Ethiopian Wild Forest Coffee Medium Roasted Whole Beans Very Special

‘Wild’ coffee is a term to describe beans harvested from trees growing in the forest, with virtually no management of the surrounding forest or vegetation. Only an estimated 5% of Ethiopia’s production is wild or as it’s called ‘Forest Coffee’, it is speculated that the actual amount may be as low as 1% or 2%. Even this tiny amount is home to 98% of the world’s Coffea arabica gene pool. In Panama in 2002 an exceptional coffee was found in Hacienda la Esmeralda, these bushes were genetically identified to plants growing near the Ethiopian town of Gesha. Apparently, a variety gathered by a British Diplomat in the 1930’s and cultivated in Panama in the 1960’s. In 2004 this ‘Geisha’ shattered the record price for coffee at auction,

This Wild Forest Coffee comes from the mostly uncharted territory of the Kaffa Zone in the south-west of Ethiopia bordering South Sudan and is in conjunction with Wild Coffee Conservation through Participatory Forest Management project. The coffee grows in a protected biosphere, which is farmed by local communities and is exported by them, instead of selling through internal markets. Only 27 bags were imported into the U.K. and have all been snapped up. We have chosen to have this medium roasted and it works well, a soft body but still good depth, good fruity acidity and a sort of smoky wine flavour. I can see this becoming a definite favourite amongst our fellow coffee suppers.