ETHIOPIA Jimma Mankhore Gr 1

Processing: Natural; SCA Score: 84 pts.

Aroma profile: Pronounced flavor with complex and deep sweetness, tropical acidity, creamy texture with notes of berries, milk chocolate, nougat, and spices.

The Jimma region in southwestern Ethiopia is known as the birthplace of coffee. Cultivation methods in Jimma have remained largely traditional. Most farmers work on areas smaller than 5 hectares (many measure their coffee plantations by the number of trees rather than by area). Cultivation is generally carried out using traditional methods, with coffee grown as part of an integrated “coffee garden,” intercropped with other food crops.

In addition to being grown in mixed systems, most farms are also traditionally managed and organic by default. Farmers in Jimma typically use very little fertilizer or pesticides, if any at all. Most agricultural work is carried out manually, with very few stages mechanized, even during processing.

The exceptional quality of Ethiopian coffee is the result of a combination of factors. The genetic diversity of coffee varieties creates a wide range of flavors, even between farms (or within the same farm) with similar growing and processing conditions. In addition to varieties, processing methods also contribute to the final quality. The key ingredients for excellent Ethiopian coffee are the production traditions that have created this genetic diversity, the processing infrastructure, and the exceptional coffee we enjoy today.

Most producers in Ethiopia are smallholder farmers, and the majority continue to grow coffee using traditional methods. As a result, most coffee is cultivated without the use of chemical fertilizers or pesticides. Coffee is almost entirely cultivated, harvested, and dried using manual systems.