Best Ethiopian Coffee?

Gobana

Gobana

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Mar 5, 2014
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Hi,

I'm doing research on which 3 coffee beans from Ethiopia are the best / most popular? I provided a few examples of various beans below, please input it would help me make some decisions on what I should provide.

Lekempte, Jimma, Harar,Yirgacheff, Limu, Sidamo, Limu, Jimma, Bonga, Nekempt, and, Wellega

Appreciate the help!

Sami
 
I never buy based on what name is on the coffee, but request/roast/cup samples before buying, since the name means little and the flavors mean a lot. Can I suggest you do the same, both with pre-ship and arrivals?
 
Gobana,

In previous posts, you mention that you're a "New Ethiopian Green Coffee Exporter."

Are you looking for input regarding what coffees people on this Forum prefer to roast and sell? (and potentially buy from you?)

I'm guessing that you have access to all of the coffees that you listed, and you're trying to decide which ones to export.

As Peter said, " . . the name means little and the flavors mean a lot."

The three Ethopian coffees that Coffeejunky listed are very popular choices. However, I've had Harrar coffee that was very good and I've had Harrar coffee that was horrible. It's best for you to do some research and taste testing on your own to determine what coffees are good and worth the time and effort to export.
 
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peterjschmidt said:
I never buy based on what name is on the coffee, but request/roast/cup samples before buying, since the name means little and the flavors mean a lot. Can I suggest you do the same, both with pre-ship and arrivals?
Click to expand...

I hear what your saying its just that i have access to all of these beans and i will be importing only some of these options and also only grade 3 and above so therefore the quality is something i'm not worried about. I'm looking on info on which beans i should focus on, the most popular? the highest rated? the classics? etc

You mentioned flavors means alot but my understanding is depending on the bean and the region it came from (names i mentioned are regions in Ethiopia) they each have a distinct flavor. For exp Yirgacheffe is grown in very high altitudes one of the highest in the world so the coffee is grown in the Yirgacheffe area will have a distinct taste, maybe a taste that i've heard is popular around the world so in that sense the names do matter, it gives you a baseline on what it should taste like...assuming the buyer really knows their ethiopian coffee etc . Also for exp if i brought you two high quality beans one being Harrar and another being Jimma my understanding from the research i've done is the harrar bean will be favored, because of the harrar being has a distinct flavor that only come from the harrar region. I have a knowledge that the most popular beans are Harrar, Yirga and Sidamo, i just want to do some more research to confirm that.
 
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CoffeeJunky said:
True what Peter said but I can still list what I liked in the past. lol

Sidamo, Yirgacheff, and Harar.
Click to expand...

Yup! those are the beans i keep on hearing about, i most likely will be carrying these in stock in the near future. Thanks for the info!
 
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PinkRose said:
Gobana,

In previous posts, you mention that you're a "New Ethiopian Green Coffee Exporter."

Are you looking for input regarding what coffees people on this Forum prefer to roast and sell? (and potentially buy from you?)

I'm guessing that you have access to all of the coffees that you listed, and you're trying to decide which ones to export.

As Peter said, " . . the name means little and the flavors mean a lot."

The three Ethopian coffees that Coffeejunky listed are very popular choices. However, I've had Harrar coffee that was very good and I've had Harrar coffee that was horrible. It's best for you to do some research and taste testing on your own to determine what coffees are good and worth the time and effort to export.
Click to expand...

You caught me, i was trying to be anonymous here hoping that people wouldn't remember that post lol

That is correct, i have access to all and any bean that comes from Ethiopia and currently i can only import a minimum qty of a container (20 tons) but hopefully sooner than later be able to provide bags also. So my goal is to do as much research as possible on which beans and grade i should keep in stock etc. To the contrary on what Peter said the names are the regions that the bean comes from and each region has a distinct taste unique to that region therefore my understanding is the name does matter.

To speak on your harrar experience, this is the problem with wholesalers today. They go to Ethiopia or have a contact there and say "send me a container of Harar Grade 3" for example. Next step is of course someone like going to these wholesalers and buying these beans and sometimes it taste like the harar you remember and sometimes it doesnt.

So, its either the wholesaler doesn't know or doesn't care that when these beans are harvested in the "harar region" they are cupped right away and then classified as for exp Harar (A) or Harar (B). Harar (A) means that it was cupped and its flavor profiles fall in line with the distinct and unique harar bean flavor people general expect (the bean you like) and when it is Harar (B) its been cupped and it doesn't taste like the unique distinct flavor of the Harar bean people generally like (the horrible harar you had) BUT since it was grown in the Harar region they still classify its as Harar so when it goes into the exchange in Ethiopia they do rank it as Harar A and Harar B but the wholesaler here simply says "send me a container of Harar Grade 3" so the contact in Ethiopia sends the Harar bean, which could either be Harar A or Harar B or a mix of both, since teh wholeseller was not specific in acknowledging which bean they wanted.

This is the problem, and this something i want to change, i want consistency coming out of Ethiopia, I'm Ethiopian so i have some pride attached to that as well. I'm not saying the Harar (A) will always taste exactly the same every season but I am saying that the Harar bean has a distinct taste and only the beans from any given season will be classified as Harar A only if it matches the classic harar taste people around the world that people have grown to love.

hope that made sense, i'm definetly taking the advice too "taste testing on your own to determine what coffees are good and worth the time and effort to export." but i want to also narrow down the bean selection off the research i do so this way i don't have to taste everybean out there. Like coffejunky said...Yirga, Sidamo and Harar seem to be the most popular in North America...thanks for the info
 
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You described at length what I meant to say with fewer words. The names are not irrelevant, since the coffees from each region are distinct. But as you and PR each said, there are lousy beans from each region so quality/flavor is the priority.

If you find high-quality coffees from every region you listed, you may consider having some well-known coffees in stock, but also some lesser-known coffees to differentiate yourself from other importers. Everybody sells Harar, Sidamos, and Yirgacheffes, and if that's all you have you look just like everyone else.

The key question is, who will determine the quality of the coffees you import? Are you assuming that simply because they are graded 3 or higher that they will be great coffees?
 
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peterjschmidt said:
You described at length what I meant to say with fewer words. The names are not irrelevant, since the coffees from each region are distinct. But as you and PR each said, there are lousy beans from each region so quality/flavor is the priority.

If you find high-quality coffees from every region you listed, you may consider having some well-known coffees in stock, but also some lesser-known coffees to differentiate yourself from other importers. Everybody sells Harar, Sidamos, and Yirgacheffes, and if that's all you have you look just like everyone else.

The key question is, who will determine the quality of the coffees you import? Are you assuming that simply because they are graded 3 or higher that they will be great coffees?
Click to expand...

Oh i see what you mean, well my brother is there to insure that we first of all get the level (A) bean which is the highest quality bean coming from any region (as i explained above) and from there performs a cupping for taste etc. My overall goal is to find beans that are authentic to the region and not just lump the lousy beans with the good beans from any given region and sell it together, I want to provide consistency and if i can't find the quality of bean i want in a given harvest than i won't carry stock in it that year.

My brother and business partners are living in Ethiopia and they will be determining the quality of coffee before they buy it from the farm, it also gets tested at least 3 times between the farm and exporting. You mentioned to differentiate, thats my issue I'm looking for input of what regions people have had good experiences and since you and othhers have metioned Harar, Sidamo or Yirgacheffe....do you suggest any other regions?

all info is useful appreciate your comments.
 
I'm happy with Harar, Sidamo and Yirgacheffe. However, that's about all I have seen offered through our importers here in the states.

Sounds like you are on the right track. I wish you luck in this venture.
 
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eldub said:
I'm happy with Harar, Sidamo and Yirgacheffe. However, that's about all I have seen offered through our importers here in the states.

Sounds like you are on the right track. I wish you luck in this venture.
Click to expand...

Just like you said and from my research you rarely see different beans besides the big 3. Appreciate the the feed back and encouragement!
 
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