Chelbessa G1, Ethiopia

Origin

• 🇪🇹 Ethiopia· Yirgacheffe

Tasting notes

Character

• Funky
  20

Region: Gedeb, Yirgacheffe Producer: SmallholderSmallholderA farmer growing coffee on a small family plot — often under two hectares. Most of the world's coffee is grown this way, typically pooled at cooperatives or washing stations. Farmers Altitude: 1900 - 2400 MASL Process: NaturalNatural processThe whole cherry is dried with the fruit still on the seed. Gives heavier body and big fruit flavors — think berries and wine — sometimes with a fermenty edge. VarietyVariety (cultivar)The botanical subtype of the coffee plant — Gesha, Bourbon, SL28 — analogous to grape varieties in wine. A major driver of cup character alongside origin and process.: HeirloomHeirloom (Ethiopia)A catch-all label for Ethiopia's thousands of indigenous, largely uncatalogued coffee varieties — used when a lot's exact genetics are unknown. Tasting NotesTasting notesThe flavors a roaster perceives in the cup — 'jasmine, apricot, black tea'. Descriptive associations, not ingredients: nothing is added to the coffee.: Cooked Blackberry, Apricot, Stonefruit About Chelbessa G1 Ethiopia is one of the most prized coffee-producing countries, known not only as the birthplace of Arabica coffee but also for its deep-rooted coffee culture, distinct from most producing regions where coffee was introduced as a cash crop through colonisation in the past. For centuries, Ethiopians have cultivated and consumed coffee as part of daily life, first harvesting from wild forest-grown trees and later growing it on their own land. While some large private estates exist, the majority of Ethiopian coffee farmers today are smallholders who cultivate coffee on small plots alongside other subsistence crops. Most grow limited volumes for commercial sale, and their freshly harvested cherries are typically combined with those of other producers when delivered to a local washing stationWashing stationA central mill where many smallholder farmers deliver cherry for processing. In Ethiopia, Kenya, and Rwanda the station name (e.g. Idido) often identifies the coffee.. Coffee in Ethiopia is generally shade-grown under organic conditions, as farmers often lack access to chemical fertilisers or pesticides. Cultivation takes place between 1,600 and 2,400 meters above sea level in the southern highlands. After harvest, cherries are delivered to nearby washing stations or central processing units to be sorted, weighed, and recorded before payment. Because cherries are combined into daily lots, tracing specific smallholders to a particular batch is nearly impossible. However, it has become increasingly common for buyers to build relationships with specific washing stations, ensuring consistent profiles and continuous quality improvement year after year. This coffee comes from the Chelbessa Washing Station in Yirgacheffe, one of the largest kebeles, or villages, in the Gedeb district. Chelbessa receives coffee from nearly 500 farmers in the area. Like most stations in the region, it is equipped with raised African drying beds used for natural processing, one of the