Ethiopia Sidamo Awash River Natural – Raw coffee

Ethiopia Sidamo Awash River Coffee
Awash River is a carefully selected coffee from smallholder farmers who grow their coffee along the Awash River in the Sidamo region of southern Ethiopia. These farmers depend on the great river and its many tributaries to grow coffee and support their communities.

To get started with roasting , you can follow this guide.

The Awash River cuts through almost 120 miles of Ethiopia’s Great Rift Valley and is a vital source of water for millions of people. Archaeologists believe that people have lived along the river since the beginning of time. Known as the ‘cradle of humanity’, the central Awash is home to some of the most important archaeological discoveries in history, including perhaps the most famous hominid fossil ever: ‘Lucy’.
In a poetic way, Ethiopia is also the birthplace of arabica coffee. When farmers started harvesting the wild forest coffee in southern Ethiopia, they also started growing it on their own land. Despite this, wild coffee can still be found all over Ethiopia, represented by thousands of distinct varieties, many of which are still grown by farmers in Sidamo to this day.

The region
The Sidamo and Yirgacheffe regions have developed a reputation for producing some of the world’s most sought-after coffee varieties. With the river as a rich source of clean water, together with high altitude, fertile soil and abundant sunshine, the perfect conditions are created for growing arabica coffee. The heirloom Arabica varieties, which still grow wild in Ethiopia, contribute to a uniquely beautiful flavor profile characterized by notes of tropical fruits, stone fruits and light floral notes.

The process
This coffee is naturally processed, which means that ripe coffee berries are dried in the sun on patios and raised African beds for about 12-15 days, depending on the surrounding conditions. This sun-drying process allows many of the sugars in the flesh of the berries to be transferred to the bean, giving the cup complex tropical fruit flavors. The raised beds provide airflow to facilitate an even drying process, while the berries are also turned periodically to prevent mold and covered at night to protect against rain and moisture. Once the ideal moisture content is reached, the dried berries are allowed to rest in a cool environment before being peeled, graded and hand-picked for export.