Ethiopia Halo Beriti Natural

Coffee nerds and professionals the world over often have similar stories about how and why they found themselves first getting into specialty coffee. More often than not, the obsession begins with a cup of Ethiopian natural processed coffee that changes their view on what coffee is, or rather what it can be. This is no different for a lot of our team members here at Topeca and for years we have strived to source the very best Ethiopian coffees we can find. Though admittedly in the last several years, the classic “blueberry bomb” Ethiopian coffees have been elusive, if not impossible to find, our efforts to track down incredible offerings has not wavered. The face of coffee production in Ethiopia has been dynamic to say the least, in order to get a better understanding as to why, we recommend reading the essay, “March Forward, Dear Mother Ethiopia” by Christopher Feran. While it is perhaps not a complete and definitive diagnosis of why the flavor profiles of Ethiopian coffee have changed, it is an important document for those who would like to learn more about the subject.  Our efforts to find cost effective and well rounded Ethiopian natural coffee to share with our community have continued. While this year, we sampled over a score of offerings from different regions of coffee’s native country, we found ourselves returning to a grade one natural from the Kayon Mountain farm in Shakiso. Within Ethiopia, the larger region of Oromia is further broken down into what is known as the Guji zone where hundreds of farms and family smallholdings grow coffee as a cash crop. The Kayon Mountain farm is a single estate farm that is located in the town of Shakiso, which is where this coffee is grown and processed for export. We have been sourcing from the Kayon Mountain farm for the last five years and have been pleased with the consistency they have achieved. While the Guji region is home to some of the most prolific specialty coffee the world over, Kayon Mountain has become a powerhouse in producing the sort of coffee we can rely on from crop to crop, year after year. As usual, we will be offering this coffee year round, but this is the best time to snag a bag since it is at peak freshness, having landed in the states less than a month ago. _ Kayon Mountain Farm is a single farm estate owned and operated by a single proprietor. This proprietor is Ismael Hassen Aredo, who along with his family, has been running the organic certified farm since 2012.  Ismael oversees a staff of 25 permanent full-time and 300 seasonal employees, and the farm management offers free transportation services as well as financial support for building schools and administration buildings for the community. The farm competes with a nearby mining village for seasonal workers, so Ismael and his family tend to pay higher wages to their pickers in order to incentivize them returning year after year.  Kayon Mountain farm has a nursery on-site and utilizes shade (acacia and other indigenous trees) to protect the coffee as well as for creating compost to fertilize naturally. Ismael is meticulous about not only the structure and management of the farm itself but also the harvesting and processing. Both Natural and Washed lots are produced on the property. One advantage of a single estate coffee over community lots, is the ability to oversee qualities at every stage from nursery to the wet mill. And Ismael does so meticulously, separating lots for quality and full traceability.  In the cup, expect exactly what you want from a top quality fruit dried Ethiopian coffee. A burst of floral and berry aromas, fruity acidity, syrupy body, and lasting sweet finish.  Terroir Information – Single Origin Producer/Mill Ismael Hassen Aredo, Kayon Mt. Farm Region Guji Zone, Shakiso, Ethiopia Altitude 2100 masl Cultivar(s) Indigenous Heirloom Varieties Processing Method Cherry sorted at wet mill, fruit-dried (natural)  Please note, if you are signing up for a subscription for our Ethiopian coffee, the farm/lot name may change throughout the year as we receive new harvest lots. We aim to source lots with similar flavor profiles harvest to harvest.