This coffee from Taferi Kela, Sidamo, Ethiopia comes to us through our friends at Bette Buna.
Bette Buna literally translates to ‘House of Coffee’ and this company has been deeply rooted in the village ever since Grandfather Syoum and Grandmother Emame asked Dawit and Hester to take over their farm, but more importantly, their responsibility for building the community of Taferi Kela. Even though this village shares a mountain range with better-known Sidamina producers, it has been overlooked so far, and no other company or industry of any type works in this area.
Coffee production in Ethiopia accounts for about a third of the country's GDP but more than 90 percent of people working in coffee don’t make a livable income. Bette Buna has set out to change that in their community. They teach their community farmers to improve their soil, grow back agro-forestry systems, and teach the importance of picking ripe cherries. Ripe cherries weigh more and produce better coffee, so the farmers get paid more by weight, and also receive a quality premium.
This particular lot was grown by community farmers in Taferi Kela and processed by Bette Buna at their washing station. It’s a classic washed Ethiopian coffee: First depulped, then fermented for 24-36 hrs depending on the temperature. Fermentation happens in concrete basins topped with water. It’s a low oxygen but not completely anaerobic environment. Next it was washed and floaters/defects removed. Then 8-15 days on raised, covered drying beds followed by rest time in the warehouse to stabilize the coffee and reach the correct moisture level. The different ‘lots’ are different processing runs that happened over the course of the season.