Flavor Differences Between Yirgacheffe and Guji 8.0 Coffee Beans: How to Perfect Pour-Over Brewing for Washed vs Natural Process Beans

When it comes to fresh, pleasant, and flavor-forward single-origin coffee, everyone immediately thinks of Ethiopian coffee beans. The bright lemon-like acidity of washed Yirgacheffe coffee beans and the juicy, full-bodied natural processed Guji coffee beans are simply the YYDS (eternal god-tier) in the hearts of medium-light roast lovers! Both from Ethiopia, why do these two coffee beans exhibit similar sweet and sour flavor profiles? Let's follow FrontStreet Coffee on a "tour" of Ethiopia's two famous growing regions—Yirgacheffe and Sidamo coffee regions.

Sidamo Coffee Region

The Sidamo region is located in southern Ethiopia, extending east to the Arsi and Bale administrative regions and west to the Gamogofa administrative area. Coffee trees in Sidamo are typically cultivated at altitudes between 1,400-2,000 meters. Agriculture dominates the local economy, with main coffee growing areas located around the Great Rift Valley.

As the Sidamo region has developed rapidly in recent years, it has gradually become an important coffee export hub in Ethiopia. Sidamo coffee flavors are incredibly diverse, with different soil types, microclimates, and countless native varieties creating varying flavor differences and characteristics in the coffee beans produced by each town. Because Sidamo region coffee beans have rich floral and fruity aromas, most coffee cherries from this region are processed using the natural method to better express their rich floral, fruity sweetness and full-bodied juicy sensations.

Why Does Natural Processing Give Coffee Rich Fruit Flavors?

Natural processing, also known as Dry Process or Sun Dried in English, simply means exposing whole coffee cherries directly to open sunlight. Compared to other processing methods, natural processing is much simpler in operation. As long as you have good weather—plenty of sunshine—whether using African drying racks or clean cement courtyards, you can spread the cherries out to receive the sun's blessing.

Because natural processing involves drying whole coffee cherries, the moisture content is much higher than fully pulped washed beans, so the drying time needs to be longer—typically twice as long as washed processing. For example, in sun-abundant Ethiopia, it takes at least 3 weeks to completely dry for storage. In Central and South America, some well-equipped estates build specialized wooden drying racks or shaded drying patios to slow down the fruit drying process, bringing different degrees of fermentation. This slow natural drying usually takes 4-5 weeks.

Through natural drying, coffee cherries reduce their moisture content to 11-13%, after which the fruit skin, pulp, and mucilage layers are removed. During the drying process, coffee beans absorb sugars from the coffee pulp and mucilage layers. Over a month-long drying period, coffee beans have sufficient time to absorb these sugars, forming juice-like sweet and sour flavors. Simultaneously, during sun exposure, the pulp undergoes light fermentation, and these fermented flavors absorbed by the coffee beans can make brewed coffee exhibit a full, smooth sensation. FrontStreet Coffee believes the greatest flavor characteristic of natural processing is rich fruity aroma and light fermentation sensation, with noticeable sweetness and smooth mouthfeel.

Guji coffee beans come from the Hambella region of Sidamo and are processed using the region's most common natural method. Unlike other Sidamo coffee beans, only natural processed coffee beans from the Sidamo Hambella Buku processing station can be called "Guji coffee." Because coffee is an agricultural product, its flavor varies slightly each year with climate and soil changes. To distinguish from the 2017 champion Guji coffee beans, later Guji batches are designated with X.0. For example, 2021 coffee beans were named "Guji 5.0," and the latest 2024 batch is naturally called "Guji 8.0."

FrontStreet Coffee: Sidamo · Guji 8.0 Coffee Beans
Country: Ethiopia
Region: Sidamo · Guji Zone
Altitude: 2,250-2,350 meters
Variety: Local native varieties
Processing: Natural processed
Flavor: Floral, jackfruit, dried fruit, apricot, juicy sensation

The new harvest Guji 8.0 shows a more intense fruit character in dry aroma than 7.0, with dense aromas of guava, jackfruit, apricot, dried fruit, citrus, and pink floral notes. When hot water is added, you can smell sweet aromas of honey, berries, and chocolate.

Through cupping, FrontStreet Coffee first detects multiple fruit sweet and sour interplays in this 8.0—dried mango, jackfruit, orange, passion fruit—clear juicy sensation, round mouthfeel. As the temperature slightly drops, the sweet freshness of peach and bright acidity of berries begin to emerge. After swallowing, you can experience a sweet aftertaste like drinking black tea, with incredibly rich layers.

Yirgacheffe Coffee Region

The Yirgacheffe region, located in Ethiopia, was originally a sub-region under Sidamo, with bright and delicate coffee flavors that formed a distinctive style within the Sidamo region. Due to its high recognizability, farmers competed to use the "Yirgacheffe flavor" label as a badge of honor for their coffee beans, so it became independent from Sidamo to become today's most renowned Yirgacheffe region. According to FrontStreet Coffee's understanding, the reason Yirgacheffe coffee beans can possess such a distinctive style is largely due to washed processing, in addition to natural terroir conditions.

Local altitudes in Ethiopia are generally high with abundant sunshine, making it very suitable for directly drying coffee cherries in the sun. Initially, Yirgacheffe was also a place focused on producing natural processed coffee. Traditional natural processing was simply spreading on the ground to dry—no sorting, no flotation—so coffee bean quality was mostly inconsistent. Until the 1970s, Yirgacheffe town established Sidamo state's first washing station, and local areas gradually began adopting more washed processing methods.

As more farmer cooperatives were established, people began wanting to build washing processing plants to improve green bean quality for export, thereby increasing everyone's income while serving multiple communities. Unlike natural processing, washing stations first need to solve water resource issues, followed by investing in depulping machines, and then sufficient labor. Therefore, from a production perspective, places with people, water, and roads are optimal locations for establishing washing stations, and Yirgacheffe is precisely such a treasure land.

Yirgacheffe town, located in the Gedeo zone, happens to be downstream of large lakes with abundant springs and river channels flowing through, providing plentiful freshwater resources for washing stations. FrontStreet Coffee also noted that in ancient Ethiopian language, the English "Yirgacheffe" consists of two words: Yərga (ይርጋ) meaning calm, settled down, and Č̣äffe (ጨፌ) meaning swamp-like wetlands, so Yirgacheffe has the meaning "let us settle and thrive in this wetland."

Why Does Washed Processing Make Coffee Flavors Bright and Upward?

First, harvested coffee cherries undergo flotation to remove insufficiently dense fruits. Next, machines remove the skin and pulp, then they are placed in water tanks for either dry or wet fermentation to decompose the mucilage layer. After fermentation is complete, coffee beans are washed with clean water to remove mucilage, and finally the mucilage-free coffee beans are sun-dried to reduce moisture content to between 11-13%.

Every step of washed processing removes impurities and defective particles, so the green bean quality is more uniform, and the final trading price is higher than naturally dried coffee. Washed processing not only significantly reduces coffee defect rates but also earned Yirgacheffe its fresh citrus character and elegant white floral aromas, with overall bright, delicate, and clean flavors. FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe daily drinking beans use washed processing, carrying classic Yirgacheffe flavor notes, suitable for pour-over, cold brew, French press, and other brewing methods.

So are all coffee beans from the Yirgacheffe region only washed processed? Not necessarily. Although washed processed Yirgacheffe impressed people, some cooperatives have preserved the traditional natural processing method. For example, the natural processed Red Cherry coffee beans and Konga coffee beans on FrontStreet Coffee's shelves are both famous natural processed batches from Yirgacheffe.

Brewing Yirgacheffe & Sidamo Region Coffee Beans—Do You Need to Adjust Techniques and Parameters?

FrontStreet Coffee uses medium-light roasting for both regions' coffee beans to preserve their rich acidity. However, the two beans exhibit different acidity and fruit flavor characteristics. Washed processed Yirgacheffe shows bright lemon acidity, while natural processed Sidamo shows soft berry acidity, so we can adjust water temperature and pouring techniques during brewing.

The brewing ratio maintains a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio with medium-fine grind (Chinese standard #20 sieve 78% pass rate). Too coarse and you cannot extract full-bodied substances, making the coffee seem thin. Too fine and it's easy to over-extract at high water temperatures, making the coffee prone to bitterness.

FrontStreet Coffee also recommends using freshly roasted coffee beans for brewing to maximize the experience of coffee's rich flavors. Coffee beans shipped from FrontStreet Coffee are roasted within 5 days because FrontStreet Coffee deeply understands that coffee bean freshness greatly impacts flavor. FrontStreet Coffee's roasting philosophy is "freshly roasted good coffee," ensuring every customer receives the freshest coffee when they place an order. Coffee's resting period is about 4-7 days, so when customers receive it, it's at peak flavor.

For washed processed Yirgacheffe coffee, FrontStreet Coffee selected coffee beans produced by the Gedio Cooperative. The Gedio Cooperative was formerly affiliated with the Worka Cooperative. Because the coffee quality produced by this cooperative was exceptional, it was discovered by coffee hunters and became an independent coffee production cooperative, demonstrating the exceptional quality of Gedio's washed Yirgacheffe coffee.

Washed Yirgacheffe (Gedio) Brewing Adjustments:

For bright, upward acidity with tea-like aftertaste, brew at 90°C-91°C; for full acidity with enhanced body, brew at 92°C-93°C. FrontStreet Coffee noticed during cupping washed Yirgacheffe coffee beans that they exhibit different light flavors (white floral, green tea, etc.) at different temperatures, so the brewing method uses three-stage extraction to allow different flavor compounds to better express themselves during the gradual temperature increase of the coffee bed.

When it comes to natural processed Sidamo coffee, FrontStreet Coffee believes the most representative is undoubtedly Guji coffee beans. Many fans know that Guji coffee actually refers to a natural processed coffee bean from Ethiopia's Hambella region, with the full English name "Ethiopia Guji Hambella Buku Abel." Broadly speaking, it's a champion bean from Ethiopia's Guji region; more specifically, it's a natural processed batch produced by the smaller Hambella Buku Abel processing station. The prestigious artistic name "Guji" means "leader of a hundred flowers." Famous reputation, excellent quality, rich and juicy fruit flavors, affordable price, and extremely high extraction compatibility (easy to brew)—the combination of these advantages not only makes Guji stand out among Ethiopian coffees but also makes it the first choice for many friends trying single-origin coffee for the first time.

Natural Processed Sidamo Brewing Adjustments:

To highlight the sweetness and full juicy sensation of natural processed Sidamo, FrontStreet Coffee uses 91°C-92°C for brewing to enhance overall body. FrontStreet Coffee noticed during cupping natural processed Sidamo coffee beans that the overall mouthfeel is full, with clear juicy sensation and sweetness, so the brewing method uses center-pour extraction to allow the coffee bed to stably and fully extract sweet and sour flavor compounds at the same temperature.

Three-Stage Pouring:

Ground Guji 8.0 coffee powder has a honey and cream strawberry-like sweetness. Pour the coffee powder into a V60 dripper, wet the coffee bed with twice the powder's weight of water, and bloom for 30 seconds. Then use a small water stream to pour in circles from inside to out to 125g,分段, wait for the coffee bed to drop to half the dripper's height, continue with the same fine stream to inject the third stage to 225g, until all coffee liquid filters through and remove the dripper, taking about 2 minutes (10-second margin).

Important Notice :

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