Yirgacheffe Pour-Over Method: Characteristics of Hand-Poured Yirgacheffe Coffee with Rich Tropical Fruit Aroma

Pour-over is the most direct way to show off what a floral, fruity Yirgacheffe can do, so this is a recipe worth getting right.

FrontStreet Coffee - Yirgacheffe Red Cherry Natural Pour Over Share

Coffee drinkers have different preferences, and plenty of them love a cup with pronounced floral and fruity aromas. For those drinkers, Yirgacheffe is essentially mandatory: the specialty coffee grown there has one of the most pleasant aromas in the world.

Yirgacheffe is a small town in Ethiopia. Do not let its size fool you. It is the representative of Ethiopian specialty coffee and, in many ways, a symbol of the country itself. So how do you brew a good cup of Yirgacheffe? Here is FrontStreet Coffee's method.

Example: Yirgacheffe Red Cherry Natural

Yirgacheffe Red Cherry Natural

Variety: Local native varieties

Altitude: 1,800-2,100m

Processing Method: Natural

Parameters: Water temperature 91°C, grind size BG-6S, V60 with a segmented pour, coffee-to-water ratio 1:15

Technique: For 15g of coffee, use 30g of water for the bloom and let it bloom for 30 seconds, starting the timer the moment you begin pouring. Stop the second pour at 120g. When the water level drops to just before the coffee bed is exposed, begin the third pour and stop at 225g. Remove the dripper once the extraction reaches 2 minutes.

Flavor: Tropical fruits, strawberry, berries, cream

Brief Note: Everything here is meant to be shared and passed on.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

The coffee in this recipe is FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe Red Cherry, and it is worth understanding how it is made. It is a natural-processed lot: only completely ripe, sound cherries are picked, sorted once more at the mill, and then spread directly on raised beds to dry. Over the first few days the fruit is turned every two to three hours to keep it from heating unevenly and over-fermenting. After three to five weeks of drying, depending on the weather and temperature, workers machine-scrape away the outer fruit and move the beans into storage. Because the cherries dry with the flesh still attached, the coffee keeps the classic Yirgacheffe character while picking up the tropical fruit of a natural, showing citrus-like acidity, a juicy berry mid-palate, honey sweetness, and a creamy smoothness.

For the washed side of Yirgacheffe, FrontStreet Coffee's Gedingding Cooperative is the benchmark. Grown in the Worka area at the southeastern edge of Yirgacheffe, the cooperative follows traditional washed processing, which draws out jasmine florals and bright citrus and lemon acidity without any of the bitterness people expect from coffee. A light-medium roast adds green tea and honey notes, and it works as pour-over, cold brew, or espresso.

If you are new to the region, start with FrontStreet Coffee's Washed Yirgacheffe, the everyday house lot. It is the classic introduction to the Ethiopian profile, known for white jasmine, bright citrus and lemon acidity, and a tea-like finish, and its approachable price has made it the first specialty coffee for a great many drinkers.