What are the flavor characteristics of Guodingding coffee beans? Is Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee good to drink?

Many customers who visit FrontStreet Coffee are drawn to the name "Guodingding" on the bean menu, as this name is quite charming. They frequently ask the staff about this particular coffee bean.

What is Guodingding?

Guodingding is actually the name of a small village in Ethiopia, located in the Woka production area at the southeastern end of Yirgacheffe. The coffee farmers from this village have formed an agricultural cooperative. It was originally part of the Woka Cooperative under the Yirgacheffe Union YCFCU, but as people pursued greater traceability of coffee beans, "single origin" coffees were gradually discovered by coffee hunters from around the world.

In 2012, Guodingding, with approximately 300 member farmers, established itself as the independent "Guodingding Cooperative." Guodingding village was one of the first village areas to become independent. Many small farmers were originally members of the Woka Cooperative, so their coffee production techniques are well-established. The Guodingding Cooperative is known as the last pristine land of Yirgacheffe, so it also adopts very traditional bean processing methods (washed and natural processing).

FrontStreet Coffee has chosen the washed process coffee beans from the Guodingding Cooperative, because FrontStreet Coffee believes this coffee bean possesses classic Yirgacheffe flavor characteristics, along with richer floral notes, citrus acidity, and the essence of green tea.

Ethiopia: The Origin of Coffee

Ethiopia can be said to be one of the most popular coffee-producing countries. As the birthplace of coffee, the country boasts an enormous number of coffee varieties—it's truly a treasure trove of coffee cultivars. However, variety identification is time-consuming and laborious, and most are grown by small farmers who mix their harvests for processing, making it difficult to distinguish between varieties. Therefore, Ethiopian export coffee beans are generally collectively referred to as "Heirloom varieties."

Among Ethiopian coffees, the most representative is undoubtedly the washed coffee beans produced in Yirgacheffe. While Ethiopia primarily uses natural processing, the commonly found natural processing methods are often crude, frequently carrying defective flavors. Consequently, in the last century, the Yirgacheffe region introduced washed processing from the Americas, which greatly enhanced the reputation of coffee produced in this region.

Guodingding village originally did not have its own dedicated processing plant. Harvested coffee cherries could only be sent to the nearby Woka village processing plant for washing. Later, as coffee hunters conducted in-depth investigations, they determined that the coffee beans from Guodingding village were of exceptionally high quality. Therefore, they specifically collaborated with local coffee farmers to establish a processing plant belonging to Guodingding village. Since washed processing requires substantial water resources and specialized mechanical equipment, individual farmers typically cannot afford washing equipment. Farmers send their harvested coffee cherries to processing plants for unified processing. The advantage of washed processing lies in ensuring coffee quality while clearly reflecting the fundamental coffee flavors of the origin.

The Washed Processing Method

Washed Processing Steps: After coffee cherries are harvested, they are placed in water, where the buoyancy of the water helps separate underripe fruits. Then, a pulping machine first removes the peel/pulp from the berries, after which they are left in fermentation tanks for 18-36 hours until the mucilage layer decomposes. After fermentation is complete, the parchment beans are washed in channels for 30-60 minutes. Through specially designed channels combined with water flow, low-density, poor-quality beans are removed. The high-quality coffee beans are then drained of moisture and spread out on African raised beds for drying.

Because the peel, pulp, and most of the mucilage are removed before actual drying, the inherent aroma of the coffee beans becomes clearer and more transparent, presenting citrus and lemon notes with elegant floral aromas. The overall flavor is bright and delicate.

Roasting Philosophy

Unlike the era when "coffee was bitter," lightly roasted Yirgacheffe can be said to have ushered in the "new era of fruity acidity in coffee." The main reason coffee becomes strongly bitter is that roasters roast the beans deeply, with the dominant flavor direction being nuts and dark chocolate. With the emergence of specialty coffee concepts, to preserve more acidity, roasters only roast Yirgacheffe coffee to an appropriate light level, allowing Yirgacheffe to express pleasant fruit sweetness and white floral notes. FrontStreet Coffee believes that the greatest characteristic of Ethiopian coffee lies in its fruity acidity and floral aromas, earning it the reputation of "fruit bomb" among many coffee professionals. To highlight such explosive aromatics, the roast degree naturally cannot be too deep, so FrontStreet Coffee adopts a medium-light roast to showcase the coffee's fruity character.

Cupping Notes and Brewing Recommendations

Cupping Notes: The dry aroma of the washed Guodingding Cooperative coffee emits fresh passion fruit, citrus, and berry acidity. The wet aroma reveals citrus and berries. Upon tasting, one experiences citrus acidity, berry sweetness, almond notes, tea-like sensations, with a finish carrying honey-like sweetness. It has low body, bright acidity, and is clean and refreshing.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommended Brewing Method: Pour-over

Filter: Hario V60
Water Temperature: 90°C
Coffee Amount: 15 grams
Coffee-to-Water Ratio: 1:15
Grind Size: Medium-fine grind (Chinese standard 80% pass-through rate on #20 sieve)

Brewing Technique: Using a segmented extraction method, bloom with 30g of water for 30 seconds. Continue pouring in small circular motions to 120g, then segment. When the water level drops to just before exposing the coffee bed, continue pouring to 225g and stop. When the water level drops to just before exposing the coffee bed again, remove the filter cup. The extraction time (starting from the bloom) is 1'50". When brewed this way, the washed Yirgacheffe·Guodingding coffee reveals fresh and elegant floral aromas, clear sweetness, and a slightly astringent finish, much like unfermented green tea.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473