How Does Coffee Process Shape Yirgacheffe Red Cherry Flavor?

Front Street carries two Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffees at G1 grade, one natural and one red honey, and the coffee process separates them in the cup. Red Cherry is not a cooperative but a quality program started by Dutch green bean trader Trabocca, which raises purchase prices so farmers pick more selectively and Ethiopian coffee quality rises.

Both lots share Yirgacheffe's citrus fruit tone, which does not vanish when the brewing method changes unless the beans are stale. A comparative test of one-pour and three-stage pouring shows the difference lies in intensity and mouthfeel layering rather than a dramatic shift in flavor direction, so method is one variable among variety, processing, altitude and roasting.

Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee beans have always been a star product on Front Street Coffee's bean list, but many enthusiasts are not familiar with the story behind them. Red Cherry is not the name of a cooperative, but a quality promotion program initiated by the Dutch green bean trader Trabocca, which encourages coffee farmers to pick carefully by raising purchase prices, thereby improving the overall quality of Ethiopian coffee. Front Street Coffee currently has two Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffees, using natural and red honey processing respectively, both at G1 grade. This article will start from the terroir of the producing area, the operation of the Red Cherry program, and the differences in processing methods and roasting, and through a comparative brewing experiment of one-pour and three-stage pouring, analyze in detail how different methods affect the flavor direction and mouthfeel layers of this bean, helping readers more comprehensively understand the style potential and brewing variables of this bean.

Front Street Coffee has a Front Street Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee bean on its bean list. Customers who often visit Front Street stores know that we have several Front Street Yirgacheffe coffee beans from different cooperatives or processing plants. So some people ask: "Is Red Cherry also a cooperative?" In fact, Red Cherry is a commercial program aimed at improving coffee quality, initiated by the Dutch green bean trader Trabocca. The implementation of this program has ensured the quality of Ethiopian coffee and increased the income of coffee farmers. Front Street Coffee has mentioned in previous articles that the assurance of coffee quality involves multiple dimensions, which can generally be summarized into four main aspects: variety, processing method, altitude, and roasting. Therefore, when you drink a cup of good coffee, you might as well break it down from these angles.

Every time Front Street Coffee receives a batch of roasted beans, it repeatedly tastes them using multiple brewing methods to find their best flavor expression. Some people think that adjusting the method has little effect. Indeed, the changes will not be particularly dramatic, especially for the signature citrus fruit tone of Front Street Yirgacheffe, which is hard to completely disappear just because of a change in method (unless the beans are not fresh), but the intensity of the tone will increase or decrease, and many details will also change accordingly. Front Street has always believed that coffee is a food that needs to be tasted slowly and calmly; only in this way can you capture every subtle change it brings in the mouth.

Yirgacheffe Producing Area

Yirgacheffe is a small town in Ethiopia, with an altitude between 1,700 and 2,100 meters. It is one of the highest coffee-producing areas in the world and also synonymous with Ethiopian specialty coffee. Lake Turkana, Lake Abaya, and Lake Chamo bring abundant moisture here. In the rift valley area represented by the Misty Valley, fog lingers all year round, the seasons are like spring, the breeze is gentle, and it is cool and humid. Thousands of coffee trees grow vigorously here, giving birth to the unique terroir of Front Street Yirgacheffe, where floral and fruity aromas interweave and change unpredictably.

Initially, Yirgacheffe coffee trees in Ethiopia were planted by European monastery scholars (similar to Belgian monks growing wheat to brew beer), and later farmers or cooperatives took charge. Coffee trees are naturally scattered in forests, fields, and backyards. During the harvest season, Ethiopian coffee trading companies go to the town to purchase coffee beans collected by farmers, and finally auction and export them under the "Yirgacheffe" brand.

Red Cherry Program

Trabocca realized that the quality of Ethiopian coffee beans was uneven, it was difficult to raise prices, and coffee farmers' incomes were not high. To turn the situation around, they jointly launched the Red Cherry program with local coffee farmers to solve the problem from the source: by increasing the purchase price of high-quality green beans, coffee farmers are motivated to complete every step such as picking and processing more carefully. During the picking stage, all work is done manually, and only highly ripe fruits are selected. Front Street Coffee believes that the specialty coffee currently launched by other countries can basically also be classified under the Red Cherry model, because the operating logic is exactly the same.

The Red Cherry program is also a reinforcement practice, prompting farms to invest more energy in screening and sorting beans. These coffees are relatively high in price. The main implementation areas include Yirgacheffe, Sidamo, Bonga Forest, Lekempti, Kembata, Illubabor, Harar, Limu, etc. These producing areas have unique flavors and can fully display the flavor of Ethiopian coffee.

Yirgacheffe Red Cherry Coffee Grade

ECX (Ethiopian Commodity Exchange) defines coffee bean grades according to defect rate, divided into G1 and G2. G1 means no more than 3 defective beans per 300g of green beans, and G2 means 4 to 12 defective beans per 300g of green beans. Front Street Coffee currently has two Front Street Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee beans, both at G1 grade.

The picture above shows two Front Street Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee beans with different processing methods.

Front Street Coffee currently has two Front Street Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee beans using different processing methods, namely red honey processing and natural processing.

Aricha Processing Plant

Each small coffee farmer at the Aricha Processing Plant owns an average planting area of about 0.6 hectares. It is composed of hundreds of coffee farmers. The planting altitude is close to 2,000 meters, the climate temperature difference is large, and the soil is fertile, providing an excellent growing environment. Idido Cooperative

The Idido Cooperative (IDIDO) is one of the members of the Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (YCFCU). YCFCU was established in 2002 and has 24 primary cooperatives and about 50,000 farmers. The Idido Cooperative is located in a high-altitude valley in Yirgacheffe town, with annual rainfall of about 1,400 to 1,800 millimeters. Local small farmers grow coffee at an altitude of about 2,000 meters. The cool mountain air allows the coffee to mature slowly, and small farmers harvest fully ripe red cherries from December to February of the following year.

Natural Processing Method

After the processing plant screens usable coffee cherries, it places coffee cherries with the whole fruit pulp and skin completely retained on raised beds for natural sun drying. This raised-bed drying method, which requires intensive manual labor, isolates the coffee from contact with the ground, prevents earthy off-flavors during sun drying, and creates an exceptionally clean fruit flavor. After more than two weeks of sun drying, the dark brown coffee fruits are professionally stored, waiting for the overall flavor to mature. Only before shipment does the processing plant remove the coffee beans from the coffee cherries. The sweetness can be imagined.

Red Honey Processing Method

The so-called honey processing is the process of making green beans by drying them with mucilage in the sun. After the outer pulp of the coffee bean is removed, a sticky gelatinous layer remains. Traditional washed processing uses clean water to wash it off, but because water resources are limited in some high-altitude producing areas, this direct drying method was created. The pectin mucilage part is the part with the highest sugar content in the coffee fruit and is also an important component of coffee processing fermentation. It can be said that this part determines 80% of the nutrient supply during processing.

Yellow honey retains 60% of the pectin, red honey retains 75% of the pectin, and black honey removes almost no pectin. Roasting Comparison

Front Street Coffee uses a light roast method to roast these two Front Street Red Cherry coffee beans, but due to different processing methods, the roasting parameters also differ. By continuously adjusting parameters, Front Street Coffee finally determined the following roasting curves.

Front Street Coffee Natural Red Cherry Roasting Curve

Front Street Coffee Red Honey Red Cherry Roasting Curve

How Front Street Coffee Brews

When brewing these two Front Street Yirgacheffe beans, Front Street Coffee tries to keep the method and parameters consistent to avoid affecting the final judgment.

Brewing parameters: V60 dripper, 91–92°C water temperature, 15g coffee powder, 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, grind size like fine granulated sugar (80% passing through China standard No. 20 sieve).

Brewing method: staged extraction. Use 30g of water for blooming for 30 seconds, then pour in a small stream in circles until 125g for the stage break. When the water level is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring until 225g and stop pouring. When the water level is about to expose the coffee bed again, remove the dripper. The extraction time (starting from the beginning of blooming) is 2'00''.

Flavor Comparison

[Front Street Yirgacheffe Red Cherry Natural G1] The entrance has an obvious sweet-and-sour sensation, with lemon, berry, and fermented wine aromas. The lemony acidity in the aftertaste is lasting, and the sweet return is obvious.

[Front Street Yirgacheffe Red Cherry Red Honey G1] On the palate, obvious floral aromas can be tasted, with citrus, almond, and berries. The overall floral and citrus tones are obvious, and the sweet aftertaste is lasting.

Front Street Coffee believes that the difference between these two Front Street Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffees is: Front Street Natural Red Cherry has obvious berry and ripe fruit sweet-and-sour sensations, and a thicker mouthfeel; while Front Street Red Honey Red Cherry has more obvious floral, citrus, and almond aromas, a somewhat thinner body and layering, but richer flavor layers. Front Street uses different brewing methods to brew Front Street Natural Red Cherry.

Front Street Coffee used two different brewing methods to brew Front Street Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee beans, namely one-pour and three-stage pouring. Let's see how different methods affect the coffee flavor. First, let's understand what one-pour and three-stage pouring are.

One-pour: After blooming ends, pour all the water at once until finished, without interruption in between. The taste is balanced, the flavor is prominent, and it saves a lot of time for cafe service.

Three-stage pouring: Also called three-pour, the first stage is blooming, then two more stages of pouring are used for extraction. Compared with one-pour, the taste has richer layering.

[Brewing Parameters and Methods]

The brewing parameters selected by Front Street Coffee are uniformly: Hario V60, coffee-to-water ratio 1:15, water temperature 90°C, grind size like fine granulated sugar (80% passing through China standard No. 20 sieve).

One point that needs to be mentioned is that regarding grind size, Front Street Coffee uses a Baratza Encore grinder. Even for grinders of the same brand, the grinding situation can still differ. Front Street Coffee re-sifts the grounds every so often to see whether the grind size needs adjustment.

In terms of brewing method, the amount of water Front Street Coffee uses for blooming is twice the amount of coffee powder, that is, 30g of water for blooming, and the blooming time is 30 seconds. The coffee-to-water ratio is 1:15, so the total pouring amount is 225g. The main function of blooming is to help the coffee beans degas. During the roasting process from green beans to roasted beans, a series of chemical reactions and physical changes occur. After reaching a certain degree of roasting, a large amount of gas (mostly carbon dioxide) accumulates inside the coffee beans. Front Street Coffee's coffee beans are all freshly roasted, so customers are generally advised to rest the beans for three days first, allowing the coffee beans to release carbon dioxide first, which can avoid the problems of instability and under-extraction during brewing.

One-pour: After blooming ends, pour directly until 225g. Total pouring time is 2 minutes (including blooming time).

Three-stage pouring: After blooming ends, pour the second stage until 125g for the break, then finally pour until 225g and stop. Total pouring time is 2 minutes (including blooming time).

[Front Street Yirgacheffe Red Cherry Coffee Flavor Description]

One-pour brewing flavor: The overall feeling is relatively soft, the aroma is quite obvious, with lemon, floral, and ripe orange aromas. On the palate, the nutty flavor is obvious, with citrus and plum acidity, and the sweet return has caramel and cocoa notes.

Three-stage pouring flavor: The overall taste has distinct layers, the aroma is quite obvious, with lemon, floral, and fermented wine aromas. On the palate, there is a full juice sensation, citrus and lemon acidity, a weaker nutty flavor, and a honey note in the sweet return.

Front Street Coffee found that because one-pour uses more water-column agitation and extracts faster, it has more nutty flavor and thinner layering. Staged extraction, because of less water-column agitation, although there is soaking time, the water flow also quickly seeps through the filter paper and flows down, so the extracted flavor is more balanced, with aroma, ripe fruit, and nutty flavors clearly layered.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.