Welcome to part two of our coffee regions tour. In the first part of the series, we explored the vibrant and often citrus-driven coffees of the Americas. Now, we venture to Africa, where the story of coffee began. Prepare for a sensory shift, as we encounter a spectrum of flavors ranging from bright and fruity to deeply complex and nuanced.
Ethiopia
It’s only fitting we start our journey in Ethiopia – the birthplace of coffee. Legend has it, a goat herder in the Ethiopian highlands observed his goats becoming unusually energetic after consuming certain berries. This serendipitous discovery gave rise to the beverage we know and love today.
Ethiopian coffees are renowned for their complexity and brightness. The country boasts a diverse landscape of coffee-growing regions, each contributing its unique character to the overall flavor profile. The renowned washed coffees of the Yirgacheffe region in the South are famous for their delicate floral and jasmine-like notes complimented with bright berry and lemon undertones. In contrast the spicy, winey and often dark fruit forward offerings from Harrar in the East are typically processed naturally. Farmer Brothers’ new Project Direct Kochere Ethiopia, showcases these floral and bright citrus notes with great clarity.
Uganda
Just to the Southwest of Ethiopia lies Uganda, another country which utilizes both washed and natural processing methods. Coffee production spans across the country from the central lowlands where Robusta grows to the Rwenzori Mountains in the West, which are known for their natural-processed coffees, to Mount Elgon in the East, a region renowned for washed coffees.
At Farmer Brothers, we focus on naturally processed Ugandan coffees, which often exhibit earthy notes of cinnamon, clove and cedarwood, while still showcasing ripe dark fruit flavors, such as prune or berries. We commonly utilize naturally processed Ugandan coffees to provide a touch of sweetness with those fruit notes to round out several of our branded offerings.
Burundi
Our final stop in Africa is Burundi. Most coffee is grown down the center of the country, most commonly in the regions of Gitega, Kayanza and Ngozi. While Burundi produces coffee using various methods, washed processing is its area of expertise utilizing central washing stations for the processing of these excellent coffees.
Farmer Brothers partners with JNP Coffee. While they provide coffees from all over the country, our partnership focuses on the specific group Called Turihamwe or “together” in local Kirundi. Located in the Ngozi province this group of women coffee producers provide Farmer Brothers with some of the most exquisite, washed coffee we see out of Africa. Full of stone fruit and berries with intense brown sugar sweetness each cup brings us back for more.
As you can see there is a shift in flavor profiles as we traverse the globe. African coffees often are more fruit forward with dynamic and complex flavors providing small burst intensity in blends or shining as single origins for those who seek something different.