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Distinctive Characteristics of Sun-Dried Yirgacheffe Worka Coffee: Variety Features, Taste Profile, Estate Origin, and Premium Coffee Bean Flavor Introduction

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, These beans come from a single farm in Ethiopia, processed by the Worka cooperative. Alemayehu Alako farm is a member of the Worka cooperative. The Worka cooperative is located in the southern part of Gedeb district, established in 2005, and joined the renowned Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (YCFCU) in the same year.

Yirgacheffe Worka Washed G1

Country: Ethiopia

Grade: G1

Region: Worka

Roast Level: Light Roast

Processing Method: Washed

Variety: Heirloom

Processing Station: Worka Cooperative

Flavor: Lemon, Kumquat, White Grape Juice

01 | Region Introduction

Yirgacheffe is a small town in Ethiopia with an altitude of 1,700-2,100 meters. It has become synonymous with specialty Ethiopian coffee. Historically, this area was wetland - the ancient word "yirga" means "settle down," while "cheffe" means "wetland." Therefore, Yirgacheffe translates to "let us settle and thrive in this wetland."

Yirgacheffe (Specialty Region): Altitude 1,800-2,000 meters | Garden Coffee System

Yirgacheffe is administratively part of the Sidamo region, but it has been separated due to its distinctive flavor profile.

In addition to the town of Yirgacheffe itself, the region includes three surrounding sub-regions: Wenago, Kochere, and Gelena Abaya.

Within Yirgacheffe, there are numerous villages, micro-regions, cooperatives, and processing stations. In most parts of Ethiopia, coffee farmers still face significant challenges and lack the resources to build their own family processing facilities. Consequently, many processing stations have emerged to collectively purchase coffee cherries from surrounding small farmers, process them, and then sell to green bean buyers.

Coffee trees are mostly planted in farmers' backyards or intercropped with other agricultural crops. Each household's production is relatively small, making this a typical garden coffee system. Almost all award-winning Yirgacheffe beans come from the aforementioned coffee villages and communities.

The so-called "Yirgacheffe flavor" refers to intense jasmine floral notes, lemon or lime citrus acidity, along with peach, almond sweetness, or tea-like notes. The phrase "flowers bloom as coffee enters the mouth" perfectly captures this experience, evoking the pleasant sensation of flowers stimulating the taste buds and olfactory receptors. Beyond the floral aromas, the delicate body feels like silk massaging the palate - a truly remarkable tactile experience. Many coffee scientists are now studying the microclimate and soil conditions of Yirgacheffe to develop a cultivation formula for specialty coffee.

Strictly speaking, Yirgacheffe is a sub-region within Ethiopia's Sidamo province, located in the northwestern part of Sidamo, surrounded by mountains and lakes. It is one of Ethiopia's highest-altitude coffee-growing regions. Yirgacheffe itself is a small town with approximately 20,000 people. The neighboring three small regions - Wenago, Kochere, and Gelena Abaya - produce coffee with flavors nearly identical to Yirgacheffe, so they are also classified within the Yirgacheffe region. However, the production methods and flavors here are so distinctive that Ethiopian coffee farmers compete proudly to have their coffee associated with Yirgacheffe characteristics. This led to its separation from the Sidamo region to become its own distinguished appellation and Africa's most renowned coffee region.

02 | Worka Cooperative

Washed Ethiopian coffee can achieve the highest G1 grade, which is quite rare to find.

This bean comes from a single farm in Ethiopia, processed by the Worka Cooperative. The Alemayehu Alako farm is a member of the Worka Cooperative.

The Worka Cooperative was established in 2005 and joined the famous Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (YCFCU) the same year, known for producing high-quality natural-processed Yirgacheffe coffee. The Worka Cooperative has approximately 300 coffee farmers. YCFCU was founded in 2002 and includes 26 other cooperatives, serving over 45,000 coffee farmers.

Worka is located in the southeasternmost part of Yirgacheffe, in the Gedeb region. In earlier years, coffee from this area was exported under the Worka name or processed by the Worka Cooperative. However, in the past two to three years, independent single-origin lots have been discovered one by one by coffee hunters worldwide, such as Banko Gotiti, Banko Dadhato, Halo Bariti, and others. Gotiti village was one of the first village areas to be separated several years ago, and many individual small-scale farmers were originally members of the Worka Cooperative, so their coffee production skills are naturally excellent.

The Worka Cooperative is located in the southern part of the Gedeb region and was established in 2005, joining the renowned Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (YCFCU) the same year. It is known for producing high-quality natural-processed Yirgacheffe coffee. The Worka Cooperative has approximately 300 coffee farmers. YCFCU was founded in 2002 and includes 26 other cooperatives, serving over 45,000 coffee farmers.

03 | Processing Method

The refined processing method in the Yirgacheffe region is predominantly the washed process. Coffee beans are placed in washing tanks for approximately 72 hours to ferment and remove the pulp. Some of the acids produced during the mucilage fermentation process enter the beans. Additionally, since the fruit pulp and mucilage are no longer attached to the parchment during drying, the characteristic fruity notes of natural-processed coffee are absent. The flavor profile tends toward clean and bright, with more pronounced acidity. Drying occurs directly outside the processing facility. After manual selection of green beans, they undergo quality inspection by the Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority and are exported through competitive bidding.

The annual production is approximately 225,000 bags (60kg each), with traditional markets mainly in Northern Europe (primarily Germany) and Japan, though North American attention has been growing recently.

Washed-processed coffee is less likely to have wild flavors, possessing pure and refreshing characteristics suitable for light roast levels. This washed Ethiopian coffee achieves the highest G1 grade, indicating very few defects.

04 | Green Bean Analysis

Heirloom varieties are unique to Ethiopia, encompassing a wide array of types including Typica, Mocha, Bourbon, and others. The Kaffa Forest is the cradle of Arabica coffee. While there are only hundreds of varieties worldwide (including both original and derived types), this treasure trove contains tens of thousands of varieties, most of which remain unclassified. "Heirloom" is Ethiopia's unique designation, as if telling the world that its varieties encompass everything, captured in a single word. The green beans are blue-green in color and relatively uniform in size.

African coffee beans use a grading system based on the percentage of defective beans. Indonesian beans are mainly divided into 6 grades, G1-G6. The highest grades for washed coffee are G1 and G2; for natural-processed coffee, the highest grades are G1 and G3.

What does this mean? As follows:

Washed: Grade-1; Grade-2 (G1>G2)

Natural: Grade-1 and Grade-3~Grade-5 (G1>G3>G4>G5)

Several points to note:

a) Both washed and natural coffees can achieve Grade 1, with the criteria being "zero defects" and Premium Cup. Whether washed or natural, Grade 1 is the rating for the best of the best in specialty coffee or Cup of Excellence coffee.

b) The lowest grade for natural-processed Yirgacheffe and Sidamo is Grade 4.

c) Beans of the same grade, such as Grade 2 Limu, can vary in quality depending on the exporter's sorting level and investment.

d) Given the current "zero defect" requirement, Grade 1 beans (whether washed or natural) are extremely rare due to high processing costs and the fact that very few suppliers undertake this level of quality control.

05 | Roasting Analysis

The beans have quite high density. For roasting, use higher heat to climb, with the yellowing point around 5 minutes and 30 seconds. Then reduce heat and open the air damper to enter the Maillard reaction. At 160°C, reduce heat again to prolong the Maillard reaction time. First crack occurs around 186.3°C. This washed coffee requires heat reduction before first crack to prevent excessive rise and bitterness. Drop at 194.2°C after 1 minute and 40 seconds of development.

Roasting machine: Yangjia 600g semi-direct flame

Preheat the roaster to 200°C before loading, air damper set to 3. After 30 seconds, ignite the burner, adjust heat to 160. Temperature recovery point at 1:32. Yellowing at 5:30 seconds, grassy aroma disappears, entering dehydration stage. Reduce heat to 120, air damper to 4. At 170°C, reduce heat again to 50.

After eight minutes, dehydration is complete. The bean surface shows wrinkles and black spots, the toast aroma turns to coffee aroma - this is the prelude to first crack. Reduce heat to 40 and listen carefully for first crack. First crack begins at 9:00, adjust heat to 40, air damper fully open to 5. Development time after first crack is 1 minute and 40 seconds, dropping at 194.2°C.

Flavor: This meticulously washed coffee brings out more delicate and distinct acidity, presenting yellow lemon notes, caramel sweetness, cream and lemon tea flavors, with a floral aftertaste.

06 | Brewing Analysis

Three-stage water pouring segmented extraction method

This method creates richer layers, clearly distinguishing the front, middle, and back-end flavors of the coffee. After blooming, increase the water amount each time, typically pouring water when the coffee level is about to drop to the surface of the coffee bed. Use small, medium, and large water flows for three-stage extraction:

Recommended brewing methods: Siphon, Pour-over

Grind size: 3.5 (Japan Fuji R440)

V60 filter cup, 15g coffee, water temperature 90°C, grind 3.5, water-to-coffee ratio close to 1:15

30g water for blooming, bloom time 30s

Segments: Pour water to 120g, stop, then slowly pour to 225g

That is 30-120-225

Other drip extraction recommendations:

French Press: recommended grind 3.5-4, water temperature 86-88°C

AeroPress: recommended grind 2.5, water temperature 86-88°C

Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Washed Heirloom Worka G1 Single Origin Specialty Coffee Beans

FrontStreet Coffee's [Cold Drip Recipe]: Yirgacheffe Worka 30g + Costa Rica Black Honey 30g, coffee-to-water ratio 1:10, BG grind 3D (close to cupping grind)

The Black Honey brings orange blossom fragrance with prominent caramel and cream notes. Combined with Yirgacheffe Worka, the caramel character becomes even more pronounced, with hints of lemon acidity. It tastes very refreshing and perfect for a hot summer day.