Ethiopia
Yirgacheffe
small holder farmers
Danche
Local land race and JARC Varieties
Natural
NOV - JAN
Tart, Apricot, Blackberry, Chocolate, Concord Grape, Cranberry, Dark Chocolate, Juicy Orange, Silky Stone Fruit
2300 meters
Organic Certified
60kg W/GrainPro
USA - Oakland, CA - Annex - CTI
This coffee was produced This coffee comes from the Worka Chelbesa kebele, a vibrant village in the Gedeb woreda, produced by smallholder farmers and processed at one of SNAP Specialty Coffee’s wet mills, operated by the dedicated Negusse Debela. Negusse oversees two wet mills in Worka Chelbesa, including this one in the Danche sub-area. Here, he processes Washed, Natural, and experimental lots, continuously striving to enhance the quality of the final product.
Worka Chelbesa, located in the southernmost part of the Gedeo zone, is renowned for its lush semi-forest environment. The area’s dense vegetation, including Ensete trees and other shade plants, creates the perfect conditions for cultivating shade-grown coffee. The Danche washing station, situated in the Worka hills, is the largest growing area in Gedeb and sources cherries from approximately 600 local farmers. These farmers, whose plots range from 0.5 to 2 hectares and are situated at altitudes between 1925 and 2300 meters above sea level, benefit from the station’s proximity, with no journey taking longer than 40 minutes.
The local coffee varieties, Wolisho and Dega, are indigenous landrace varieties from the Yirgacheffe region. After being carefully handpicked, the cherries are brought to the processing station where they undergo meticulous hand sorting. The sorted cherries are then pulped and dried on raised beds until they reach the ideal humidity level. Once dried, the coffee undergoes a final round of hand sorting before being prepared for export, ensuring only the highest quality beans are selected. This coffee is also certified organic.
This coffee is sourced from SNAP Specialty Coffee, a company founded in 2008 by Negusse Debela in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. SNAP operates three washing stations in the Gedeo zone and partners with additional stations in Guji and West Arsi. Our partnership with SNAP began in 2022, and we are proud to bring you this remarkable coffee that reflects the dedication and expertise of everyone involved in its production.
As the coffee industry continues to grow in Ethiopia, the country’s historic growing areas don’t always match up with the current-day maps defining Ethiopia’s geography. Our goal is to provide the clearest and most accurate information about the coffees that we offer, and we’re proud to provide the most specific location information we have for these coffees. Learn more about Ethiopia’s coffee growing regions on our blog.
Region: South Ethiopia
Zone: Gedeo
Woreda: Gedeb
Kebele: Worka Chelbesa
ECX Growing Area: Yirgacheffe
Yirgacheffe:
Literally translated as “Land of Many Springs,” Yirgacheffe has the ideal topography, elevation, and water sources to produce and process exceptional coffees. Yirgacheffe is a coffee classification in the Ethiopia coffee market. It is also one of the woredas in the Gedeo zone, a district like a municipality or county that includes many towns of South Ethiopia Region (formerly Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples Region-SNNPR).
Coffee farmers in Yirgacheffe are typically multi-generational small-scale landholders, sometimes farming only a few acres. Most coffees in Yirgacheffe are sold as cherry to centralized washing stations that help further separate flavor profiles.
Yirgacheffe is considered by many to be the birthplace of coffee and the coffee trees grown in the region are a naturally occurring mix of heirloom varieties cultivated among other species in coffee gardens and coffee forests. As part of the Gedeo Zone, Yirgacheffe is bordered to the south by Kochere, to the west by the Oromia Zone, to the north by Wenago, and to the east by Bule.
