This coffee comes from the Konga Cooperative in Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia; it is one of the 22 members of the Yirgacheffe Coffee Farmers’ Cooperative Union. The cooperative is made up of 1,683 small holder farmers—133 of which are female heads of family.
The YCFCU, as a whole, represents 43,794 smallholder farmers.
The Konga Cooperative is located about five kilometers from Yirgacheffe City in the Gedeo Zone in Southern Ethiopia, one of the most lush, and famous coffee growing regions in the country.
The average size of a farm is 1.25 acres on which coffee and various foods for the local market are grown in nutritious, volcanic soil.
Welcome to my Table, here in the corner of this cafe. Today we’re sipping the Ethiopia Konga Natural, from Carabello Coffee in Newport, Kentucky. Feel free to pull up a chair.
THE BASICS:
region: Konga, Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia
farm/factory: N/A
producer: smallholder farmers
association: Konga Cooperative
elevation: 1800 – 2100 meters above sea level
cultivars: Ethiopia Heirloom
process: natural
certifications: standard
THE COFFEE:
Opening the bag of Ethiopia Konga is like lighting the wick of a berry bomb; and, baby, when I start pouring over the grounds – boom – a huge blueberry/strawberry bomb goes off in my kitchen, bringing along with it scents of stone fruits, cane sugar, and chocolate.
As I take my first few sips of the coffee, the flavor and texture of honey coats my tongue as sugary sweet notes of chocolate cake and caramel lazily float over it. But I’m more impressed with the bright and lively berry flavors that are already popping like crazy while the coffee is still hot – big time notes of blueberry, strawberry, and raspberry bounce all over the palate and provide a nice transition into the second half of the cup.
As the cup cools off, the texture gets sexy and silky with absolutely gorgeous fruit flavors – nectarine, apricot, peach, pear, apple, lemon, and a zesty orange rind acidity – that flood the palate and lead to white macadamia and vanilla in the finish.
Full body; silky mouthfeel; citrus acidity; clean finish.
THE BOTTOM LINE:
This coffee has made appearances at the Table on several occasions and still, every time, it’s something special. Once again, the Ethiopia Konga, this time from Carabello Coffee, knocked my socks off. (I’m sure that has its being a naturally processed coffee had nothing to do with that…)
Berries doth much abound, but juicy and silky stone fruits doth much more abound in this bright and flavorful Ethiopian coffee, and its notes of brown sugar, chocolate cake, and vanilla make it a confectioner’s dream.
An utterly delightful coffee from beginning to end.
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Andrew is a husband, father, dog lover, craft beverage enthusiast, content creator, and niche market Internet celebrity. Formerly of A Table in the Corner of the Cafe and The Pulitzer Project and contributor to Barista Magazine and Mental Floss, he’s been writing on the Internet for years.