Ethiopia Guji Gogogu Natural

Country: Ethiopia
Region: Uraga, Guji
Varietal: Bourbon
Process: Natural
Altitude: 2,300 MASL
Cupping Notes: Concord Grape, Red Apple, Tropical, Sweet Cream

Description: Uraga, Guji is among our favorite coffee growing regions in Ethiopia. The region has fertile, sandy loam soil and is able to grow coffee at extremely high elevations. The coffees contributing to this lot were grown at 2,300 meters above sea level, where weather permits very slow cherry maturation. This results in vibrant acidity and very clean cups. In 2022, our export partner purchased this washing station in Gogogu and spent time there during harvest and post-harvest to set standards for processing from beginning to end and their efforts are obvious on the cupping table. Of our trip to Ethiopia in early 2023, the washed and natural from Gogogu were our highest scoring coffees from not only this exporter, but every supplier we visited. The processing details are traditional for Ethiopia Naturals, but when done right, and with coffee grown at such high elevation, the results can be really special.

Drying a naturals at Gogogu is done slowly on raised beds, taking roughly 20 days depending on weather conditions, which is great for the stability of the green coffee. For the first day of drying, coffee is kept in a single layer and moved twice an hour to make sure that this delicate part of the drying process is done uniformly. After 3 days of this drying protocol, coffee is stable enough for drying in layers of 2 until it reaches ideal moisture content. Once finished, it “conditions” in the warehouse for about a week before being hulled.

Like mentioned above, this coffee (and its washed sibling) is something special on the cupping table. The cup is super balanced, with lots of fruity sweetness when hot, and cools with a lively acidity. We get notes of Concord Grape (the deep purple grapes) and Red Apple, Sweet Cream, and a Tropical acidity (one of us likened it to Hi-C Fruit Punch).