Ethiopian Natural FTO Sidamo Gr. 3

An exotic, more fruit forward, more wild Ethiopian cup!

This is a great example of a tasty old world natural. It will produce some lovely and unique tastes that can only be achieved in old world coffees. High in chaff and will roast a bit uneven, but worth the roasting challenge to get a unique and tasty cup.

Most Ethiopian coffees are aggregate productions from small holders, usually based around a regional mill. This offering is a blend specially prepared from multiple mills to achieve a lovely cup profile. Strictly from the Sidamo growing region, which is always on our favorites list.

Tasting Notes: Light roasts put off a sweet lemon acidity that fades into a nice red-fruit note, balanced with a tea-like dry chocolate undertone. A longer setup will help smooth it out and pronounce the fruit note. If shooting real light, make sure to flick out any beans not through first crack. Medium roasts are a bit more tame, no flicking required. Cup will get a richer chocolaty note with just a pinch of floral acidity and fading into a soft fruit note. Medium roasts are slightly reminiscent of the Yemen but perhaps still a bit brighter. Darker roasts are cool with these beans, for as you touch 2nd crack you still have some nice medium roasted beans in the mix, a good balance of tones between the smoky chocolaty roasty and fruity citric tea notes.

Roasting Notes: A bit more challenging to roast, most will think it is well worth it, plus anybody can do it, roasting any coffee is very achievable.  A bit two-toned in the roast – the lighter spectrum roasts are very tasty with a little setup but you may find yourself flicking a couple beans that are too light, in order to clean up the cup tones a bit, otherwise you may risk some nutty/grassy tones. Medium to dark roasts are much easier roast points to hit, no flicking required and not very risky. With higher chaff, make sure to reduce batch size a little and keep a close eye on it.