Ethiopia Sidamo Chire

From Red Fox Coffee Merchants (importer)- “Ethiopia’s Sidamo region is one of the best-known coffee-growing areas in the world. Like the rest of Ethiopia, it’s divided into several woredas (districts) and kebeles (communities) with washing stations throughout—each offering unique terroir. The Chire woreda is one of them, and within it lies the Abaya Taka kebele.

To get to Chire we have to fly to the capital of Ethiopia, Addis Ababa, then take a local flight to Hawassa. We drive 3 hours via dirt road to Bensa, then another 4 hours to Chire. This last leg is 4 especially difficult hours as the road narrows into a winding mountain pass wide enough for a single car. In the rainy season, the journey becomes even slower and more complicated (although Ethiopia’s government is working on a highway that will shorten the trip by an hour). In Chire woreda lies the central washing station.

In the Chire washing station, the coffee is sundried in cherry on raised beds for 15 to 21 days, with frequent turning for even drying. Our partnerships here are notorious for meticulous natural processing (drying the coffee in cherry and then removing the cherry, as opposed to washing the fruit off then drying the coffee in parchment). The natural process is difficult to execute well: beans need to be turned frequently for consistent and even drying. It’s easy to end up with mold issues or an excess of fermentation flavor, or at the very least achieve an acceptable cup but overpower the natural terroir of the coffee (the unique flavor that comes from variety, soil, proper harvest, and clean processing). But, when done right, the results can be sublime, with the natural terroir of the coffee further enhanced by an additional injection of sweetness and high-impact fruit flavor.

The people of Chire belong to the Sidamo culture and speak various dialects of the Sidamo language. They maintain ancient traditions, like their round housing structures which are identical to those used in this area 10,000 years ago, or family campfire gatherings at the end of each day. Many of the families in the area do not have electricity or clean water, so the local rivers are their main water source. Chire producers are near the forest and have retained many of the original indigenous coffee varieties, which bring the heat with small beans and intense, diverse flavor.”