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Exclusive coffees for ✛ Plus plan subscribers

The exclusive coffee for

June

Neja Fadil

Ethiopia

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Coffee Profile

Varietals
Ethiopia Heirloom

Process
Washed

Producer
Birhanu Tebeko and Neja Fadil

Notes
Apricot, Citrus & Butterscotch

More about the coffee, producer & region.

This grade 2 fully washed coffee is from Birhanu Tebeko and Neja Fadil washing stations in Yirgacheffe district. The small holder farmers supplying this washing station cultivate mixed heirloom varieties at altitudes ranigng between 1,900 and 2,000masl.

About the Region

Coffee is ancient in Ethiopia, but coffee farming is not. By the end of the 9th Century coffee was actively being cultivated in Ethiopia as food, but probably not as a beverage. It was the Arab world that developed brewing. Even as coffee became an export for Ethiopia in the late 1800’s, Ethiopian coffee was the result of gathering rather than agricultural practices. A hundred years ago, plantations, mostly in Harar, were still the exception, while “Kaffa” coffee from the southwest was still harvested wild. In 1935, William Ukers wrote: “Wild coffee is also known as Kaffa coffee, from one of the districts where it grows most abundantly in a state of nature. The trees grow in such profusion that the possible supply, at a minimum of labor in gathering, is practically unlimited. It is said that in south-western Abyssinia there are immense forests of it that have never been encroached upon except at the outskirts.”

About the Process

Over a number of years the Yirgacheffe region has developed a distinguished reputation for fine coffees, producing some of the most sought-after microlots in world. The combination of high altitude (up to 2,200m in some areas), fertile soil, consistent and plentiful rains, and an abundance of local knowledge are all contributing factors to the high status of Yirgacheffe coffees. The indigenous ‘heirloom’ varietals - which grow wild in Ethiopia - are responsible for the unique flavour notes which make for an unusual but refined cup. Typical profiles include citrus fruits, apricot, and floral/herbal notes of hops, jasmine or hibiscus.