Is Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Good? Is Yirgacheffe Bitter? A Gentle Land You'll Never Want to Leave

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Ethiopian Yirgacheffe

Ethiopia - the recognized birthplace of coffee. The native Arabica coffee species were first discovered in southern Sudan (according to records), but it wasn't until they spread to Ethiopia that they gradually flourished.

With the development of the times, the Ethiopian government, in order to strengthen the promotion of the uniqueness of domestic coffee, patented three regional names in 2004: Yirgacheffe is one of them. Yirgacheffe, a beautiful mountain creek village, located on the eastern edge of the East African Rift Valley, has been a wetland since ancient times, with abundant water resources, birdsong and flowers year-round. The mist is pervasive, the four seasons are like spring, summer brings gentle breezes, cool without heat, rainy but not humid, and winter brings no cold damage.

As early as the 17th century, most Ethiopian coffee was harvested from wild coffee trees. It wasn't until the early 19th century, with increased export volume, that garden coffee and large-scale farm coffee appeared alongside forest coffee. Initially cultivated by monks, it later became the responsibility of farmers or cooperatives.

Traditionally, Yirgacheffe used the oldest natural processing method, but due to weather factors, occasional rain would affect the drying process. In 1972, to ensure coffee quality, locals introduced the washed processing technology from Central and South America, making Yirgacheffe's unique characteristics of jasmine fragrance and citrus aroma even clearer and more refined.

The so-called "Yirgacheffe flavor" refers to rich jasmine floral notes, lemon or lime acidic aromas, mixed with small amounts of cardamom and nutmeg spices, as well as peach and almond sweet notes and tea fragrance. Besides the floral notes, the delicate body is like silk massaging in the mouth, with a wonderful texture and a long-lasting aftertaste.

Yirgacheffe Washed Processing Method

Using washing and fermentation methods to remove the skin, pulp, and mucilage, washing the coffee beans until they are smooth and clean. After washing, the coffee beans are still wrapped in parchment, with a moisture content of up to 50%. They must be dried to reduce the moisture content to 12%, otherwise they will continue to ferment, become moldy and spoiled. The better processing method is to use sun-drying, which takes 1-3 weeks, but produces excellent flavor that is quite popular.

The washed method has good body, high aroma, and lively acidity. Washed Yirgacheffe coffee beans are graded into Gr-1 and Gr-2, with smaller Arabic numbers indicating higher grades. G1 Yirgacheffe has a distinctive style, and the flavor of citrus and floral notes fused in the coffee liquid is an irresistible taste for everyone.

Knowledge Point

Ethiopia holds an ancestral position in the coffee world, being the birthplace of Arabica beans and currently Africa's largest Arabica-producing country. The Kaffa Forest in Ethiopia is also known as the "coffee gene bank."

In Brief

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