How Should You Brew Washed and Natural Yirgacheffe Beans?

Washed and natural Yirgacheffe beans call for different brewing decisions. For the washed Gedeo Cooperative, a medium-fine grind passing about 78 percent through a No. 20 sieve, a V60 dripper, and a three-pour method bring out citrus, honey sweetness, and a clean floral character. Natural beans lean fuller and sweeter, so grind and pour are adjusted to amplify that juicy body.

Grinding too coarse leaves the full-bodied compounds behind and the cup tastes thin; grinding too fine risks over-extraction at high temperature and brings out bitterness. The V60's spiral ribs help the coffee bed degas, so acidic and aromatic compounds dissolve more readily as the bed warms. Homemade cold brew steps offer a second route to the same beans at lower temperature.

Yirgacheffe is a region beloved by many coffee enthusiasts, but washed and natural processing methods have different considerations when it comes to brewing parameters. This article starts with two beans from Front Street Coffee—the washed Gedeo Cooperative and the natural Red Cherry—and breaks down key variables in detail, including grind size, dripper selection, water temperature range, and coffee-to-water ratio, along with homemade cold brew steps. Whether you want to highlight the bright acidity and floral notes of washed beans or amplify the full-bodied sweetness and juicy character of natural beans, you'll find corresponding brewing approaches here.

Front Street Coffee. Washed Gedeo Cooperative Coffee Beans

Country: Ethiopia Region: Yirgacheffe Gedeo Zone Altitude: 1900-2300m Variety: Heirloom Processing: Washed Grade: G1

Front Street Coffee. Ethiopia Gedeo Coffee Beans Flavor Description At high temperatures, it has berry, cream, honey, citrus, and juice-like flavors with bright acidity. When the temperature drops slightly, it shows berry, cream, smooth, and citrus notes.

Let's start with the dry aroma of this bean—it smells of refreshing citrus and the fragrance of white flowers. Sipping at different temperature ranges, you can perceive clear citrus notes, honey sweetness, and a clean mouthfeel, interwoven with floral and tea-like qualities.

For grinding, Front Street Coffee recommends a medium-fine grind (78% passing through a Chinese standard No. 20 sieve).

If ground too coarse, the rich, full-bodied compounds are difficult to extract, and the coffee will taste thin. If ground too fine, it's easy to over-extract at high temperatures, and bitterness will emerge.

In terms of dripper selection, Front Street Coffee wanted to highlight the fresh, pleasant aroma of washed Yirgacheffe beans, so a V60 dripper was used for brewing.

The V60's spiral rib structure helps coffee grounds degas, allowing acidic and aromatic compounds to volatilize and dissolve as much as possible. For the brewing method, Front Street Coffee chose a three-pour extraction, with the goal of letting different flavor compounds release better as the coffee bed gradually rises in temperature.

During cupping, Front Street Coffee noticed that this bean presents different flavor expressions at different temperatures, so corresponding adjustments were made to the brewing technique.

Regarding water temperature, there are two directions to consider.

If you're after a bright, uplifting acidity with a tea-like finish, brew at 90°C-91°C. If you want fuller acidity and enhanced body, brew at 92°C-93°C.

For the coffee-to-water ratio, washed Yirgacheffe's flavors are relatively clean and clear. To capture the floral and honey sweetness more clearly, Front Street Coffee recommends a 1:16 ratio, which slightly reins in the overall acidity and gives the lighter flavors room to shine. Front Street Natural Yirgacheffe Brewing Approach Front Street Coffee selected a medium-light roast of Yirgacheffe Aletaland Cooperative Natural Red Cherry coffee beans for brewing tests.

The dry aroma of this bean presents full-bodied berry sweetness with tartness. Sipping at different temperatures, you can perceive soft berry tartness and sweetness, the fermented notes of ripe fruit, pronounced honey sweetness, and a black tea quality, with a smooth mouthfeel.

Front Street Coffee. Natural Red Cherry Coffee Beans Country: Ethiopia Region: Yirgacheffe Washing Station: Aletaland Altitude: 2300m Variety: Local Heirloom Processing: Natural Grade: G1

Front Street Coffee. Yirgacheffe Natural Red Cherry Coffee Beans Flavor Description

Lemon, citrus, berry, sweet orange, with overall high sweetness, a caramel and cream aftertaste, and a black tea aroma in the finish.

For grind size and dripper, still use a medium-fine grind (80% passing through a Chinese standard No. 20 sieve) with a V60 dripper. Another feature of the V60 dripper is its 60-degree angle design, which extends the contact time between water and coffee, thereby fully extracting the coffee's sweet and acidic compounds.

This bean has a full-bodied mouthfeel overall, with prominent juicy and sweet characteristics, so a center-pour method is used during brewing to let the coffee bed steadily and fully extract sweet and acidic flavor compounds at a consistent temperature.

Regarding the coffee-to-water ratio, natural Yirgacheffe has relatively intense flavors. To achieve a fuller, smoother juicy character, a 1:15 ratio can be used to concentrate the sweet and acidic flavor compounds. For water temperature, Front Street Coffee chose the 91°C-92°C range to highlight the sweetness and full-bodied juiciness of natural Yirgacheffe, enhancing the overall body.

How to Make Homemade Yirgacheffe Cold Brew

Prepare 30g of freshly roasted Front Street Coffee. Yirgacheffe coffee beans, ground to a coarseness of 80% passing through a Chinese No. 20 sieve—visually, about the size of fine granulated sugar. Note that the roast date must be within 2 months to ensure the finished product carries Yirgacheffe's distinctive delicate aroma. For this reason, all Yirgacheffe coffees shipped by Front Street are freshly roasted within 5 days, with 24-hour shipping support, locking in coffee aroma to the greatest extent possible.

Find a clean, sealable container with a capacity greater than 300ml, and pour the coffee grounds into it;

Front Street uses a 1:10 coffee-to-water ratio for cold brew, so for 30g of coffee grounds, add 300g of room-temperature water, stir well, seal, and place in the refrigerator;

Finally, take the cold brew out of the refrigerator and filter out the coffee grounds with filter paper—done.

Front Street Coffee. Washed Yirgacheffe Cold Brew enters with refreshing citrus acidity, with a faint oolong tea aroma and bright nectarine flavors, accompanied by a slight nutty aroma—refreshingly chilled and very enjoyable for daily drinking.

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