Ethiopia Kochere Beloya

Country/Region: Ethiopia/Kochere, Kore Beloya

Varietal: JARC varieties, Local Landraces

Processing: Natural

Elevation: 1720 m.a.s.l.

We Taste: White Florals, Nectarine, Citrus

Ethiopia is divided into several levels of administrative areas, from regions to zones, to districts and finally kebeles, the smallest divisions. Beloya is one such kebele, part of the Kochere district, and the Beloya washing station is named as such.

The Beloya washing station was founded over 20 years ago, and has since come under Traco Coffee's management in 2018, with improvements made to increase quality and quantity of coffee production. The goal is to double the washing station's capacity, and also explore new processing techniques.

Producers around the washing station, like most others in Ethiopia, grow coffee alongside other crops like banana and corn. The region is naturally forested, providing the required shade for the Arabica varietals found here.

During harvest, over 300 farmers selectively hand-pick cherries and deliver it to the washing station. Each bag of cherry is visually checked and weighed before the producers are paid.

Once accepted, the cherries are hand-sorted and then dried in thin layers on raised beds for about 21 days. With 136 beds, each bed is marked with a code to keep track of traceability and processing status.