Kokosa

Of all the washed Ethiopia samples that passed over our cupping table this year, this lot was the most memorable.  Featuring perfumey florals, stone fruit and citrus flavors, and a honey-like sweetness balanced with delicate complexity, this lot of Kokosa is everything one can hope for from a washed Ethiopia.  

Produced by Birhanu Teklu on a relatively small 2.5 hectare farm, this coffee went through an extended maturation period due to the staggeringly high elevations of 2400+ meters above sea level, resulting in a densely sweet and aromatically complex profile. The ripe coffee cherries were depulped and fermented for 36 hours, before being washed and moved to raised beds to dry for 12 days.

While not producing his own coffees, Birhanu Teklu also manages the Gango washing station, which receives cherry deliveries from 650 members in the surrounding area.