Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Aricha G1 Natural

For most of us, Yirgacheffe is one of those defining coffees that first stunned us and brought us down the path of specialty coffee. It used to be part of Sidamo region but now regrouped as part of the Gedeo zone in Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Region. Considered by many to be the birth place of arabica coffee, it holds a special place in our heart as a bright cup of berries, flowers and chocolates.

Ethiopia stretches from sea level up to the highlands at its west and southwest. It is north of the equator and its highlands give it a cool tropical climate largely defined by rainfall. Within the coffee regions, Yirgacheffe enjoys high elevations of 1,900m and ample rainfall throughout the year, even during the usual dry season at the end and start of the year. Almost all the coffees in the region are cultivated under intense agroforestry where coffee is intercropped with other cash crops under the shades of indigenous forest trees. Coffee is technically organic under such an environment.

Aricha washing station is located at 1,925m. The farming community is small at 300 families, and each owns a small coffee agroforestry farm of about 1 ha. This natural coffee is dried under direct sunlight on African raised beds for 2.5 weeks. This station has 250 beds, each codified for traceability purposes. Our coffee is from Ardent Coffee Export.

Roast Level
We have chosen to roast this coffee differently, at medium light towards medium to highlight its syrupy body and complex sugar browning aromas, but still on a balanced flavour. 

Brew Flavour
On the Timemore B75 using Kalita 155 paper at grind size 800 µm, we experienced a cup of sugar browning aromas on a body that rounds up and thickens as the coffee cools, reminding us of butterscotch, honey, brown sugar and milk chocolate. The aftertaste continues from these characteristic aromas with added notes of orange, berry and jasmine. Acidity is mild and balanced. The sugar browning notes come before the enzymatic notes. This is our recipe, brewed at 95°C using our own water recipe:

16g for 250ml
0-15 sec: Pour 50g water
45-75 sec: Add 150g
100-115 sec: Add 50g 

Enjoy!