Understanding the Third Wave of Coffee Through Yirgacheffe's Past and Present (Part 1)

Coffee Guide: In recent years, Yirgacheffe beans have undoubtedly become one of Ethiopia's biggest sensations, seemingly standing in for the third wave of coffee culture itself. Why did they suddenly surge in popularity? This article explores the past and present of Yirgacheffe to help you understand the third wave.

Today, when most coffee enthusiasts hear "Ethiopian coffee," their first thought is Yirgacheffe. Other likely answers include Harrar, heirloom Geisha, Limu, and Sidamo. Over the past two years, Yirgacheffe's popularity has kept climbing, and it has made people truly take notice of these small beans.

Yirgacheffe actually entered the domestic market quite early. Back then it was called Mocha; later it was categorized by origin as Yirgacheffe, and from there it began to gain popularity. In the last three to four years, with increasingly refined grading systems, Yirgacheffe has grown even more popular. But just how popular? Take a look at the images below. (Prices have been removed to avoid disputes.)

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Across our two storefronts, two of the top three products are Yirgacheffe—which says a great deal about its popularity.

Yirgacheffe's fame comes from the signature citrus, lemon, and floral notes brought out by washed processing, along with lemon black tea flavors. Today it is even more celebrated for the tropical fruit flavors that natural processing can deliver. With its easily recognizable profile, Yirgacheffe has been sought out by many enthusiasts, and it has also let newcomers to coffee taste something quite different from instant coffee and Starbucks.

Of course, Yirgacheffe has had its share of minor mishaps, too.

Because Yirgacheffe beans are predominantly small, they suit medium-light roasting. Being heirloom varieties, after all, they cannot be as uniform in size as export beans from Central and South America. Yirgacheffe is graded on a combined score of physical defects and cup quality. In truth, heirloom beans are not uniform in size, yet the Yirgacheffe beans on the market today are strikingly consistent in their small size. For reference, look at Sidamo natural G3 to see what heirloom varieties actually look like. That said, I have also seen green bean supplier data listing Yirgacheffe's variety as Typica. Logically, with such rich fruity acidity, it ought to be Bourbon.

Yirgacheffe: A Representative of Third Wave Coffee

As the undisputed representative of the third wave, one of Yirgacheffe's hallmarks is its easily recognizable flavor profile. The second is its ability to show its character at an a* value of 55, compared with traditional Central and South American washed beans, which require darker roasting and may only come into their own at an a* value of around 25-40.

As for why this is so: although some people like to use charts to explain that longer roasting reduces acidity and increases bitterness, in reality both coffee's mouthfeel and the beans themselves are quite mysterious. It is not that acidity is burned away leaving only bitterness, nor are these aromatic substances fixed and unchanging. What the charts do not tell us is that these lost aromatic compounds can still transform into other substances. The complexity we perceive in the mouth is not captured by a few lines on a chart.

Coffee as Fruit: The True Nature of Yirgacheffe

Coffee beans are the fruit of a plant and an agricultural crop besides. The existence of Yirgacheffe better interprets coffee's fruit-like nature. Third wave specialty coffee has always aimed to express regional flavors, and on this point, Counter Culture Coffee's flavor wheel shows that nearly half of its descriptors relate to fruit. Many other characteristics at first glance bring fruit to mind, which I will not elaborate on further here. You can compare Yirgacheffe's flavor profile with these descriptions and see for yourself.

Source: Coffee Altar

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If Yirgacheffe is your gateway into the third wave, FrontStreet Coffee suggests beginning with its most classic expression. FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe is known for white jasmine florals, bright citrus and lemon acidity, and a tea-like body, and its friendly price has made it one of the most popular first beans for anyone getting into specialty coffee. For a deeper look at how a single cooperative shapes flavor, FrontStreet Coffee's Gudina Cooperative coffee comes from the Woka area at the southeastern edge of Yirgacheffe, originally part of the Woka cooperative under the Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (YCFCU); it continues the most traditional washed processing, so it carries no traditional bitterness and instead brings fresh, bright citrus and lemon acidity with jasmine fragrance. And for those who love the tropical fruit that natural processing can unlock, FrontStreet Coffee's naturally processed Red Cherry beans use only fully ripe, defect-free cherries, dried on raised beds and turned every 2-3 hours in the first days; the result keeps the classic Yirgacheffe character while adding sun-dried tropical fruit, with citrus acidity, berry juice, honey sweetness, and a creamy smoothness. Brewed with a V60 at 90-91°C, a 15g dose, a 1:15 ratio, and a medium-fine grind, these beans bring the third wave profile right to your cup.