Ethiopia - Danche Chelbesa
cup profile.
peach | orange creamsicle | vanilla
This Danche Chelbesa offers a classic Yirgacheffe Washed process profile. This silky clean cup has notes of fresh peach and sweet citrus, with a vanilla wafer finish.
about the region.
Yirgacheffe is one of the most highly regarded coffee producing regions in the world, known for the quality and clean fruit profiles of its coffees. Danche Chelbesa is in the Gedeb sub-region, which borders Chelchele, Hambella and Guji. Surrounded by forests and supplied by fresh water streams the fertile soils in this part of Yirgacheffe are ideal for Arabica coffee cultivation.
Ethiopia is the birthplace of specialty coffee and several factors combine to produce the unique profiles found here. First, the high altitude in Ethiopia is ideal for Arabica - the coffee from Danche Chelbesa is grown between 2200-2300 metres above sea level. The colder night-time temperatures stress the plant, drawing out the ripening time and increasing both sweetness and complexity. Second, the heirloom varieties grown here offer floral and fruit notes with high levels of clarity and complexity. Third, washing stations that collect cherries from the community specialize in sorting and processing coffee. Both washed and natural processes are dialled to specific controls and raised drying beds provide a slow and even drying that contributes not only to quality but also the longevity of the green unroasted coffee.
about the washing station.
Danche Chelbesa is one of our export partner’s smallest washing stations, yet among the most popular for its distinctive flavor characteristics and consistently high quality. Around 300 local farmers deliver ripe cherries the day they are harvested directly to the station, where they are paid in cash.
The cherries are immediately sorted before being pulped and washed with clear running water. To remove the sticky fruit mucilage the coffee is fermented in water for 36–48 hours, then fully washed to remove any fruit material from the parchment before drying on raised beds for 7-10 days. The clean parchment is spread in thin layers and frequently moved to ensure even drying until reaching 11.5% moisture content. The combination of diverse heirloom varieties, meticulous processing, and high elevation results in this Danche Chelbesa’s sweet and bright cup profile.
