ETHIOPIA YIRGAGEFFE ADADO | November 2023

Our November Bean of the Month, Ethiopia 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.

Here at Merlo, we love showcasing excellent Ethiopian coffees for both their outstanding flavour profiles and rich cultural significance. One of the great traditions is the toast “buna tete!” which literally means “come drink coffee!” And we are very pleased to invite you all to buna tete with us for the month of November.

COFFEE ORIGIN PROFILE

Country: Ethiopia, Central Africa
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 Yirgacheffe region in southern Ethiopia is steeped in this rich coffee history and known for its exceptional coffee quality. Within this region lies Adado, a microclimate nestled in the highlands, where a fine mist envelops the rainforest day and night.

Adado is home to a community of Gedeo people who cultivate coffee in their kitchen gardens alongside crops like enset, with most families tending to less than a hectare of land. We’re going to try and slow down and savour those moments this month, and we hope this Bean of the Month helps you do the same.

YIRGAGEFFE ADADO TASTING NOTES

Ethiopia 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 FOR THIS BEAN OF THE MONTH

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 PROFILE

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