Introduction to Flavor Characteristics of Geji Habela Coffee from Ethiopia's Producing Region

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Due to translation issues, since the rise of Floral Queen coffee beans, many coffee enthusiasts have confused Floral Queen coffee with Geisha coffee.

Simply put, "Floral Queen" (花魁) is merely a name given in China to sun-dried native varieties from the Buku Albe processing plant in the Hambella region of Sidamo, Ethiopia. This coffee bean cannot be found internationally because when exported, the sacks were marked with "Hambella" as the region of origin.

The reason many people confuse Floral Queen and Geisha coffee is because Geisha coffee has another Chinese translation—"艺伎咖啡" (Geisha Coffee). This translation arose because Geisha's original name "Geisha" has the same pronunciation as "geisha" in Japanese, so it was translated as "艺伎咖啡" in the Taiwan region of China. Meanwhile, "瑰夏" (Guìxià) was named by Mr. Yuan, the former head of Camerun Green Bean Company's mainland China operations.

Geisha represents an independent variety within Arabica coffee, not limited to specific regions or origins—it is the name of a coffee plant variety. Floral Queen coffee, on the other hand, corresponds to Ethiopian native varieties, which are natural mixed varieties.

What is the Geisha Variety?

The origin of Geisha is also in Ethiopia. In 1929, Britain sent a colonel to collect coffee samples from an area called Gesha on old maps in the Bendi Maki region of Ethiopia. He also purchased other coffee varieties at local markets. However, at that time, there was no concept of distinguishing coffee varieties, so in 1931, the colonel mixed all collected and purchased coffee samples and sent them to British plantations in Kenya.

In 1935, after completing his mission, the colonel mistakenly wrote "Geisha" in a letter to the British minister, a spelling that has been widely cited to this day. What we now know as the Geisha variety (grown in Latin America), with its captivating floral and fruit aromas, is one of the varieties continuously cultivated and domesticated over generations, numbered as Geisha T2722.

In Ethiopia, the area where the original Gesha samples were collected still has many native coffee varieties that have a certain (albeit very slight) blood relationship with Geisha T2722, but their flavors are completely different. Native Geisha exhibits flavors of berries, nuts, and spices.

To distinguish between domesticated and native Geisha varieties, the Ethiopian region officially uses the term "Gesha" for local native Geisha.

What are Ethiopian Heirloom Varieties?

While native Geisha varieties (Gesha) need to be specified as coming from Bendi Maki, Ethiopian Heirloom varieties represent coffee from the entire Ethiopia region that is undifferentiated, mixed-planted, and mixed-harvested.

Most Ethiopian varieties are named this way primarily because Ethiopia has too many varieties—it's like a natural gene bank for Arabica. On one hand, there are numerous varieties, making identification and classification difficult; on the other hand, the Ethiopian government, out of conservation considerations, is unwilling to disclose information about these varieties. Therefore, they are collectively called Ethiopian Heirloom, implying "family treasure."

Because of the numerous varieties that are mixed-planted and mixed-harvested, FrontStreet Coffee has noticed that Ethiopian Heirloom variety beans vary in size. Most beans of this variety exhibit floral and fruity aromas along with citrus acidity characteristics.

Why is Floral Queen Coffee Called "Floral Queen"?

This coffee bean was originally the 2017 TOH (Taste of Harvest) natural process champion, originally named Ethiopian Hambella Natural Process Coffee Bean. In the same year, after the champion batch of green beans was introduced by a Beijing green bean trader, it was named "Floral Queen" (花魁), implying "the leader of all flowers" and enchanting beauty.

Chinese coffee enthusiasts truly became acquainted with Floral Queen coffee beans in 2017 when Li Jianfei, the runner-up in the China region of the World Brewers Cup, used this batch of Floral Queen coffee beans to defeat numerous contestants' Geisha coffee beans. In an era when Geisha coffee beans dominated major competitions, a natural process coffee bean from Ethiopia managed to defeat so many Geisha coffee beans. Naturally, everyone began to view this unassuming coffee bean with new respect. It was from this moment that people started hearing the term "Floral Queen."

Can All Coffee Beans from Sidamo Hambella Region Be Called "Floral Queen"?

After winning the championship in 2017, DW company increased the number of processing plants in the Dimtu core area of Hambella, including "Buku Abel," "Buku Saysay," "Haro Soresa," and "Tirtiro Goye," with an annual coffee production of about 1,100 tons. In terms of growing region and processing plants, among all these estates and processing stations, only those from the "Buku Abel" processing plant's processing area cover the small origin that originally produced the natural process coffee bean "Floral Queen." Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee believes that only natural process Ethiopian Heirloom varieties from the Hambella Buku processing plant can be called Floral Queen coffee.

Why Do Floral Queen Coffee Beans Have an X.0 Number?

Coffee, as an agricultural product, has flavor characteristics that change each year due to variations in weather, soil, and rainfall. To distinguish the champion Floral Queen from 2017, each subsequent year's batch is given an X.0 number. For example, 2018's is called Floral Queen 2.0 coffee beans... and 2022's is called Floral Queen 6.0 coffee beans.

Are Floral Queen Small Beans Part of the Floral Queen Coffee Beans?

Yes. Through cupping, FrontStreet Coffee found that the flavor and aroma of small-bean Floral Queen coffee beans are very similar to the 2017 champion Floral Queen coffee beans. Initially, FrontStreet Coffee tasted flavors similar to the 2017 Floral Queen in the 2018 and 2019 batches of Floral Queen, but the body and aftertaste were not as rich as the 2017 Floral Queen.

By comparing different batches of Floral Queen, we realized that the main source of the 2017 Floral Queen's aroma was some particularly small-bean varieties among the Floral Queen coffee beans. Similar small coffee beans also appeared in the 2018 and 2019 batches of Floral Queen—sometimes several bags of similar small beans would appear among ten bags. In 2019, we confirmed this information and informed the green bean supplier. Starting from 2020, Floral Queen was split into two types: 4.0 and Small Bean Floral Queen. Therefore, Small Bean Floral Queen does not belong to the [X.0] series, but it is still Floral Queen coffee beans.

Currently, everyone can purchase authentic Floral Queen coffee beans at FrontStreet Coffee physical stores and Taobao store. To help everyone better experience the rich floral and fruity aromas of Floral Queen coffee and the charm of freshly roasted coffee beans, coffee beans ordered online are guaranteed to be shipped within 5 days after roasting.

How to Roast Floral Queen Coffee Beans?

FrontStreet Coffee noticed that Floral Queen coffee's green beans have a fermented wine aroma of coffee flowers, completely different from the grassy aroma of typical green beans. Moreover, Floral Queen green beans vary in size, with many pointed ends (Ethiopian Heirloom), have good moisture content around 11%, but are not the very hard SHB beans. Due to the high density and hardness of the beans, the dehydration time is extended in the early stage, with temperature increase before first crack to minimize the loss of small molecular aromatic substances like floral aromas.

Therefore, the following roasting approach is specified: Yangjia 800N, roasting amount 550g, bean-in temperature: 190°C, yellowing point: 151°C at 5 minutes 51 seconds, out at 193°C, first crack development 1 minute 30 seconds. The first crack point is at 9'50, and the development time after first crack is recommended not to exceed 1 minute 30 seconds, nor less than 1 minute. (It's recommended to open the air damper and reduce heat to control the speed). When smelling with the sampling spoon, you should be able to detect strawberry jam aroma around 193°C, at which point you can discharge the beans. It's best to control the overall time within 11 minutes.

How to Brew Delicious Floral Queen Coffee?

FrontStreet Coffee stores use pour-over methods for extraction. Using a V60 dripper, coffee is ground to medium-fine consistency (fine sugar size/80% passing through China #20 standard sieve), water temperature 90°C, powder-to-water ratio 1:15, with three-stage pouring.

Start the timer, first pour 30g for blooming, blooming time 30 seconds, second pour to 125g, with 10-second interval, then pour the remaining water to 225g. The overall extraction time is about 2 minutes. Wait until all poured water passes through the coffee bed before removing the dripper. Remember to shake well before tasting!

Floral Queen coffee brewing flavor characteristics: berry/tropical fruit aromas & sweet and sour juice sensation, with oolong tea-like sweet aftertaste.

Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473