Front Street Ethiopian coffee beans are world-renowned for their elegant floral aromas, citrus, lemon, and tropical fruit notes, and a fruit-tea-like mouthfeel. Ethiopia is often the priority origin for specialty coffee fans, especially Yirgacheffe and Sidamo. In this article, Front Street will introduce you to a famous Ethiopian coffee region—Sidamo.Coffee-growing characteristics of Ethiopian originsEthiopia has an excellent climate environment, belonging to a tropical rainforest climate, with abundant rainfall and misty conditions, as well as an extremely high altitude of about 2,000 meters that creates a significant temperature difference, providing a uniquely favorable growing environment for coffee trees.Local coffee production is divided into four types: forest coffee, semi-forest coffee, garden coffee, and large plantations, with garden coffee being the most common. So-called garden coffee refers to farmers managing coffee trees together with other cash crops in their own gardens, usually planted alongside banana trees. This is precisely why every household forms a unique green landscape in front of and behind their homes, and it is also Ethiopia's main production method.I believe many observant friends have noticed, when brewing Ethiopian coffee beans, that the beans vary in size and shape. As the birthplace of Arabica coffee, Ethiopia has far too many coffee varieties to almost be able to conduct genetic testing and verification on a larger scale. At the same time, the local government hoped to protect these unknown varieties and prevent industry players from various countries from scrambling to obtain them, so it decided to name these varieties with the native term "Heirloom." Heirloom native varieties are generally small in size, relatively round in appearance, and not very uniform in shape, mostly between 14-15 mesh. In cupping, they often show elegant floral and fruity flavors, and are deeply loved by people.
Administratively, all five major regions of Ethiopia grow coffee. The four major planting systems are distributed across the following nine major producing regions of Ethiopia: Gimma, Sidamo, Yirgacheffe, Harar, Limu, Illubabor, Gimbi (Lekempti), Tepi, and Bebeka. Among them, Yirgacheffe coffee, Harar coffee, and Sidamo coffee are the most famous, known as Ethiopia's three major producing regions.Front Street Sidamo coffee is also grown by smallholdersSidamo is located on the fertile plateau south of Lake Awasa in the East African Rift Valley, with abundant rain, a suitable climate, and an altitude of 1,500-2,200 meters, making it a perfect place for coffee cultivation. Due to the high altitude and moderate shade growing, coffee cherries can mature slowly at cool temperatures, also accumulating more nutrients that are converted into flavor compounds.
Similar to other regions in Ethiopia, Sidamo coffee is also grown by smallholders. Smallholder coffee production is very limited, and there are various coffee cooperatives and processing stations of different sizes in the area, mainly responsible for processing green coffee beans from the region. Whenever the coffee ripens, coffee farmers deliver the harvested coffee cherries to nearby processing stations (cooperatives) established near water sources for unified processing, and the coffee is later sold under the name of the processing station. Nowadays, with the development of specialty coffee, many producers purchase directly from farmers, strengthening the management and traceability of coffee micro-lots, thereby further improving coffee quality and obtaining more finely processed micro-lots.I wonder if everyone has noticed that whenever we look into the story of this coffee origin, two different Chinese translations often appear—one is Xidamo(Sidamo), and the other is Xidama(Sidama).Sidamo is pronounced after the indigenous Sidama people. Like other ethnic groups in Ethiopia, the Sidama have their own traditions and culture, and even their own New Year recognized by UNESCO—Fiche Chambalala, when more than 5 million people gather in the capital Hawassa to celebrate each year. As early as the late 18th to early 19th century, the region was invaded and annexed, and the invaders pronounced Sidama as Sidamo, so this term carries a humiliating meaning for the Sidama people. By the 1990s, the Ethiopian government began adopting a federal system of administration, redrawing boundaries according to major ethnic residential areas and languages, and the Sidama accordingly restored their original historical name: Sidama.However, before the administrative redrawing, Sidamo Coffee was already world-famous for its unique aroma. Therefore, compared with Sidama, people are more accustomed to calling it Sidamo. In addition, when the Ethiopian government protected coffee from Sidama through trademark registration, it also chose the old name Sidamo® as the official registered trademark. Even now, domestic consumers are still more accustomed to calling the coffee here "Sidamo."What flavor characteristics does Front Street Sidamo natural coffee have?When we choose a coffee, besides the origin, we also pay attention to its post-processing method, because the flavor profile of coffee is largely influenced by the processing method. Natural processing, as Ethiopia's oldest traditional processing method, is still used in most Sidamo areas to process green beans by natural drying. The classic Sidamo flavor is the naturally processed coffee known for being rich and full-bodied. Front Street natural Sidamo has a complex sweetness, a viscous and smooth mouthfeel, rich layers interwoven with spice, floral, and fruity aromas, accompanied by a bright sweet finish.Compared with washed processing, natural processing has a longer fermentation time, and the reaction between microorganisms and fruit pulp is greater. When the fruit begins to ferment, microorganisms produce more volatile compounds, especially esters. Although most sugars are destroyed during roasting, these compounds are converted into another form of aromatic compounds during the caramelization reaction. It is also these aromatic substances that provide roasted coffee beans with more floral and tropical fruit fermentation aromas, such as furan compounds, giving natural coffee a broader flavor range and making it taste sweeter. One of the Front Street Sidamo Huakui coffee beans on the Front Street bean list is also selected from a natural batch, from Hambela, and its saturated sweetness has made many customers love it.Guji Hambela Front Street Sidamo HuakuiHambela is located at the border between the Sidamo and Guji producing regions. It is currently managed under the Guji producing region and is adjacent across the mountain to Yirgacheffe's Kochere. The mountain area in between has an altitude of 3,200 meters, making it the highest-altitude sub-region in Ethiopia. The Huakui coffee was entered by DW Company in that year's TOH (Ethiopia National Taste of Harvest competition) in 2017 and won the championship, thus beginning to appear on the market. Huakui is called Hambella in English, which is also the name of the Hambela producing area. Front Street Huakui coffee is a natural coffee bean from the Buku Abel processing station in Guji. The Buku Abel processing station purchases coffee cherries from different nearby areas around the farm for processing and sale.
During the annual coffee harvest season (December-January), the Buku processing station organizes farmers to pick fully red coffee cherries with a Brix value above 30, and the selected coffee cherries are placed on African raised beds for drying. Because the local temperature difference between day and night is very large, coffee farmers will shade them at noon to avoid excessive fermentation caused by too-high temperatures, and at night they use plastic sheets to cover them in case of sudden rain. They are turned continuously throughout the day so that the fruit dries evenly while also preventing sunburn or unpleasant fermentation flavors. After about 18 days of natural processing, the green coffee beans reach a moisture content of only 12%, and then the parchment can be removed by machine.Front Street hopes to present the full fruity flavor of Front Street Huakui coffee, so it uses a medium-light roast. Through cupping, the dry aroma of Front Street natural Sidamo Huakui coffee has nuts, honey, berries, and a faint fermentation aroma. On the palate, it has a full sweet-and-sour taste of passion fruit, cream, and strawberry, with a thick body and a cocoa finish.How to brew Front Street Sidamo Huakui 8.0 coffee?Now that high-quality coffee beans are ready, the next step is to choose the corresponding brewing equipment and parameters. Good equipment helps improve the positive flavors in our cup, and reasonable parameters and techniques can take Front Street Huakui's berry aroma to an even higher level. To brew a cup of coffee by pour-over, you need at least the following equipment: pouring kettle, dripper, server, grinder, filter paper, electronic scale, and thermometer.The grinder plays a very important role in pour-over brewing and is usually divided into two types: manual grinders and electric grinders. No matter which grinding device you choose, the goal is to obtain evenly ground coffee powder. The coarseness of the coffee grounds directly affects the taste of the coffee. If the coffee grounds are too coarse, it is easy to underextract and the taste will be weak; if too fine, it is easy to overextract and the taste will be bitter.To adjust the grind size, Front Street uses a tool—the Chinese No. 20 0.85mm standard sieve. For medium-light roasted coffee beans, Front Street consistently uses a 75-80% passing rate, while for medium-dark roasted coffee beans, Front Street uses 70-75%. Here, Huakui 8.0 is a high-altitude coffee bean with a medium-light roast. Front Street hopes to extract more rich aromatic substances, so it chooses a grind size with an 80% passing rate on the No. 20 standard sieve. In stores, the EK43s grinder is set at 10.
The thermometer is for measuring the temperature of the hot water. Water temperature plays a role similar to grind size. The higher the water temperature, the higher the coffee extraction efficiency, the easier it is to release various substances and components, and the higher the concentration. If water close to boiling is used for brewing, it is easy to extract unpleasant bitter substances. Therefore, when brewing medium-dark roasted coffee beans, Front Street uses different brewing parameters from light-roasted coffee beans. The caramelization reaction is greater than in light-roasted coffee beans, so large-molecule bitter substances are more easily released. In order to avoid extracting too many off-flavors, Front Street lowers the water temperature a bit. Therefore, for medium-dark roasted coffee beans, Front Street recommends 87-90°C, while light-roasted coffee requires a higher water temperature to bring out the aroma, so 91-93°C is used.
For daily service, Front Street Coffee stores choose the Hario V60 and KONO drippers. The V60 dripper is mainly responsible for lighter-roasted coffee beans, while the KONO dripper is responsible for darker-roasted coffee beans. Here, the Front Street barista uses a resin V60 dripper to extract Yirgacheffe coffee. The V60 dripper body has ribs connecting the top and bottom and a large central hole, which speeds up the flow rate of water, while the spiral-shaped exhaust groove design lengthens the water flow path, increasing the contact time between coffee grounds and hot water. Each stream of water converges along the grooves toward the center of the dripper, concentrating the pressure on the coffee grounds and producing a coffee with richer layering.
As for the brewing ratio for Front Street Huakui 8.0, Front Street believes 1:15 to 1:16 are both acceptable. If you want a richer mouthfeel, use 1:15; if you want to feel the floral sweetness more clearly, you can use 1:16 to let the flavors spread out more.Front Street Huakui 8.0 pour-over parameters shared:Dripper: V60 Water temperature: 92-93°CDose: 15g Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15 Grind size: fine granulated sugar size (sieve to 78% with No. 20 sieve bowl)Based on past brewing experience, Front Street recommends that beginners just starting out use a three-stage pouring method. Three-stage extraction helps more fully dissolve flavor substances during extraction, increases the layering of the mouthfeel, and at the same time avoids overextraction caused by too long steeping. If using 15 grams of coffee grounds, a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, and 225ml total water, the three-stage water amounts are: 30ml, 95ml, 100ml, and the weights shown on the electronic scale are: 30g, 125g, 225g.
Fold the filter paper and fit it snugly into the dripper. Wet the filter paper with a small amount of water while also making it fit better, then pour out the water in the server. Next, add the coffee grounds and tap gently to distribute the coffee bed evenly. In the first stage, gently pour 30 grams of water for blooming, with a blooming time of 30 seconds. In the second stage, pour to about 125 grams of water, circling outward evenly and steadily. Then wait for the coffee liquid to drop. When it has dropped by half, pour the final stage of water to 225 grams. After all the coffee has dripped through, the total extraction time is generally about 2 minutes. The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
