Ethiopia / Mrs. Zenebech Ageze

Varieties: Heirloom Ethiopian
Growing Altitude: 2040 masl
Processing Method: Natural

Thanks to the Small Farmer Project, a joint effort between Café Imports and Ethiopia-based Lulo Coffees, we are able to enjoy this exceptional coffee from Mrs. Zenebech Ageze's five hectare farm in Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia. During harvest time, the ripest coffee cherries--all heirloom Ethiopian varieties--from Mrs. Ageze's farm are picked, they are dried in the sun on raised beds. Once the coffee is dried, it is collected by our Lulo Coffees and hulled, milled, and prepped for export to Cafe Imports.

The Small Farmer Project is the result of an effort to support Ethiopian producers with a marketplace for farm-traceable coffees. In 2020, Café Imports purchased their first coffees from a handful of small-scale producers located in Yirgacheffe, Sidamo, and Guji. This project is made possible in conjunction with Lulo Coffees, an Ethiopian export and coffee development company dedicated to connecting small producers with buyers. Samples are sent out to potential buyers, price is negotiated on the farmers' behalf, and contracts are only accepted when the producer agrees on a sales price and their name is on the contract for each coffee they sell.

While the Yirgacheffe region in Ethiopia has become famed for the blueberry tasting notes of its coffees in particular, this coffee from Mrs. Zenebech Ageze brings forth more of a citrusy sweetness. You will still taste plenty of fruitiness in this coffee, though, ranging from those strong tangerine notes up front to green grapes and even peach. This year, we're getting lots of sweet perfumey notes, as well. As this coffee cools, we get a strong taste of soft tropical fruit and vanilla, making it taste like banana cream pie. Depending on your preferred brew method and recipe, you may also find some more rich, sugary sweet notes and mouthfeel of caramel and milk chocolate.