Clean and Bright Yirgacheffe Coffee: Flavor Profile, Texture, and Aroma Description

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When it comes to African coffee, FrontStreet Coffee immediately thinks of Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee. Citrus, lemon acidity, jasmine flowers, ripe strawberries, tropical fruits, berries, and honey—these are all flavor descriptors frequently used to characterize Ethiopian coffee beans. Among these, Yirgacheffe has the greatest reputation, and its flavor profile has become synonymous with specialty coffee.

The Yirgacheffe coffee beans featured today from FrontStreet Coffee are filled with the sweetness of snow pear and fermented wine-like aromas. The cup presents clear, bright, and gentle, smooth fruit acidity, with very clean fermented fruit sweetness, elegant fruit wine notes, coffee flower aromatics, and a sweet aftertaste that transitions to a lingering sweetness.

Yirgacheffe is a Small Town

Ethiopia's coffee cultivation is mainly concentrated in the western and southern regions, with smallholder farmers accounting for 90% of total cultivation. Nearly 1.2 million smallholder families depend on coffee cultivation for their livelihood. The local coffee production system is divided into four types: forest coffee, semi-forest coffee, garden coffee, and large-scale plantations, with garden coffee being the most common. Due to the small production volume of smallholder farms, there are various coffee cooperatives and processing plants of different sizes in the region, primarily responsible for processing green coffee beans. Farmers deliver their harvested coffee beans to nearby processing plants established near water sources for unified processing, which are subsequently sold under the name of the processing plant. The Yirgacheffe producing region is one of these areas.

Yirgacheffe refers to a small town in the northwestern part of the Sidamo province in Ethiopia. Located in the Gedeo zone, the town of Yirgacheffe sits just downstream from large lakes, with abundant springs and river channels flowing through, providing ample freshwater resources for washing stations. FrontStreet Coffee also noted that in ancient Ethiopian language, the English "Yirgacheffe" is composed of two words: Yərga (ይርጋ) meaning calm, settled down, and Č̣äfe (ጨፌ) referring to marsh-like wetlands. Therefore, Yirgacheffe carries the meaning of "let us settle and establish ourselves in this wetland."

This area is nestled by mountains and lakes, at an elevation of 1,700-2,100 meters, making it one of Ethiopia's highest altitude coffee-producing regions. Originally part of Sidamo, it later became independent from this larger producing region due to its unique flavor profile and growing reputation, establishing itself as the exclusive Yirgacheffe producing region. The town is shrouded in mist, with spring-like seasons year-round, gentle breezes, cool but not hot temperatures, rainy but not humid conditions, and no winter frost damage, making it exceptionally suitable for the growth of coffee crops. The coffee cultivated here carries unique citrus and floral aromatics.

FrontStreet Coffee's menu features several Yirgacheffe coffees, all processed using natural methods of washed and sun-dried processing, with the washed Gedeb cooperative coffee and sun-dried Red Cherry being the most representative.

Washed Gedeb Cooperative Coffee

The Gedeb cooperative, with 300 member smallholder farmers, is renowned for cultivating Ethiopia's highest quality coffee. Their processing method follows the most traditional washed approach, earning them the reputation as "the last pure land of Yirgacheffe." Among customers who come to FrontStreet Coffee for their brew, if they're looking for washed fruity coffee, FrontStreet Coffee's baristas will always prioritize recommending the Gedeb cooperative coffee from the bean shelf. The washed Gedeb cooperative coffee not only lacks the intense bitterness of traditional black coffee but also presents fresh, bright citrus and lemon acidity, along with jasmine fragrance, making many coffee enthusiasts fall in love at first sip.

Traditionally, farmers would place harvested coffee cherries directly on patios or spread them on the ground for direct sun drying until the moisture content reached about 12%, at which point they could be sent for hulling and packaging. Coffee processed this way often developed earthy flavors, over-fermentation, and rotten fruit notes. To improve these flavor defects caused by direct sun exposure, Ethiopia introduced washed processing technology from Central and South America.

The washed process involves pouring coffee cherries into water tanks, removing the unripe beans that float, mechanically removing the coffee fruit skin, and then placing them in clean water tanks for fermentation. The acidic substances produced during fermentation of the raw beans cause the mucilage layer to detach. The parchment beans are then thoroughly rinsed with clean running water and finally dried under sunlight. During the washed process, multiple steps can remove defective beans, resulting in cleaner acidity in flavor.

Sun-dried Red Cherry Coffee

The "Red Cherry Project" was initiated in 2007 by the Dutch trading company Trabocca BV to improve the quality of Ethiopian coffee.

This project primarily focuses on improving washing, semi-washing, and sun-drying processing techniques in high-altitude producing regions like Yirgacheffe in Ethiopia. Professional cuppers are involved, and different coffee harvesting volumes are established for different microclimate zones during harvest seasons. Only 100% mature red coffee cherries must be harvested, with production yields approximately between 1,500-3,000 kg. The economic loan support, new hardware equipment, and production knowledge and technology provided by Trabocca have significantly improved the quality of coffee beans not only in the Yirgacheffe region but throughout Ethiopia. Consequently, the coffee commands higher prices, thereby increasing farmers' income.

FrontStreet Coffee's sun-dried Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee beans are selected from fully red cherries processed using the sun-dried method at the Alerte farm. The green coffee beans appear light yellow, with full, well-formed beans, low defect rates, and are Grade 1. Sun-dried Yirgacheffe offers more intense flavors with richer layers, featuring wine-like fermented notes and higher sweetness.

Yirgacheffe's Aroma and Flavor

For roasting, FrontStreet Coffee considers that Yirgacheffe should present acidity as the primary flavor direction, therefore adopting a medium-light roast. The washed Yirgacheffe Gedeb cooperative coffee beans are lightly roasted to preserve more bright acidity and white floral aromas, while the sun-dried Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee beans use a medium-light roast to present full berry sweetness and acidity. Before launching any coffee bean, FrontStreet Coffee conducts at least one cupping evaluation. Under the same standards, cupping allows us to more objectively perceive the strengths and weaknesses of the coffee.

Cupping profile of washed Gedeb cooperative coffee: The dry aroma reveals fresh passion fruit, citrus, and berry fragrances. The wet aroma presents citrus and berries. Upon tasting, there's citrus acidity, berry sweetness, almond notes, tea-like qualities, and a honey-sweet aftertaste. Light body with bright acidity, clean and refreshing.

Cupping profile of sun-dried Red Cherry coffee: The dry aroma exhibits rich berry sweetness and acidity. When slurped at different temperatures, it presents gentle berry sweet-sourness, mature fruit fermentation notes, distinct honey sweetness, and black tea finish. Smooth mouthfeel.

Yirgacheffe Brewing Recommendations

Regardless of the extraction method used, FrontStreet Coffee believes that the freshness of coffee beans is crucial. The aroma of coffee roasted more than two months ago has likely significantly diminished, and even excellent extraction techniques can hardly restore the cup's aromatic qualities. To ensure everyone experiences coffee at its best flavor stage, FrontStreet Coffee only ships beans roasted within 5 days, so they're ready for brewing upon arrival.

Since Yirgacheffe is lightly roasted, the coffee beans are relatively hard and require high-temperature water at 92°C-93°C to fully extract the floral and fruit notes. FrontStreet Coffee recommends a medium-fine grind size (78% pass-through rate on China standard #20 sieve). Too coarse a grind will fail to extract body compounds, resulting in thin coffee. Too fine a grind can lead to over-extraction at high water temperatures, producing bitter and astringent coffee.

During cupping, FrontStreet Coffee noticed that these beans exhibit different flavors at different temperatures, so a three-stage extraction method is employed to allow different flavor compounds to better express themselves during the gradual temperature increase of the coffee bed. To highlight the fresh and captivating aromatics of washed Yirgacheffe, FrontStreet Coffee uses a V60 dripper for brewing. The spiral rib design of the dripper allows the coffee grounds to degas better, maximizing the volatilization and dissolution of aromatic compounds.

For brewing ratios, FrontStreet Coffee considers 1:15 to 1:16 both acceptable. If you want a richer body, use 1:15. If you want to more clearly perceive the floral sweetness, use 1:16 to allow the flavors to disperse more.

Dripper: V60
Water Temperature: 92-93°C
Coffee Dose: 15g
Coffee-to-Water Ratio: 1:15
Grind Size: Fine sugar size (78% pass-through on #20 sieve)

Three-stage pouring: Use twice the weight of coffee in water to wet the coffee bed, forming a dome and let it bloom for 30 seconds. Then use a small water flow to pour in circles from inside to out until reaching 125g, then pause. When the coffee bed drops to half the height of the dripper, continue with the same fine water flow to pour the third stage to 225g. Remove the dripper once all coffee liquid has filtered through, with a total time of approximately 2 minutes.

When ground into powder, the washed Yirgacheffe daily-drinker coffee emits honey and jasmine fragrances. As FrontStreet Coffee pours hot water, it begins to release subtle berry notes. The pour-over black coffee presents bright lemon, citrus, and green tea flavors, with berry, cream, and sugarcane notes in the aftertaste as the temperature changes, with a noticeable sweet aftertaste and a clean, sweet cup profile.

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