:15; if you want to more clearly perceive the floral sweetness, use 1:16 to allow the flavors to disperse more.

Pour-over Brewing Recommendations for Sidamo Horse Queen Coffee Beans

Dripper: V60

Water Temperature: 92-93℃

Coffee Amount: 15g

Coffee-to-Water Ratio: 1:15

Grind Size: Fine sugar size (20-mesh standard sieve with 78% pass rate)

Pouring Technique: Three-stage pour

Three-stage pouring: Use twice the amount of water as the coffee grounds to moisten the coffee bed, forming a dome and let it bloom for 30 seconds. Then use a small water stream to pour in circles from inside out to 125g, wait until the coffee bed drops to half the dripper's height, and continue with the same fine water stream to pour the third stage to 225g. Remove the dripper once all coffee liquid has filtered through, taking approximately 2 minutes.

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Important Notice :

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