This is the second year that the Worka Cooperative has been crafting Grade 1 Lots for export. They did this by working with a dedicated crew of farmers who picked beautifully ripe, perfect cherries. After the meticulous picking, this lot spent some extra time at the dry mill where additional defects were removed, creating an astonishingly consistent lot.
The area surrounding Worka produces some of our favorite coffees in Ethiopia for a few different reasons: there is an exceptionally high percentage of one of the tastiest varieties in all of Ethiopia, the tiny Kudhume variety, and the picking in the Worka and Banko kebeles (counties) is some of the best in the whole country.*
Welcome to my Table, here in the corner of this cafe. Today we’re sipping the Ethiopia Worka, from Kickapoo Coffee Roasters in Viroqua, Wisconsin, courtesy of Craft Coffee. Feel free to pull up a chair.
THEDETAILS
origin: Gedeb, Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia
farm: N/A
producer: smallholder farmers
association: Ethiopia Worka Cooperative
elevation: 1900 – 2100 meters above sea level
cultivars: Kudhume, Wolisho, Ethiopia Heirloom
process: fully washed, raised bed dried
certifications: Organic
CUPPINGNOTES
The aroma of the Ethiopia Worka is wonderfully fragrant and perfumed. It’s elegant and refined, highlighted by scents of stone fruit, citrus, and a prominent floral bouquet.
My first few sips present my palate with an incredibly juicy coffee; it floods over my tongue with a deluge of sweet fruits and florals. Right out of the gate, this coffee is a unique one. The very first thing I taste is a rush of iced sweet tea (and a very prominent sweet tea note at that) and floral aromatics (lilac, rose, and even juniper with its very slight piney nuances). That flavor is accentuated by fruit notes that really complement it beautifully: peach, apricot, nectarine, cherry, and a sweet-tart lemon acidity. I’m also tasting some very light hints of panela and cocoa powder.
Medium body; supple mouthfeel; citric acidity; clean finish.
FINALTHOUGHTS
Craft Coffee has 2016 off to a beautiful start, with two coffees that showcase how sophisticated African coffees can be; first, with their own Rwanda Rulindo, and now, with their selection of Kickapoo Coffee’s Ethiopia Worka.
The Ethiopia Worka is the quintessential washed Yirgacheffe—soft, round edges, perfumed, fragrant, balanced, sweet, and juicy. Soft, juicy stone fruits provide a supple mouthfeel for this flower-forward coffee, which has bright floral aromatics that flutter throughout. A lovely coffee; a portrait of elegance.
*content provided by Kickapoo Coffee Roasters
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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.