Floral and sweet with orange acidity, black tea and a creamy body.

Recent developments in Ethiopia have seen a centralisation of all coffee exports through the recently established Ethiopia Commodity Exchange (ECX). This has made it virtually impossible to provide accurate information of the precise traceability of coffees as lots are anonymised on arrival at the Exchange.

All of the Ethiopian coffees that we purchase at MCM are selected on the basis of their exceptional cup profile first and foremost. This remains our guiding principle in Ethiopia and in all origins where we source coffees.

Many thousands of bags marked 'Sidamo' are sold every year but there may be significant differences in cup quality. We assess many samples of Sidamo before we make any purchases. We are looking for a coffee which possesses a vibrant crisp acidity, with refined sweetness and floral and citrus notes and an elegant aftertaste.

We are monitoring the situation in Ethiopia with regard to traceability. But regardless of developments, we will continue to cup our way through many samples and offer only the most exemplary that we find.

About the Sidamo region

Sidamo (or Sidama - the latter refers to the Sidama people, the former is what used to be known as Sidamo province) covers a large area spreading through the fertile highlands south from Lake Awasa in the Rift Valley. It is made up of over 20 different administrative areas, or 'woredas', with varying microclimates and altitudes, so there is a big variety of both grades and cup profiles that end up labeled as Sidamo.

Around 60% of the region's coffees are washed, while Sidamo also produces some excellent sundried coffees. There are upwards of 50 cooperatives in operation here, as well as many private buying stations - with over 200 washing stations around the various woredas.

The vast majority of Ethiopians still live rurally and make a living from farming; each family usually lives in a modest home (often a single round mud hut) and farms their own plot of land, where they grow both cash crops and food for their own consumption. In most of the Sidamo region, coffee will be the main cash crop - covering from half a hectare to 1.5 hectares (the latter is considered big). This is usually planted alongside a second cash crop - often a large-leafed tree (and also shade provider for the coffee) known as 'false banana'. This looks like a banana tree but isn't - instead its thick stem is used to produce both a nutritious flour and a fermented paste that are staple ingredients (particularly across southern Ethiopia).

There is only one main harvest a year in Ethiopia - this usually takes place in November and December across all of the country's growing regions. There are, on average, 4 passes made during the harvest period, and, in regions that produce both washed and naturals, the last pass is used for the natural coffee. Washed coffees are then generally pulped on the same day that they are picked (usually in the evening/night), sorted into three grades by weight (heavy, medium and floaters), fermented (times vary - usually between 16 and 48 hours), washed and then usually graded again in the washing channels. The beans are then dried on African beds, where they are hand-sorted, usually by women.





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