Description
The Hadesos
Owned and run by Testi Coffee (yes that is the real name), this washing station is located in Shakisso administrative district. With some 500 independent farms around the locale, coffees are grown at a high elevation of around 1900-2050m above sea level. Combined with the region’s cool temperature range, it makes an ideal environment for cherries to develop and ripen at a slower rate to produce a denser and overall, more complex tasting coffee.
Both lots are mainly comprised of landrace Kurume and Wolisho varietals and part of Testi’s quality improvement initiative, Premium Cherry Selection (PCS).
Hadeso Washed:
This coffee has been processed following the washed method, using fresh, clean water. It is classified as Grade 1, the highest quality classification for Ethiopian coffees, indicating a great deal of effort has been put into the selecting and grading during processing.
Each day, carefully hand-picked coffee cherries are delivered to the Hadeso washing station and are meticulously sorted by hand and in a floatation tank prior to processing to remove unripe, overripe, or damaged fruit, in order to enhance the quality and sweetness of the cup.
After sorting, the coffee cherries are then pulped to remove the fruit and skin and graded by weight; heavier beans are of superior quality and deliver a sweeter cup. After grading, the parchment-covered coffee is soaked in tanks of clean water for 36–48 hours to remove the mucilage (sticky fruit pulp) by allowing it to ferment and detach from the coffee.
The coffee is then re-washed and graded again by density in washing channels and soaked in clean water for 12 hours. While doing this, mill workers keep a close eye on the clarity of the water being used (and replace it with fresh water as necessary), and check the parchment manually to feel how much mucilage is left on the seeds. As the texture of the washed seeds changes, and millworkers notice slightly more traction, parchment is just about ready to be dried.
The coffee is then dried for 10–12 days on raised drying beds, firstly under cover (for around 3–5 hours) and then subsequently in the sun. Whilst drying, the coffee is carefully hand-sorted, and any defects are removed. It is also turned regularly to ensure that it dries evenly and consistently. At midday, the coffee is covered to protect it from full sun. It is also covered overnight to prevent damage from morning dew. Once the coffee is dry and has reached its desired humidity, it is rested in parchment until it is ready for milling and export.
