For our last Ethiopia release of the season, we’ve saved something very special – a coffee which tied for the highest score our quality team gave for any lot we’ve purchased this year. Coming to us from the Nensebo washing station in West Arsi, this coffee was processed in the natural style, where the bean is dried within the coffee cherry. This processing method lends these coffees a famous blueberry flavour that many have come to love.

West Arsi is located near the Bale Mountains, one of the oldest areas of human habitation in the world and home to several endemic species, including the Ethiopian wolf. Until recently, coffees from West Arsi were sold under the denomination of Sidama, a larger and more famous region with a long history in the specialty coffee market. West Arsi has more recently begun receiving recognition as its own unique terroir, after winning four out of ten of the top ten spots at the inaugural Ethiopian Cup of Excellence in 2020.

This lot was sourced through our partnership with Nordic Approach, an importer with a long history in Ethiopian specialty coffee and who have been working to improve farmer’s profits and increase transparency in this very complex origin. This year has been particularly difficult, with conflict in many regions and government interventions in the coffee market creating a host of problems for small farmers. Luckily, the team at Nordic Approach have both the wealth of experience and strong relationships to stay the course, resulting in another season of fantastic coffees.

  Caravan Coffee Roasters are proud members of 1% for the Planet. For more information please visit https://www.onepercentfortheplanet.org

BREWING GUIDE 

Natural Ethiopian espressos are fun to brew, in that they have so much to offer. Tight recipes and shorter shots will produce dense flavour bombs with bright acidities and a sticky weight that clings to the mouth. Wider recipes with higher liquid yields will tend to bring the coffee into focus, sacrificing a bit of that weight for increased clarity and florality. Try a starting recipe of 18g to 40g in 30-32 seconds, adjusting to taste, and have fun with it!