Sidamo Coffee Flower Champion 7.0 Characteristics & Grade - Hand-dripped Flavor Profile Description

Coffee enthusiasts all know that coffee from Ethiopia's Yirgacheffe growing region is the most famous, but in recent years, coffee beans from the Sidamo growing region have also continuously appeared in the specialty coffee market, receiving unanimous praise from coffee enthusiasts worldwide. Next, FrontStreet Coffee will introduce the flavor characteristics of coffee from the Sidamo growing region.

Sidamo Coffee Growing Region

The Sidamo growing region is located in southern Ethiopia, extending east to the Arsi and Bale administrative regions and west to the Gamogofa administrative region. Sidamo coffee is generally cultivated at altitudes between 1400m-2000m. The industry here is primarily agricultural, with main coffee growing areas located around the Great Rift Valley.

Moreover, Sidamo's coffee flavors are extremely diverse because different soil types, microclimates, and countless native coffee varieties create obvious differences and characteristics in coffee produced by each town. For example, FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopian Yirgacheffe growing region is itself a small growing region within Sidamo, but because its flavor is very unique and distinctly different from coffee beans produced in the Sidamo growing region, it has been specially separated to become an independent growing region.

Additionally, as FrontStreet Coffee understands, Sidamo is a large growing region, and as coffee growing regions become increasingly refined, more and more small coffee growing regions have become independent systems. For example, the most famous coffee growing areas in the Sidamo region: Guji and West Arsi. FrontStreet Coffee also has coffee beans from both these growing regions in our store. Most coffee in the Sidamo region uses natural processing methods for green coffee beans, so FrontStreet Coffee believes it is precisely the natural processing method that gives Sidamo region coffee beans rich fruity aromas and smooth mouthfeel.

Guji Growing Region

The Guji growing region, formerly part of the Sidamo growing region, was independently established as a new growing region by the Ethiopia Commodity Exchange (ECX) in 2010. The Guji growing region is located southeast of Yirgacheffe and is an area with complex topographical changes including towering mountains, valleys, and plains. The region's geology consists of fertile black soil (Vertisol) with soil depth nearly two meters and an average altitude above 1800 meters. The significant day-night temperature differences created by geographical characteristics give the region all the terroir conditions to produce high-quality specialty coffee.

West Arsi Growing Region

West Arsi is located between the Yirgacheffe coffee growing area and Hararghe, at altitudes of 1900-2200m, situated in the western part of the Sidamo region. The area's name comes from a branch of the Oromo people who have long lived here. According to FrontStreet Coffee's understanding, West Arsi consists of three Ethiopian third-level administrative regions: Arsi, Bale, and East Shewa.

FrontStreet Coffee believes that coffee beans from both these growing regions are very distinctive. For example, the Guji Hambela growing region has a coffee bean well-known and loved by coffee enthusiasts---Huang Kui coffee beans. Additionally, FrontStreet Coffee considers the Arsi coffee beans from the West Arsi growing region to have excellent flavor, so both these coffee beans have been introduced to FrontStreet Coffee for coffee enthusiasts to taste. Next, FrontStreet Coffee will introduce brief information about these two coffee beans.

FrontStreet Coffee Ethiopian Sidamo Huang Kui Coffee Beans

Country: Ethiopia

Region: Guji (Hambela)

Altitude: 2250-2350m

Variety: Local native varieties

Processing: Natural processing method

Flavor: Passion fruit, rose floral aroma, strawberry jam

This Huang Kui coffee bean introduced by FrontStreet Coffee was the champion of the natural processing category in the 2017 Ethiopia TOH coffee competition. It appeared before everyone with its unique strawberry cream flavor, making an immediate sensation. Therefore, the batch of green beans that year was imported to China by Beijing green bean trader Hong Shun. In the same year, Li Jianfei used this bean to win second place in the 2017 World Brewers Cup China region. This Ethiopian bean was particularly outstanding among many Geisha competition beans, thus earning the name "Huang Kui."

Moreover, strictly speaking, only the TOH natural processing champion beans that entered China in 2017 can be called Huang Kui coffee. Of course, if such a wonderful name were to be fleeting, wouldn't that be a pity?

Therefore, since then, Beijing Hong Shun has continued to import coffee beans from the Bukuku processing station in the Hambela growing region, calling them Huang Kui 2.0, Huang Kui 3.0, and Huang Kui 3.1 to distinguish them from the previous Huang Kui coffee and represent different batches or harvest seasons.

In 2022, after FrontStreet Coffee obtained the green beans for Huang Kui 6.0, we found many flat beans, shell beans, and shriveled beans. Therefore,出于对品控的考虑, FrontStreet Coffee continued to use the Huang Kui 5.0 coffee beans. The new 2022 harvest season Huang Kui 5.0 still maintains citrus, mango, and honey flavors.

Coming to 2024, FrontStreet Coffee's newly acquired Huang Kui 8.0 has finally arrived. Seizing this freshness, and having looked forward to it for a year, we of course had to taste it properly. To present the refined floral and fruity flavors of the Sidamo growing region while maintaining the caramelized aroma of coffee, FrontStreet Coffee's barista adopted a medium-light roast to present this bean.

The new harvest season Huang Kui 8.0 in dry aroma shows richer fruit aromas than 7.0, with complex aromas like guava, jackfruit, apricot, dried fruit, citrus, and floral notes. When hot water is poured, one can smell honey and berry sweet aromas. Through slurping, FrontStreet Coffee first experiences multiple fruit sweet and sour notes in this 8.0, including dried mango, jackfruit, orange, and passion fruit. The juice sensation is clear with a round mouthfeel. As the temperature slightly decreases, the sweet freshness of peach and berry acidity begin to emerge. After swallowing, one can experience a sweet aftertaste similar to drinking black tea.

FrontStreet Coffee: Ethiopian Sidamo Arsi Coffee Beans

Country: Ethiopia

Region: Sidamo West Arsi

Altitude: 1900-2200 meters

Variety: Local native varieties

Processing Method: Natural processing

Flavor: Berries, honey, plum, nectarine, mango, juice-like sensation

According to FrontStreet Coffee's understanding, West Arsi coffee farmers only pick ripe red fruits, placing them one by one into baskets. Therefore, the harvested coffee fruits are uniform in size, similar in maturity, and free from other impurities. Next, they spread the red coffee fruits on raised wooden frames or entire trellises for natural drying, which avoids the risk of beans picking up miscellaneous flavors from being placed on the ground. During the drying process, they constantly turn them to ensure even drying so coffee beans can lose moisture uniformly. Every three to five days, coffee farmers manually sort and remove defective and moldy beans. After the fruit skin dries and becomes hard, they use a huller to remove the dry, hard fruit skin. After obtaining the green coffee beans, in pursuit of perfect taste, farmers will do one final sorting. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee's natural processed Arsi can achieve the highest G1 grade.

The above is the relevant information about the Sidamo growing region compiled by FrontStreet Coffee, as well as information about all two Sidamo growing region coffee beans at FrontStreet Coffee. Next, FrontStreet Coffee will share the roasting and brewing data for these two coffee beans.

FrontStreet Coffee Roasting Recommendations

During the roasting process of these two new harvest beans, we will: extend the dehydration time to ensure even heating of the bean surface and core. To express the acidity and floral fruit aromas of this bean, we adopted a light roast degree.

Huang Kui 5.0: Yangjia 800N, 480g bean input: Heat furnace to 175°C when entering drum, damper opening 3, heat power 120. Rise to 140°C, damper opening 4. Roast to 6'00'', temperature 151.7°C, bean surface turns yellow, grassy smell completely disappears, dehydration complete. When bean surface shows ugly wrinkles and black spots, and toast smell clearly turns to coffee aroma, this can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this time, listen carefully for the sound of first crack. At 9'50'' first crack begins, damper fully open, 188°C heat power reduced to 80, first crack development time 1'40'', drop at 196°C.

Arsi: Yangjia 800N, 480g bean input: Heat furnace to 160°C when entering drum, damper opening 3, heat power 120. Adjust heat power once at 115°C, damper opening 4. Roast to 6'00'', temperature 154.9°C, bean surface turns yellow, grassy smell completely disappears, dehydration complete. At 8 minutes, bean surface shows ugly wrinkles and black spots, toast smell clearly turns to coffee aroma, this can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this time, listen carefully for the sound of first crack. At 9'08'' first crack begins, damper fully open, first crack development time 1'00'', drop at 193.5°C.

FrontStreet Coffee Brewing Recommendations

Dripper: V60 #01

Water Temperature: 90-91°C

Dose: 15g

Ratio: 1:15

Grind Size: EK43s setting 10/fine sugar size (20# sieve screen to 80%)

Frontsteet Brewing Method: First pour 30g of water for 30 seconds bloom, then pour 95g (scale shows about 125g), finishing in about 1 minute. When water level drops to 2/3 of the coffee bed, pour the remaining 100g (scale shows about 225g), finishing in about 1'40"-1'45". Complete drip at 2'00"-2'10", remove dripper, complete extraction.

Huang Kui 5.0 Brewing Flavor: Smells of ripe citrus aroma, with bright acidity of passion fruit and citrus at entry, followed by mango fruit aroma and sweetness in the middle to later stages, with rich layering. After cooling, it has the sweet taste of oolong tea.

Arsi Brewing Flavor: Smells of berry and honey aroma, with jam-like sweetness spreading throughout the mouth, full of sweetness, with nectarine flavor in the later stage, and juice-like mouthfeel. After cooling, it's more like a juice with plum and nectarine flavors.

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style)

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee's private WeChat, ID: qjcoffeex

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473