PHILOCOFFEA 274 ETHIOPIA Wuri Washed

<Gedeb Worka>
Located east of the Yirgacheffe region in southern Ethiopia is the Gedeo Zone, which is divided into six main areas, one of which is the Gedeb region. It is approximately 434 kilometers from the capital, Addis Ababa. A few years ago, the drive took about 8 hours, but since the road opened in 2016, the travel time has been reduced to about 3 hours.

This region boasts an ideal climate and terrain for coffee cultivation, with coffee plantations covering approximately one-quarter of the land. The Gedeb region comprises 16 districts, one of which is Worka Sakaro. The well-drained, lush slopes here are perfect for natural farming methods. In particular, the "false banana trees (Enset)" commonly found around the coffee trees decompose into natural compost, increasing the nitrogen content in the soil and making it more loose and fertile.

"Worka" means "gold" in the local Gaideo language. Legend has it that... One of the subordinates of Haile Selassie, the last emperor of Ethiopia, visited this place and was so impressed by the hospitality of the local people that he called it the "Land of Gold".
Since the 2019 harvest season, the Worka Sakaro washed processing plant has been operated by Ranger, a subsidiary of the local export company BNT, with the goal of producing even higher quality Yirgacheffe coffee than ever before. The plant employs highly skilled and reasonably paid staff, and every step, from processing to drying, is handled with meticulous care.

<About BNT Corporation>
The BNT mentioned in the text is A renowned Ethiopian coffee exporter specializing in high-quality coffee from regions such as Yirgacheffe, their coffee beans are also used by many specialty coffee shops in Japan.

BNT was founded by two people, Bire and Teddy. Teddy had gained experience with other coffee companies before inviting his college classmate Bire (who was working in international development at the time) to start the business together.
Their consistent philosophy is:
"PAY FAIR, GET FINEST"
In the early stages of their business, they faced numerous challenges, both in terms of quality and funding. However, their passion for visiting customers, tasting coffee, listening to feedback, and continuously improving their offerings ultimately led to their success in creating a highly regarded, high-quality coffee.

Currently, BNT holds exclusive contracts for 45 washing plants in locations such as Yirgacheffe, Sidamo, and Guji, and also operates several of its own washing plants. They pay farmers upfront before the coffee harvest to ensure only ripe cherries are harvested, which undergo proper washing, slow drying, and final processing in their own factories. This includes using color sorting machines to remove defective beans, and they are currently expanding their facilities to improve efficiency and quality.

The attitude of constantly absorbing feedback and continuously improving is the key to the continuous evolution of BNT's quality.

<This Year's Pick: Washed Processing>
Last year, we launched Natural Processed Coffee from the Wuri Processing Plant, which received a lot of positive feedback.
This year, we chose the Washed version from the same region!

This coffee offers a variety of fruity flavors, including lemon, white grape, and stone fruit, with a distinct fruity character. To highlight this complexity, we opted for a light roast.
With a moisture content of only 8.9%, it is heat-treated very gently in the early stages of baking, with a development time of about 1 minute, to retain its bright and gorgeous aroma.

<Flavor Notes>
The initial taste is refreshingly acidic like lemonade, with a sweet finish that evokes the fruity flavors of white grapes and stone fruits, as if infused with fruit syrup. The aftertaste carries a hint of black tea, giving it an overall vibrant and elegant character. Although we haven't tried it yet, we believe this coffee would be excellent when brewed with AeroPress, which should bring out its sparkling acidity even more!

We invite you to try this:
Rich in fruit flavor, with a gentle aftertaste of black tea, both elegant and light. Ethiopian washed coffee!