This beautiful, washed Yirgacheffe was prepared at the ALEMU Washing Station in the Mendero Mountains just to the south of Sidama. ALEMU is one of several coffee preparation stations that is a part of the Kochere Coffee Cooperative, comprised of approximately 500 farmers.
The Table is, of course, a big fan of coffee from the Kochere Cooperative; it has seen several of their coffees served upon it over the past couple years. I remain impressed with the care and pride the members take in the cultivation and preparation of their coffees, as it shows beautifully in the cup on a very consistent basis.
Kochere is growing in popularity, showcasing the consistent diversity of Yirgacheffe’s unique terroir.
Close to 100,000 local inhabitants rely on coffee as their main crop with which to feed their families. Of those 100,000 residents, the Kochere Cooperative consists of about 500 smallholder farmers who use shared wet mills to process their coffee, where it is washed and then dried on elevated drying beds.
The Kochere micro-region has long been known as one of the best origins for fully washed southern Ethiopian coffees. So much so, in fact, that now, about thirty percent of all coffee bearing the Yirgacheffe name comes from this specific area. The combination of very high altitude and iron-rich, acidic soil creates the ideal growing situation to produce the bright, floral Yirgacheffe profile.
Welcome to my Table, here in the corner of this cafe. Today we’re sipping a cup of Ethiopia Kochere, from New Town Coffee Roasters in Edinburgh, Scotland. Feel free to pull up a chair.
the basics:
region: Kochere, Yirgacheffe, Ethiopia
farm: ALEMU Washing Station
producer: smallholder farmers
association: Kochere Coffee Cooperative
elevation: 1800 – 2100 meters above sea level
cultivars: Ethiopia Heirloom
process: natural
certifications: standard
the coffee:
The aroma coming off of the Ethiopia Kochere is wonderful; absolutely wonderful. White sugar, rose hips, and cherry blossom grace the nostrils first, introducing further sweet scents of mixed berries and zesty lemon.
While I take my first few sips of the coffee, my palate is greeted by rich, full-bodied flavors of roasted cocoa nibs, nuts, and silky rose petal aromatics. There are already some fruits starting to poke through, too—particularly soft red-skinned fruits.
As it begins to cool off, those fruit and floral notes really intensify and congeal together to create a thick syrupy mouthfeel that absolutely electrifies the taste buds. Tart flavors of raspberry, strawberry wine, Fuji apple, and sugary pink lemonade mix with more understated, but sweet, flavors of red currant, apple, blueberry, molasses, and spicy cherry liqueur that finishes in a flurry of rose hips and hibiscus.
Full body; lightly syrupy mouthfeel; lime acidity; clean finish.
the bottom line:
Coffee from the Kochere Cooperative has been very popular over the past couple of years; personally, I think I’ve had it here at The Table at least a half dozen times. The thing about it, though, is that it’s never the same coffee twice. While, with most other coffees, if there’s something about it I can’t put my finger on I can go back into my archives and read earlier reviews of it, that’s practically impossible with the Kochere.
The Ethiopia Kochere, from New Town Coffee Roasters, was certainly no exception. This is a beautiful coffee that highlights everything that makes the classic Ethiopian profile so great, then amplifies those features to eleven while maintaining a tremendous balance.
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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.