Description
A wonderful fresh bean for the price point. Not as delicate as top grades, nor floral/fruity. These beans go after the rich chocolate and spice notes, kind of the terroir of Ethiopia. In specialty coffee, grade 1 Ethiopians are prevalent but are far from average and are quite different from the premium grade 2’s and 3’s. Grade 1’s are about light roasts, overly floral and sweet, delicate often with a fruitier aspect, while grade 2 and 3 bring in richer dark tones, less acidity, and hold medium to dark roasts much better.
Farming & Practices: Gedeb is the southern‑most district of the famed Gedeo highlands, a crossroads between Gedeo and Guji whose soaring elevations and cool, misty microclimates yield some of Ethiopia’s most “explosive” cup profiles. Banko Chelchele sits in a dense corner of Gedeb known locally as “Worka,” where coffee gardens climb steep, red‑soil slopes shaded by enset (a banana relative used as a staple food) and gravilea trees. Smallholders each tending just 0.5–3 ha hand‑pick only fully ripe cherry, then deliver it within hours to the station.
At the mill, cherry is floated to remove underripes, depulped, and fermented for two full days in tiled tanks. After a fresh‑water rinse the parchment is soaked once more, an extra step that mellows acidity and heightens clarity. Drying takes place on raised beds 15–20 cm deep, with parchment turned hourly and covered at midday and overnight for even moisture loss. Once the coffee reaches 10–11 % moisture it is rested in a climate‑stable warehouse before making the eight‑hour journey to Addis Ababa for dry‑milling, laser color‑sorting, and final expor
Farm Stori: Gedeb sits at the crossroads between the famed Gedeo and Guji zones, and coffees from its high‑altitude villages routinely deliver some of Ethiopia’s most expressive profiles. Banko Chelchelepart of the greater “Worka” area was only established as a private washing station in 2021, yet it already coordinates cherry from nearly 400 surrounding farms and manages 12 fermentation tanks plus 250+ drying beds across 2.5 ha of land.
The station and export logistics are owned by Tadesse Desta Import & Export, a modern, Addis‑based company currently adding organic and Rainforest Alliance certifications while experimenting with honey and anaerobic lots for future harvests. Their meticulous quality control electronic color sorting and parchment conditioning prior to export—helps preserve the sparkling clarity that sets washed Gedeb coffees apart.
Tasting Notes: Good from light to dark but we thought best at a strong medium to dark roast. A good bean to go after a rich and semi-exotic chocolate tone with some wonderful aromatics and a bit of spice. Light roasts are more citric and floral with wonderful aromatics and a sweet edged, a bit punchy in the citric department and contrasts with a bit of nutty/herbal/grassy undertones. Works well but needs a much longer setup time bring out smooth and clean tastes, sharp and grassy/herbal if drank too soon. Medium roasts will bring some lovely balance to the cup and provides a clean tasting brew without waiting a week to drink it. One starts seeing the chocolate aspect but will still pull some balance with the citric and floral. Less aromatic than the light roasts, but you can still tell you have a nice Ethiopian with one sniff. Darker roasts touching or into second crack are real robust, strong and semi-sweet, more bakers-chocolate like with tea like spice in the aftertaste.
Roasting Notes:
An easy coffee to roast, even roasting with medium chaff. We thought it best to get some development past first crack, a nice medium roast to as dark as you want to go. The beans will darken up quickly, often appearing 1-2 shades darker then they really are. A citric edge to the cup will mean you are still in the light-medium roast range.
What does “Grade 2 (G2)” mean on an Ethiopian coffee?
On Ethiopia’s national quality scale, Grade 2 is the second‑highest level for washed lots. To qualify, a 300 g sample must show virtually no serious defects and only a handful of minor ones, and the cup must be clean, sweet, and true to origin. The beans may include slightly smaller screens or a few extra chipped seeds compared with Grade 1, but the flavor difference is usually subtle. Thanks to these slightly more flexible standards, Grade 2 coffees often clear export faster and land at a friendlier price—so you still get Ethiopia’s signature florals, bright citrus, and honeyed sweetness while enjoying excellent value.
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