Dear subscriber,
This month we are sending out my favourite coffee so far in 2026: the washed coffee from Echemo. It is tasting very intense and sweet this year and is by far the best coffee we have ever had from Khalid’s farm since we started buying from him in 2018.
The second and third bags we are sending out this month are also from Ethiopia, from Tatmara coffee plantation in Kaffa. Both of these coffees from Tatmara are from the same cultivars. The only difference between the two is the way they are fermented during the post-harvest process. This experiment came to mind during my visit to Tatmara last year. While discussing the processing protocol with Negussie, I asked him to experiment with two different fermentation methods to see if we could improve the coffee quality even further.
The differences are subtle, and you will be able to taste them in this month’s subscription if you subscribe to three or more bags.
I hope you will enjoy these floral and fruity coffees.
Echemo (1st & 4th bag)
We have been buying coffees from Khalid for many years now, but it was not until my visit to his farm in November 2023 that I was able to make an impact on the quality of his coffees. During that visit, I was able to go through his production steps to see if we could agree upon a protocol for him to follow in order to try to elevate the quality of his coffees.
As usual, there were many small details that could be improved, some with a small impact and others with a major impact on the final quality. A few of the major ones included separating every daily picking, keeping each daily lot stored in airtight GrainPro bags after drying, drying the coffees under shade nets, keeping better control of the fermentation and slightly changing the process. This meant that I was able to evaluate several samples, each representing a daily picking, instead of just 2–3 samples, as in previous years, when the coffees had been bulked together.
By doing this, we were able to remove the lower-quality lots from the higher-quality ones and, in combination with better processing and drying practices, the coffees really cleaned up and became more expressive.
The washed coffees from Echemo are normally very delicate and soft. I find that it is like drinking a white tea with some nice notes of peach and florals. It is very different from the typical Yirgacheffe or Guji coffees from the south of Ethiopia, most likely because it is grown in a different area and is from different cultivars. Having said that, the coffees from the 2025/26 harvest are by far the most intense coffees we have bought from Echemo. The aromas and flavours are much more pronounced. Expect lingering, intense stone fruit flavours and aromatic floral notes. It is almost like drinking a peach iced tea.
Tatmara - Wet Fermented (2nd & 5th bag)
In 2022, we held a fundraiser during our 15-year anniversary and collected money that we donated to Negussie in order to fund the construction of a new wet mill on his farm. The wet mill was completed in October 2023, and I was able to be there to oversee the first lot being processed at the new mill. It was very beneficial to be there right at the start of the harvest. It meant that we could see the mill in use, uncover any risks and establish a protocol for how we would like our coffees to be processed.
We asked Negussie to separate all daily pickings, to dry the coffees under shade nets and to store the coffees in airtight GrainPro bags after drying, making sure every daily picking was properly marked.
We also agreed upon the processing protocol, ensuring good results by controlling fermentation and implementing soaking of the coffee after the mucilage was mechanically removed.
During my visit last year, we suggested experimenting with two different fermentation methods at Tatmara. In recent years, Negussie had dry-fermented all his coffees, so we asked him to do some trials with wet fermentation in order to see if we could improve the coffee quality even further.
This coffee has been processed in the more traditional way in Ethiopia, which means it is wet-fermented and washed.
Wet fermentation is done by submerging the parchment coffee (with the mucilage left on) under clean and cold water during fermentation. The fermentation typically slows down due to reduced oxygen availability in the water and also due to the lower temperatures in the coffee pile during fermentation. It also makes the fermentation more uniform. The wet fermentation at Tatmara typically goes on for about 36–48 hours.
After fermentation, the coffees are washed and dried on raised beds under shade for a few days before they finish drying in the sun.
This lot consists of several daily pickings of the cultivars 74110 and 74112. Both are from seeds from the Jimma Agricultural Research Center and are among the so-called «new and improved» cultivars that are now commonly planted across Ethiopia.
Tatmara - Dry Fermented (3rd & 6th bag)
Dry fermentation means that, after de-pulping (removing the skin and pulp from the coffee beans), the coffee is fermented in a cement tank that only contains the parchment coffee with its mucilage on. Dry fermentation is quite common in Colombia, Kenya and many other coffee-producing countries. The benefits are that you use less water during fermentation and that fermentation is normally faster due to more available oxygen and higher temperatures in the pile of coffee. It can easily be controlled if the climate is not too hot, but in hot conditions, the fermentation can speed up and create undesirable flavours.
This lot consists of several pickings of both 74110 and 74112 cultivars. They were all dry-fermented for about 24 hours before being washed and dried on raised beds under shade.
