Monday, March 19, 2012

Ethiopian Yirgacheffe

Sun dried coffee beans
Ethiopia is historically said to be the geographical origin of coffee and even today this country produces great coffees, one of them is the Yirgacheffe. This particular coffee is an Ethiopian wet-processed coffee and is one of the worlds most distinctive coffee; overwhelmingly floral, lemony with rich, soft-toned acidity, crisp mid-tones and medium to light body. Other Ethiopian coffees marked as Limu nor wet-processed versions of Sidamo and Jimma are similar to Yirgacheffe, but usually less intensely floral and distinctive.

"Intensely aromatic yet finely balanced. The rich aroma is dominated by a pungent cedar sensation with backgrounded caramelly chocolate sweetness and a hint of flowers. The chocolaty fruit and night floral notes move lushly forward in the cup, persisting into the finish. Soft acidity, lightly syrupy mouthfeel." Ken Davids (November 2009, coffee review.com)

Map locating Yirgacheffe
"Perhaps its because coffee has been cultivated in Ethiopia longer than anywhere else on earth, and has so much genetic variety to choose from. Whatever the reason, Ethiopian coffees are vibrant and intensely aromatic as a rule .. and ours exemplary." Doug Cadmus
Yirgacheffe, green vs. roasted bean
The roasting profile used for this bean was 240 degrees for about 15 minutes on the Gene Cafe, which could have been reduced by a couple of minutes, cause I was roasting for Aeropress. Nevertheless is the beans a little brighter than the picture above shows of the roasted beans, but I would definitely recommend a shorter roasting profile to achieve more of the lemony flavors.

Final brewed cup of Yirgacheffe
Yirgacheffe charms you with its high citrus notes and its notes of chocolate; its sensual wisp of flowers and its round body. There are no doubt in my mind, that this coffee represents the origin country of coffee, cause its an absolutely pleasure of quality to drink. The flavors is extremely sensitive and is constant flirting with the line between sourness and citrus, lemony, which gives the cup some extra mysteriousness and depth.

// Hendrup

1 comment: