Ethiopia Guji Shakiso Gigesa

Country: Ethiopia

Location: Shakiso, Danbi Uddo Kebele, Shakiso Woreda, Guji Zone, Oromia

Washing Station: Gigesa Washing Station

Coordinates: 5°47'38.5"N 38°43'59.2"E

Farmer/Grower: 500 smallholder farmers

Varieties: Local Heirloom

Processing: Natural

Altitude: 1850-2100 m.a.s.l.

Humidity: 10.30%

Density: 1.20 g/ml

Freshly picked cherries from 500 smallholder farmers in Danbi Uddo Kebele arrive at the Gigesa Washing Station in Shakiso, Guji Zone. The station, owned and operated by the Yonis family, starts with a floatation tank to separate lower-quality fruit. The cherries rest under shade for 3–5 hours so surface moisture can evaporate, then move onto raised drying beds. They’re turned and monitored carefully over 15–18 days so drying stays even and fermentation stays in check.

The result is an elegant, refined cup of quiet complexity: a fragrance of dark cacao, wild berry, and delicate florals that opens into notes of dried fig, black grape, ripe red fruit, and silky cocoa. The finish carries black tea, wild honey, and rose petal, framed by a polished citric-lactic acidity and a velvety, wine-like body with a restrained peppery spice.