Aricha Ethiopia

We try not to keep coffee on the shelves for long, so if we don't have a particular coffee in stock, we have to replenish the order after the roasting day. We roast on Tuesdays and Thursdays, pack the coffee and send it out on Wednesdays and Fridays.

We present to you an unusual coffee from Ethiopia. This is our type - washed, clean tasting, thick and very fruity. Sweet as candy, with notes of marzipan and milk chocolate.

The beans come from Aricha, a small micro-region within Yirgacheffe, in the Gedeo zone, on the eastern slopes of the African Great Rift. This place has long remained outside the mainstream specialty coffee market, even though all the conditions for growing great coffee have existed here for decades: fertile soils, high altitude, old botanical varieties and farmers' knowledge. The first batches of beans labelled 'Aricha' only started to appear for export in 2019. Since then, the region has been consistently building its position.
Behind the production of this particular batch is Wete Ambela Coffee Export, a company founded by Mekuria Mercia. Mekuria did not inherit the farm or the family tradition. He started from scratch, buying beans from small producers and selling them to nearby mills. Over time, he built his own washing and drying stations in Yirgacheffe, Gedeb and Guji. Since 2018, he has been exporting his coffees himself, taking care of quality at every stage - from cherry selection to packaging the finished beans. Although today he manages an extensive infrastructure, he still emphasises that his role is to represent the interests of the farmers he works with.

Aricha is not a single farm, but the joint work of communities from several villages: Gersi, Idido, Reko Onancho and Aricha itself. Farmers deliver the ripe fruit to a local washing station, where careful processing begins. Among the crops, the classic Ethiopian varieties dominate: Wolisho, Kurume and Dega, but a difficult-to-classify mix of local varieties also often makes itself known in the cup - these are what give the coffee from this region its unique character.

Flavour-wise, this is a coffee with a pronounced sweetness, medium citrusy acidity and a sticky texture. Blueberries and milk chocolate come to the fore, with marzipan and delicate stone fruit notes in the background. The aroma is reminiscent of a berry candy. If you associate coffee from Yirgacheffe mainly with flowers and tea, Aricha shows that a different profile is also possible - more dense, more sweet, yet clean and precise.