Ethiopia Keramo Sidama

Tasting Notes: Mountain Berry Pancakes

Origin: Ethiopia

Region: Sidama, Bensa, Keramo Village

Farm: 381 smallholder farmers delivering to Keramo Daye Bensa Washing Station

Process: Natural

Variety: Heirloom Ethiopian Varieties

Elevation: 2260 – 2360 masl

Exporter: Daye Bensa

Importer: Cafe Imports

This offering comes to us from the Keramo Daye Bensa Washing Station in the village of Keramo, Sidama. Operated by brothers Asefa and Mulugeta Dukamo, the washing station serves about 381 smallholder farmers who have gained a reputation for their attention to picking only ripe, red cherries. In 2020 Daye Bensa won a Cup of Excellence award for their coffee.

Keramo and its surrounding farms sit at very high elevations close to 2300 masl allowing the coffee cherries to ripen very slowly due to the cool temperatures. This produces small, dense coffee seeds with a high sugar content and resultant sweetness in the cup. The naturals here are dried for 15-20 days (weather dependent) on 25 meter-long raised beds.

This is the quintessential naturally processed Ethiopian coffee. Loads of fruity sweetness and instantly identifiable. In the cup we taste mixed berries and sweet bread. Like fluffy warm pancakes made with a mix of freshly foraged wild mountain berries on a sunny summer morning.