Photo courtesy of Klatch Coffee.
Ethiopian Kochere Grade.1 (Natural): Yes, a Grade 1 Natural! Hands down, the cleanest and best Ethiopian Natural I have ever tried. The sorting and hand labor prove themselves in the cup. On the nose, we get a combination of flowers and mixed fruit. In the cup, all that and more. The most prominent fruit is strawberry, both a strawberry cream and cobbler. To that we also get rose tea, cascara, blackberry custard, mascarpone cheesecake, and dried apricots. While cupping with a group of coffee enthusiasts, one cupper said it reminded him of our Don Pache Natural Geisha. Now that's something to klatch about.
Ethiopia Kochere: While traveling in East Africa earlier this year and attending the African Fine Coffee Association in Uganda, the best coffee I cupped from Kenya or Uganda came from Ethiopia. It was here under a tent outside in the rain that I first tasted the best Ethiopian washed I had cupped in years and my first Gr 1 Natural, that's right..... a Gr 1 Natural. The washed was a true traditional but ultra clean washed Yirgacheffe with tons of floral notes. Everything you hope for and rarely find. The Natural on the other had was a mind blower. This is the cleanest Natural I have ever tasted. In asking questions, I found both (the washed and natural) started with only ripe fruit, something we take for granted in some countries but are still educating those in Ethiopia. For this, the farmers (mostly all very small land holders or garden farmers who maybe have one bag of cherry) are paid a premium. Next, the cherry is sorted by hand and processed as either washed or natural. Both receive special preparation of screening, sorting, and even more hand sorting. These are both labor intensive and the proof is in the cup......so clean.
The growing conditions, elevation, and terrior in Yirgecheffe produce a great flavor, the picking and processing provide only the best of them. Most often coffee from Ethiopia is evaluated with Gr 1 being the best. Typically the best washed coffees are Gr 1 or Gr 2. Natural processed coffee does not look as clean as its washed counterpart and used to begin at Gr 3 to Gr 5. Last year some buyers from Japan wanted a cleaner and better natural bean so they convinced our partner in Ethiopia to screen and sort the best natural processed coffee to that of Gr 1 and the result was our Gr 1 Natural Kochere. Call it timing, luck or hard work, we were able to find this special prep and even cup the various lots to get only the best of the best for our customers here at Klatch. Try for yourself and see what the best Gr 1 Kochere has to offer.
REGION: Yirgacheffe
VARIETAL: Heirloom
FARM: District Zonegediyo, District Irgacheffe
ALTITUDE: 1800-2000 M
FARMER: Various
ROAST: Medium
NOTES: Natural
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