This fully washed lot is from Konga Sede washing station, owned and operated by husband and wife team Frehiwot and Gisaw Mekonnen in Konga, Yirgacheffe district.
This coffee is named in celebration of the Ethiopian Wolf (AKA the Simien fox or Red Jackal), known in the Amharic language as Ky kebero.
The Ethiopian wolf is Africa's most endangered carnivore and one of the world's rarest canids with just 500 individuals left in the wild, with the largest population of around 150 located in the Bale Mountains west of Yirgacheffe.
Konga kebele (village) is located in Yirgacheffe district and processes cherries from local smallholder farmers cultivating between 1,800 and 1,900masl. The station includes 10 standardised fermentation tanks and 215 drying beds. Coffee trees are typically shaded by Cordia and Acacia and the predominant varietals are known locally as Kumie, Diga & Wilsho.
Over a number of years this region has developed a distinguished reputation for fine coffees, producing some of the most sought-after microlots in world. The combination of high altitude (up to 2,200m in some areas), fertile soil, consistent and plentiful rains, and an abundance of local knowledge are all contributing factors to the high status of these coffees. The indigenous ‘heirloom’ varietals - which grow wild in Ethiopia - are responsible for the unique flavour notes which make for an unusual but refined cup characterised by strong citric acidity, stone fruits, sweet chocolate and floral/herbal notes of lavender, jasmine, bergamot and hops.
This coffee utilises a traditional fully washed process, whereby ripe cherries are carefully selected via handpicking and floatation, de-pulped on the day of harvest, fermented for 36-48 hours and then thoroughly washed in clean water grading channels to remove any remaining mucilage.
The coffee, still in its husk (parchment) is then dried in the sun on raised African beds for 12-15 days depending on ambient conditions. In the daytime the parchment needs to be raked and turned periodically to ensure a consistent drying process. The coffee is also covered between 12pm and 3pm to protect it from the hot sun, and at night time to protect it from rainfall and moisture. Once the coffee has dried to the right level it is transported to Addis Ababa for dry-milling, grading, intensive sorting and handpicking, before being bagged in GrainPro for export.
Ethiopia first started exporting coffee in the 15th century. It was brought by Somali merchants to Yemen for Sufi mystics, as they drank it to concentrate better on their chanting. Today, coffee export makes up around 70% of the county's export earnings, and it is estimated that a quarter of the Ethiopian population works within the coffee industry.
Almost all coffee is grown on small farms, or ''garden coffees'' that cover less than a hectare and producing around 300kg of coffee per year. This is also one of the only countries with wild grown coffee that is harvested from native forest trees. Even the famous Geisha varietal can be found growing wild here.
Ethiopia is famous for producing incredible sun dried naturally processed coffees. However, over half of all Ethiopian coffee is processed using this method. The coffee cherry is pulped to removed the fruit, fermented and then washed.
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