Ethiopia Bombe

Whole bean coffee

We roast to order on Mondays and Wednesdays and ship the same day. Orders will be included in a roast if they’re received by 4pm Eastern Time the day before.

Origin: Ethiopia

Region: Sidama

Sub-region: Bensa

Producers: Various smallholding farmers

Elevation: 1800 - 2300 masl

Process: Dry

Varieties: Ethiopia Landraces

Tasting notes: Cherry pie, lemon candy, milk chocolate

Bombe is a community in the Bensa woreda of the Sidama region in Ethiopia. Coffee is the main source of income for producers in Bombe, which they grow on very small farms that average only 0.1 to 2 hectares in area, intercropped with false banana for shade. During the harvest season, growers pick ripe cherries and deliver them to the Bensa washing station, where the coffee is fermented and dried. When producing dry (or natural) processed coffees, the whole coffee cherries are sundried on raised beds for 15 to 21 days and turned frequently for even drying, which is necessary to ensure quality and shelf stability, and to prevent development of mold and rot. When the cherries reach the desired moisture content they are milled to remove the dried fruit husk from the seed. Careful attention to detail in dry processing can yield a result that is as clean as any washed coffee, with intense fruit flavors that enhance aspects of the local terroir without fully masking it.

Coffee cultivation has an incredibly long history in Bombe, where farmers grow indigenous landrace varieties on the periphery of ancient coffee forests. Until recently, the people of Bombe grew only coffee and subsistence crops, but due to volatile coffee prices and the high level of care required in growing, many have begun to replace coffee with eucalyptus and khat. Khat is a commonly used stimulant in parts of Africa, which is regarded by some local people as a growing problem in village societies. These crops are also harmful to the environment due to their large consumption of water, which depletes the water table. On the other hand, coffee is native to the forests of Ethiopia and can have a forest-protective effect, and consumes very little water when fermented with a dry process. Stable and robust supply chains for high quality coffee can help to slow the destructive trend towards eucalyptus and khat, and maintain the area’s centuries-old tradition of coffee cultivation.

We think this dry-processed lot from Bombe tastes like cherry pie, lemon candy, and milk chocolate.

Transparency

This is our eighth year sourcing coffee from Ethiopia through Red Fox Coffee Merchants. We scored this coffee 87 points and purchased 5 60kg bags for $6.61/lb EXW, including $0.46/lb in tariffs.

Photo credit: Red Fox Coffee Merchants

Click here for more information on the coffee supply chain.