The Washed Pretender
- Region
- Ethiopia · Yirgacheffe · Aricha
- Process
- Washed — pulped, fermented 36–48 hours, then washed and sun-dried on raised beds
- Roast
- Medium-Light · Espresso
- Best for
- Espresso, Long Black, Pourover
Jasmine | Bergamot | Pomegranate | Hibiscus | Clean & Vivid
The name is a kind of boast. This washed Ethiopian has no business tasting this good. Aricha is a small kebele in Yirgacheffe — a region already famous for producing the most aromatic coffees in the world. Jasmine, bergamot, a whisper of pomegranate: a coffee that smells like a garden and tastes like a perfectly clear spring morning.
Details
- Origin: Ethiopia · Yirgacheffe · Aricha
- Process: Washed — pulped, fermented 36–48 hours, then washed and sun-dried on raised beds
- Roast: Medium-Light · Espresso
- Best for: Espresso, Long Black, Pourover
The Story
The Aricha washing station collects cherry from hundreds of smallholder farmers in the surrounding kebeles. Ripe cherry is carefully sorted and pulped, then fermented for 36–48 hours — the timing adjusted for weather conditions — before washing and grading. The parchment is dried slowly on raised beds in the highland air.
The result is a cup so aromatic and clean it earned its nickname. Coffees this vivid and fragrant are usually naturals. This one is not. It achieves through precision what others achieve through fermentation.
In the Cup
Jasmine on the nose — the kind you notice before you taste anything. Bergamot and pomegranate in the cup: floral, bright, and very clean. As an espresso, vivid and elegant. As a long black, it opens further and gains complexity as it cools.