Ethiopia Harrar Hambela Washed

The Hambela Estate is a privately owned farm on the border of the Harrar region in Ethiopia. We have purchased both their washed and natural processed coffees and the harvest arrived in the US in August 2017.

The Hambela Estate enriches the community by creating jobs, sponsoring schools, sponsoring medical programs, and educating and helping other local farmers. They have been growing coffee since the 1940's and have won several awards and recognitions along the way.

The washed processed coffee is Grade 1 and the beans are smallish but all about the same size. They are essentially defect free. We went through a random half pound and found only one broken bean, no discoloration, no bug marks, and no debris.

We are roasting this coffee fairly light. Being a washed processed coffee, they need a little more heat and a little longer of a roast than the dry process, but you still want to keep this light or else you lose complexity and it just ends up bland. The beans look darker than they really are. We are taking it maybe 30 seconds past the end of the 1st cracks and enjoying the immense sweetness and peach/pear and floral (lavender) taste. There is a crisp lively acidity that makes it enjoyable, and it has great sweetness. While the fruit is what catches your attention, there is also some chocolate in the aroma and aftertaste.

This is an expensive Ethiopian, and this is due to it being a well known estate, as well as being in the Harrar region, as well as being Grade 1 coffee.