Yirgacheffe at a Glance

• Recognized as: a district character flavor, set apart for exceptional citrus and floral notes
• Acidity: fine
• Cup: bright acidity, medium body
• Altitude: 1,770–2,200 m
• Raw bean: uniform, thick, medium to bold, oval in shape, and compact

About the Yirgacheffe Region

Yirgacheffe is part of the Sidamo region in southern Ethiopia. Its exquisite washed coffees are so well known that it has been sub-divided into its own micro-region. This steep, green area is both fertile and high, and much of the coffee grows at 2,000 m and above.

“Its exquisite washed coffees are so well known that it has been sub-divided into its own micro-region.”

At first glance, Yirgacheffe’s hills look thickly forested. In fact it is a heavily populated region, and the hills are dotted with many dwellings and villages growing what is known as “garden coffee.” The numbers give a sense of scale:

• Approximately 26 cooperatives in the region
• Some 43,794 farmers represented
• Around 62,004 hectares of garden coffee

Production is predominantly washed, although a smaller amount of sun-dried coffee also comes out of Yirgacheffe.

Garden Coffee and Rural Life

Around 85 percent of Ethiopians still live rurally and make a living from agriculture. Each family usually lives in a modest home, often a single round mud hut, and farms its own plot of land, growing both cash crops and food for its own consumption.

In Yirgacheffe, coffee is one of the main cash crops, covering anywhere from half a hectare to 1.5 hectares (the latter is considered big). It is usually planted alongside a second crop: “false banana” (enset), a large-leafed tree used in making roofs that also provides shade for the coffee.

False banana looks like a banana tree but isn’t. Its thick stem is used to produce both a nutritious flour and a fermented paste that are staple ingredients, particularly across southern Ethiopia.

Harvest and Processing

There is only one main harvest a year in Ethiopia, usually in November and December across all of the country’s growing regions. On average, 4 passes are made during the harvest period, and in regions that produce both washed and natural coffees, the last pass is used for the natural coffee.

How Washed Coffee Is Made

Washed coffees are generally pulped on the same day they are picked, usually in the evening or at night. They are then:

1. Sorted into three grades by weight: heavy, medium, and floaters.
2. Fermented, with times that vary, usually between 16 and 48 hours.
3. Washed, and usually graded again in the washing channels.
4. Dried on African beds, where the beans are hand-sorted, usually by women.