CHELBESSA

NOTES OF BLACKCURRANT, MANGO, COLA

Producer: Smallholder farmers
REGION: Yirgacheffe
HARVEST: OCTOBER - JANUARY
VARIETY: Heirloom
ALTITUDE: 1,900-2,400 MASL
PROCESS: NATURAL

This natural lot comes from the Chelbessa Washing Station, tucked away in the hills of Yirgacheffe — a place that’s pretty much coffee royalty in Ethiopia. Around 500 smallholder farmers bring their ripe red cherries here each harvest, where they’re carefully sorted and laid out to dry in the sun.

Chelbessa’s part of the Gedeb district, and the landscape is about as lush as it gets — thick vegetation, cool highland air, and elevations soaring up to 2,400 metres. Most growers here work tiny “coffee gardens,” growing coffee alongside other crops, all without the use of fertilisers or pesticides.

Here, the natural process isn’t just a style choice — it’s a smart, resourceful way to process coffee in a region where water can be scarce. Instead of pulping and washing the fruit away, the cherries are dried whole on raised beds for up to three weeks. It’s a slow, hands-on approach that not only conserves water but also stays true to Ethiopia’s long tradition of sun-dried coffee.

Ethiopia’s always been something special in the coffee world. It’s the birthplace of Arabica, and in places like Chelbessa, that heritage is still woven into everyday life. Coffee isn’t just a crop here — it’s culture, craft, and connection.

We roast coffee fresh each Monday, if stock has sold out we will ship the following roast day. Please refer to our shipping page for more information.