Ethiopia | Gara Agena | Washed Heirloom (Special Prep)

Description

The Gara Agena Washing Station is located near the Geta River in the Bura district of Sidama. Cherries are picked ripe and immersed in water to remove floaters. They are then soaked for 8 hours. Once the soaking is complete, the cherries are depulped and then fermented for precisely 36 hours. The parchment coffee is then dried on raised beds that are placed in a well-ventilated, shaded area for a 21-day drying period. With the special prep (what the producers generally call “Premium” in Ethiopia) the cherries are collected from a limited number of small-holder farmers.  90% of the cherries are perfectly picked, the right red color. 5% semi red and 5% overripe.  All of it is processed and stored it separately from the other lots. They generally produce a very small number of bags in this way every year.  In most instances, cherries used to produce these lots are collected from a day lot (picked in one day).  The process of producing Washed coffees in Ethiopia will vary slightly from washing station to washing station, but generally speaking the coffee is picked ripe and depulped the same day. There is usually a fermentation period of 8–12 hours in open-air tanks, then washed in water channels to remove the mucilage. The coffee seeds will be spread on raised beds to dry for 5–15 days, depending on the weather.