Ethiopia — Tamiru Tadesse Alo JARC 74158 (Honey)

Tastes Like — 🍊 Pomelo • 🍋 Sweet Lemon • 🌸 White Floral • 🍯 Honey

DETAILS

• Producer: Tamiru Tadesse
• Farm: Alo
• Region: Bensa, Sidama, Ethiopia
• Varietal: JARC 74158
• Process: Honey
• Altitude: 2450 MASL
• Size: 200g

INTRO

From the high slopes of Bensa in Sidama, Tamiru Tadesse’s Alo farm sits at an elevation of 2450 metres — conditions that produce naturally complex, layered coffees. This honey-processed lot from the JARC 74158 cultivar brings a radiant clarity to the cup: citrus-bright pomelo, sweet lemon, and a lingering floral sweetness threaded through with honey.

The honey process preserves a portion of the fruit’s mucilage during drying, bridging the vibrancy of a washed coffee and the fruit-forwardness of a natural. The result is a coffee that feels refined and expressive at once.

THE PRODUCER

Tamiru Tadesse farms in Bensa, a sub-region of Sidama that has earned a reputation for producing some of Ethiopia’s most precise and high-altitude specialty lots. At 2450 metres above sea level, the Alo farm benefits from cooler temperatures and slower cherry maturation — factors that concentrate sweetness and develop complexity in the bean.

The JARC 74158 variety, developed by the Jimma Agricultural Research Centre, is prized for both its disease resistance and its capacity for bright, complex flavour at high altitude. Tamiru selects only ripe cherries and works with careful attention to every stage of processing, from harvest through drying.

THE PROCESS

The Honey process at Alo involves:

• 🍒 Selective Harvesting — Cherries are hand-picked at full ripeness across the Alo farm’s high-altitude plots.
• 🔧 Depulping — The outer skin is removed whilst a controlled layer of mucilage (fruit flesh) is retained on the parchment.
• ☀️ Raised Bed Drying — Beans are dried on raised African beds, allowing airflow on all sides and slower, more even drying.
• 📅 Extended Rest — The retained mucilage dries slowly with the parchment, imparting sweetness and body to the final cup.
• ✅ Milling & Grading — Final milling, sorting, and grading before export.

This careful approach allows the honey process to express both the terroir of Bensa’s high elevation and the natural sweetness of the JARC 74158 variety.

THE CUP

Bright and delicate, with pomelo and sweet lemon leading the way before giving way to gentle white florals and a honeyed sweetness on the finish. The body is smooth and the acidity refined — a coffee that rewards slow, attentive drinking.

Flavour Notes

• 🍊 Pomelo
• 🍋 Sweet Lemon
• 🌸 White Floral
• 🍯 Honey