Ethiopia, as Africa's largest coffee-producing country and the widely recognized birthplace of coffee, is deeply favored by enthusiasts for its distinctive floral and citrus flavor notes. When it comes to the representative of Ethiopian natural-process beans, many people immediately think of "Huakui." This naturally processed coffee from the Buku Abel washing station in the Guji Hambela region rose to fame after winning the natural-process category at the 2017 TOH green bean competition. So what exactly is the TOH competition? And what kind of organization is AFCA, its organizer? This article will walk you through the membership structure of the African Fine Coffees Association, the competition format and tiers of the TOH, and how the event helps African coffee-producing countries improve quality and expand international trade. [more…]

For friends who are obsessed with pour-over coffee, Ethiopia is always an origin that can't be avoided. Besides the well-known Yirgacheffe and Sidamo, the Limu region is quietly rising with its unique flavors. The Limu Tianlai natural bean introduced in this article comes from the Kosagessi Farm and won third place in the AFCA African Fine Coffee Competition. It features layers of strawberry, passion fruit, and winey ripe fruit, with a delicate and charming finish, and it performs well whether as espresso, pour-over, or siphon. The article will explain its brewing parameters and regional background in detail, and compare its flavor with Front Street Coffee's Yirgacheffe and Front Street Coffee's Sidamo, helping you find a new choice beyond your everyday staple. [more…]

At the 20th African Fine Coffee Conference held in Addis Ababa, officials from the African Coffee Association (AFCA) issued a clear call to traders: efforts should focus on promoting the export of specialty-processed coffee and gradually reducing the share of traditionally processed coffee in the international market. AFCA pointed out that Africa possesses world-class coffee resources, yet weak marketing and a single processing approach have made it difficult for growers to obtain fair returns. To change this situation, the association recommends that exporting countries strengthen brand building, upgrade processing technology, and pay close attention to external factors such as the EU Deforestation Regulation. Africa's coffee industry stands at a crossroads of transformation, and how to break through amid climate change and market access challenges has become the focus of attention for all parties. [more…]

Ethiopia, as Africa's largest coffee-producing country and the birthplace of coffee, is renowned worldwide for its coffee's floral and citrus notes, thanks to its exceptional natural conditions. When it comes to the representative of Ethiopian natural-process beans, many people first think of "Floral Queen." This coffee, from the Buku Abel processing station in the Guji Hambela region, rose to fame after winning the 2017 TOH green bean competition. What exactly is the TOH competition? How does it differ from the COE Cup of Excellence? How does the African Fine Coffees Association (AFCA) organize this grand event? This article will give you a comprehensive understanding of the TOH Harvest Season Flavor Competition—its origins and development—as well as the rise to fame of Floral Queen coffee. It will also introduce the flavor profile of Floral Queen 8.0, currently available at Front Street Coffee. [more…]

Limu is a low-yield but distinctive coffee-producing region in Ethiopia. In the past, its coffee was mainly exported to European and American markets, making it hard to find domestically. This article takes a Front Street Limu Tianlai natural sun-dried coffee bean that won third place in the AFCA African Fine Coffees competition as an example to introduce in detail its regional background, green bean processing method, flavor performance, and pour-over brewing parameters. Limu's flavor profile differs from Yirgacheffe and Sidamo: its body is thinner, and its floral and citrus aromas are slightly weaker, but it has an additional grassy aroma, cocoa aroma, and sandalwood note. The article also includes an introduction to the producing region, variety information, and brewing suggestions, making it suitable for coffee enthusiasts who want to explore Ethiopia's niche producing regions. [more…]

Traders of the special processing method coffee should reduce the export of coffee with traditional processing methods. From February 6th to 10th, the 20th African Fine Coffee Conference and Exhibition was held in Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia [more…]

Africa, as the core region of the coffee-growing belt, has nurtured many high-quality coffee-producing countries, among which Ethiopia is widely recognized as the birthplace of coffee. The African Fine Coffees Association (AFCA), established in 2000, launched the Taste of Harvest (TOH) competition, whose format is similar to that of the Cup of Excellence (COE) and is divided into national competitions and the Africa regional final. In 2024, the Ethiopia TOH competition was held in Addis Ababa, with a total of 75 companies and 212 Arabica coffee entries participating. This article will introduce in detail the origin backgrounds and processing details of the natural group champion Testi Trading Plc, the washed group champion Eseham Trading plc, and the honey process group champion Yihonal Trading plc, and will also include relevant recommendations from Front Street Coffee. [more…]

This washed Ethiopian Hero coffee bean brought to you by Front Street Coffee once won the 2019 TOH Washed Group championship, making it a premium bean with exceptional aroma, balance, and body. It displays refined, delicate flavor layers, a solid and well-balanced mouthfeel, and bright, uplifting acidity, with a cost-performance ratio comparable to Hambela. This article will detail the bean's origin background, TOH competition knowledge, and the floral-fruity aroma and juicy mouthfeel brought by washed processing, giving you a comprehensive understanding of the unique charm of heirloom varieties at 2,150 meters above sea level in the Sidamo Guji producing region. [more…]

At the 2020 Taste of Harvest (TOH) Africa coffee competition, a natural coffee from the Armelelalu processing plant in the Konga region of Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia, scored 90.70 points to win the natural group championship and the overall championship. This bean uses heirloom varieties, is grown at an altitude of 2,200 meters, and undergoes anaerobic slow-dry natural processing, presenting rose floral notes, a fresh fruit-champagne quality, intense tropical fruit aromas, and a candied sweetness, with a round and smooth mouthfeel and a long-lasting sweet aftertaste. This article will guide you through the background of the TOH competition, detailed information about this champion bean, and why the Yirgacheffe region is hailed as synonymous with delicious coffee. [more…]

In 2019, the washed category crown at the Ethiopia TOH green bean competition went to a bean named "Hero" from the Uraga processing plant in the Guji region. It has a fascinating flavor profile weaving together jasmine, bergamot, lemon, apricot, and honey. Coffee Review gave it 88 points, it grows at an altitude of up to 2,150 meters, and it is washed processed and medium roasted. This article will guide you through the origin background of this champion bean, the uniqueness of Ethiopia's native Heirloom variety, and the significance of the TOH competition, and it also includes the pour-over parameters recommended by Front Street Coffee—90°C water temperature, a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, and extraction completed within two minutes—so you can recreate this bright floral aroma of the African highlands at home. [more…]

At the Amederaro processing station in Ethiopia, at an altitude of 2,200 meters, a coffee bean named Amederaro was born, one that went on to win both the national and African regional finals of the 2019/20 TOH competition. This bean, brought to you by Front Street Coffee, undergoes anaerobic slow drying; after being harvested as fully ripe cherries and carefully sorted, it is slowly fermented in an anaerobic environment, creating layered flavors of passion fruit, honey, champagne, and white grape, with abundant juiciness and a balanced fermented character. This article will provide a comprehensive introduction to this coffee—both powerful and refined—from the perspectives of its origin background, processing method, flavor profile, and the meaning of the TOH competition. [more…]

Yirgacheffe, as a representative producing region of Ethiopian specialty coffee, saw the Adorsi processing station win the natural group championship at this year's TOH harvest-season flavor cupping competition, with its Aricha lot standing out with a high score of 91 points. This article will introduce in detail the origin background, processing station information, competition journey, and flavor characteristics of this champion bean. At the same time, Front Street Coffee will also guide you through the authority of the T.O.H competition, the concept of the Heirloom native variety, and the rich layers of grape juice, jackfruit, fermented wine aroma, citrus, and lemon that this bean displays in cupping, making it suitable for enthusiasts who love Ethiopian natural coffee to gain a deeper understanding. [more…]

The 2019 TOH (Taste of Harvest) Ethiopia Natural Group national champion was won by a Yirgacheffe submitted by the Adorsi processing plant, with a cupping score as high as 91.38 points. The processing plant is located in the Aricha production area, at an altitude of 1,950-2,100 meters. The combination of red volcanic soil and the ancient native Heirloom variety, together with hand-selected 17-18 mesh green beans and a precise anaerobic fermentation process, gives this coffee its outstanding cup performance. Front Street Coffee provides you with a detailed introduction to this champion bean's origin background, competition journey, and flavor characteristics, and shares its richly layered flavor profile of strawberry, berries, guava, brandy, and liqueur chocolate, as well as the changes in acidity and sweet aftertaste after the coffee cools. [more…]

At the Amederaro processing station, perched at 2,200 meters above sea level, an Ethiopian coffee bean known as Front Street Amederaro is born. It undergoes anaerobic slow drying: after harvesting, only fully ripe cherries are carefully selected and slowly fermented in an oxygen-free environment, ultimately revealing a complex flavor profile with top notes of passion fruit, interwoven with honey and champagne nuances, a full-bodied juice-like mouthfeel, and a subtle hint of rose tea. This bean clinched consecutive victories in the 2019/20 TOH national competition and the African regional finals, rightfully earning the title of "Double Champion." Meanwhile, the Worka cooperative in the Yirgacheffe region has also introduced an anaerobic natural batch, offering a refreshing blend of floral notes with mango and lemon, perfect for summer enjoyment. This article will thoroughly dissect the processing techniques, flavor dimensions, and competition background of Amederaro, along with recommendations for other specialty-processed beans from the same region. [more…]

The Hero Washed coffee beans from Hambela in the Guji region of Ethiopia won second place nationally in the 2016/17 Ethiopian TOH competition and first place in the washed group. They are known for red grapefruit, tropical fruit, cherry, apricot, and a highly sweet, juicy mouthfeel. This article will introduce you to the origin background, competition journey, and flavor characteristics of this champion bean, and share a practical set of V60 pour-over parameters and staged pouring techniques to help coffee lovers recreate its bright, sweet flavor performance at home. At the same time, Front Street Coffee also takes this opportunity to exchange more coffee knowledge with everyone, so that more people can easily drink good coffee. [more…]

Yirgacheffe, as an iconic specialty coffee region in Ethiopia, has always drawn attention to its natural process lots. This article focuses on the Yirgacheffe Aricha Natural G1 launched by Front Street Coffee. This lot comes from the Adorsi processing station and won first place in the natural group at the 2019 Ethiopia harvest season cupping competition, with a score as high as 91 points. The article will guide you through Yirgacheffe's regional terroir, the background of the Adorsi processing station, an overview of the TOH competition, and the varietal characteristics of the Heirloom landrace. It also breaks down in detail the five steps of the natural processing method and provides complete product information and cupping flavor notes for this coffee. [more…]

Front Street Coffee recently launched a highly anticipated coffee bean—the 2020 TOH Washed Group Champion, produced in Ethiopia's Uraga region. This bean impresses with its fresh flavors of citrus and green tea. Geographically, the Uraga region is close to Yirgacheffe and was often sold under the name Yirgacheffe in the past, until the ECX issued Announcement No. 1051 in 2017, after which it was able to be traded independently and gradually emerged. This article will introduce the region's background, the meaning of the TOH competition, the processing details of the champion lot, and the cupping flavors, as well as provide a horizontal comparison with the Yirgacheffe Gedeb Cooperative, giving you a comprehensive understanding of the unique charm of this champion coffee. [more…]

Ethiopia is widely recognized as the birthplace of coffee and is Africa's largest coffee producer, known for beans with rich fruity and floral notes. Among the many Ethiopian beans at Front Street Coffee, Huakui is undoubtedly the most attention-grabbing, and it has now been updated to Front Street Huakui 8.0. What exactly makes this bean so popular? The story begins with a harvest-season flavor competition in 2017. That year, DW Coffee Company submitted a natural-process bean from the Buku Abel washing station, which won the natural category championship with intense berry aroma and a creamy mouthfeel. It was later named "Huakui" by domestic traders, and it became famous after a competitor used it in the China region of the World Brewers Cup to defeat many Geisha contenders. This article will sort out Huakui's origin background, its rise to fame, and the origin of naming each year's lot with "X.0" starting in 2018, and introduce the flavor performance of this year's Front Street Huakui 8.0. [more…]

Ethiopia, as the birthplace of coffee, has nurtured countless native varieties. Among them, the Yirgacheffe region stands apart as its own appellation thanks to its distinctive floral and citrus notes, making it a focal point of attention for coffee lovers worldwide. Within Yirgacheffe's Konga Cooperative, the Armetilalo processing station cultivates coffee cherries at 2,200 meters on red soil and employs an Anaerobic Slow Dry (ASD) process, undergoing 120 hours of sealed fermentation and 5 weeks of slow drying to create a full-flavored specialty coffee. These Armetilalo coffee beans won both the Ethiopian National Competition and the Africa TOH championship in 2019/2020, with a cupping score of 90.7. Front Street Coffee has selected these beans and presents them with a medium-light roast, bringing out layers of citrus, berry, cream, rose tea, and white grape. This article will take an in-depth look at their regional background, processing method, and brewing performance. [more…]

Many friends of Front Street Coffee beans like Front Street TOH coffee beans, but many are not clear about what TOH means. Starting from the TOH competition, this article provides a detailed introduction to the 2020 TOH washed category champion—this bean from Uraga in the Guji region of Ethiopia—covering its regional background, the washed process at the Sela Gajaba processing station, the curve design by Front Street roasters, and a brewing recipe that highlights jasmine, pomelo, and green tea flavors. Whether you want to understand what TOH actually is or master the key brewing points for this champion bean, you can find the answers below. [more…]