Ethiopia Koke Shalaye Grade 1

Ethiopia Koke Shalaye Grade 1

Grown in the well-known Yirgacheffe region of Ethiopia, this coffee comes from a collection of smallholder producers in the area of Koke.

The coffee grown by households within small gardens, on less than one hectare of land.
Producers line their homes with coffee trees, and it is the primary source of income. It is common for producers to intercrop enset, the Ethiopian banana, avocados, and papaya to have additional food sources.

Yirgacheffe is actually part of the Gedeo Zone, Southern Nations region, in southern Ethiopia, but its exquisite, washed coffees are so well-known that is has been sub-divided into its own micro-region. This steep, green area is both fertile and high – much of the coffee grows at 2,000m and above.

At first glance, Yirgacheffe’s hills look thickly forested - but in fact, it is a heavily populated region, and the hills are dotted with many dwellings and villages’ growing what is known as ‘garden coffee’. There are approximately 26 cooperatives in the region, representing some 43,794 farmers and around 62,004 hectares of garden coffee. The production is predominantly washed, although a smaller number of sundried coffees
also come out of Yirgacheffe.

There is only one main harvest a year in Ethiopia - this usually takes place in November and December across all of the country's growing regions. There are, on average, 4 passes made during the harvest period, and, in regions that produce both washed and naturals, the last pass is used for the natural coffee. Washed coffees are then generally pulped on the same day that they are picked, fermented, washed and then usually graded again in the washing channels. The beans are then dried on African beds, where they are hand-sorted.

In Brief

Farm: Various smallholder producers 
Region: Koke, Yirgacheffe
Altitude: 1,972 masl
Varietal: Heirloom
Process: Anaerobic Natural
Flavour: Grape Calpis, Kumquat, Rose 

Best Used

7 days after roast
Within 2 months