Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Adado Ltd Edition Coffee

ETHIOPIA YIRGACHEFFE ADADO - LIMITED EDITION COFFEE

Yirgacheffe Adado is an expertly grown and processed coffee, a wonderful entry added to the great history of Ethiopian coffee.

In Ethiopia, coffee is more than a drink, it is a way to connect and celebrate with friends and family. To sit down at a coffee ceremony is to leave all other distractions behind, and spend time with those around you, enjoying a beautiful brew.

COFFEE ORIGIN PROFILE

Country: Ethiopia
Region: Adado Washing Station, Yirgacheffe
Producers: 400+ smallholders
Varietals: heirloom, JARC varieties, local landraces
Process: natural
Altitude: 1,795 - 2,150m above sea level.

The name “Yirgacheffe” will be familiar to most coffee fans as the home of coffee, where the trees grow wild. This zone in the south of Ethiopia is so tied up in the story of coffee that it has achieved an almost mythical status. And for good reason! Not only is Yirgacheffe historically important, the coffee itself is beautiful. Yirgacheffe harvests are renowned for strong floral notes in the fragrance, spice and fruit in the cup.

Adado is a microclimate within this zone. A small valley tucked up in the highlands, where a fine mist swathes the rainforest, lingering all through the day. Small patches of the tallest trees peak through the fog, creating the effect of islands floating in a pale grey sea.

This lush landscape is home to a community of Gedeo people, who grow coffee alongside food crops like enset. Most Gedeo families are working less than a hectare each – over 400 individual harvests are combined to create a community crop ready for sale.

TASTING NOTES

Yirgacheffe Adado adopts a distinct blackcurrant and spicy fruit flavour profile, the taste of spice enriched with warm cinnamon and nutmeg, which provides an impression of earthy sweetness.

In the cup, the rich cherry aromatics evoke a sweet character, the cherry joined by blackcurrant and grape to create an overall fruitiness that was juicy and rich, tempered with a little natural tartness.

A sweet red apple finish left a clean feel on the palate after tasting, and overall the Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Adado comes through as a well balanced, rounded coffee. Medium bodied, with just that hint of tart acidity, it’s very easy to drink and tastes beautifully crisp and clean – a testament to the expert processing by the producers at the Adado mill.

BREW RECOMMENDATIONS

Ethiopia is always a strong choice of origin for a black coffee drinker. As a short black, the concentration of fruit flavours makes for a burst of intensity, with a wonderfully smooth aftertaste. In a long black the flavours are a little more diluted, but the cinnamon, red apple and blackcurrant carry well in the cup, giving sweetness and spice in well proportioned measure.

Add milk to your espresso shot for a latte or flat white and the fruit becomes even softer, rounder, and the spice moves into the finish.

Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Adado shines in filter mode. Whether it’s a batch, or a hand poured V60, it takes on that slight floral character the region is renowned for, and the fruit notes really sit up and demand your attention.

COFFEE CUPPING DETAILS

Score: 86/100
Flavour: blackcurrant, spiced fruit
Aroma: rich cherry
Acidity: medium
Body: medium
Aftertaste: red apple.