Ethiopia — Hambela Natural Heirloom (EA Decaf)

Tastes Like — 🍒 Red Cherry • 🍑 Peach • 🍯 Molasses • 🍫 Milk Chocolate

DETAILS

Producer: Smallholder Farmers, Hambela Woreda
Region: Guji Zone, Oromia, Ethiopia
Variety: Heirloom (Ethiopian Landraces)
Process: Natural, EA (Ethyl Acetate) Decaffeination
Altitude: 1,800–2,300 MASL
Size: 340g (12oz)

INTRO

Hambela is one of Ethiopia's finest coffee-growing regions — part of the broader Guji Zone, synonymous with vibrant, fruit-forward, high-altitude coffees. This lot comes from smallholder farmers who deliver cherry to local mills for natural processing, then undergoes ethyl acetate decaffeination — a method that preserves the oils and aromatics that make Ethiopian naturals so compelling, minus the caffeine.

THE PRODUCER

Coffee farming in Hambela is deeply rooted in tradition. Smallholder farmers typically cultivate less than two hectares each, growing coffee under intercropped shade alongside food crops at extraordinary altitudes reaching up to 2,300 metres. EA decaffeination uses ethyl acetate — a naturally occurring compound found in fruit — to selectively bond with and remove caffeine molecules whilst leaving the coffee's flavour profile largely intact.

THE PROCESS

The Natural EA Decaf process involves:

🍒 Selective Harvesting — Ripe cherries handpicked and sorted for quality
☀️ Raised Bed Drying — Whole cherries sun-dried on African beds for 17–30 days
✅ Hulling & Sorting — Hulled and hand-sorted to Grade 1 standard
🧪 EA Decaffeination — Green coffee submerged in ethyl acetate solution; caffeine bonds to EA and is removed
💧 Steaming & Re-Drying — Coffee steamed to remove residual EA, re-dried to optimal moisture

EA decaffeination is widely regarded as one of the most flavour-preserving decaf methods available, making it an ideal partner for a fruit-forward Guji natural.

THE CUP

Rich and deeply satisfying: red cherry and peach deliver the fruit brightness you'd expect from a Guji natural, while molasses adds a dark, syrupy sweetness beneath. The finish settles into smooth milk chocolate — a decaf that genuinely rewards attention.

Flavour Notes

🍒 Red Cherry
🍑 Peach
🍯 Molasses
🍫 Milk Chocolate