Ethiopia Agaro Gera Washed Espresso

GERA, DJIMMA
Djimma is one of Ethiopia’s largest coffee-growing regions. The people here are Oromo, one of the country’s oldest and most populous groups, and speak dialects of Oromifa. This lot comes from the Gera district. Reaching the washing station takes a flight to Addis Ababa, a 40-minute local flight to Djimma, and a four-hour drive.

AT THE WASHING STATION
Producers live close by — no more than 20 minutes away. As the paved roads turn to dirt, they bring their cherries in by motorcycle, horse, or donkey to nearby collection centers, where trucks carry them on to the central station. Farmers intercrop their coffee with native shade trees like banana, which help feed the soil, and the collection centers turn cherry waste into organic compost to return to the producers. At the station, the coffee ferments for 48 to 72 hours in cement tanks, then dries up to 10 days under parabolic covers, depending on the weather.