Ethiopia — Daye Bensa Iron Lion Bensa Natural Local Landraces (Natural)

Tastes Like — 🍑 Stone Fruits • 🫐 Berries • 🍫 White Chocolate

DETAILS

• Producer: Daye Bensa — Iron Lion Community Lot

• Region: Bensa, Sidama, Ethiopia

• Varietal: Local Landraces

• Process: Natural

• Altitude: 2,000 MASL

• Roast: Espresso

• Size: 250g

INTRO

A community natural lot from Daye Bensa in Bensa, Sidama — one of DAK's best price-to-quality picks of the year, and a collaboration with one of Ethiopia's most respected and innovative specialty exporters. Expressively juicy, fruited, and creamy, with a familiarity and generosity that makes it one of the most satisfying espressos in the lineup. In the cup: stone fruits, berries, and white chocolate.

THE PRODUCER

Daye Bensa Coffee is a family-owned specialty exporter founded by Assefa Daye, who grew up in the Bensa district of Sidama and has dedicated his career to transforming how Ethiopian coffee is sourced, processed, and presented to the world. The Iron Lion series is their community lot programme — bringing together the harvests of multiple smallholder producers in the Bensa area under a single processing and quality standard, producing lots that offer exceptional cup quality at an accessible price point.

Sidama is one of Ethiopia's most celebrated growing regions, and Bensa is one of its most prized sub-districts — situated at 2,000 MASL, where volcanic soils, consistent rainfall, and the extraordinary biodiversity of local landrace varieties combine to produce the lush, expressive naturals that have made the area so sought after. Local Landraces reflects Ethiopia's exceptional genetic heritage — with DNA testing confirming over 60 distinct varieties growing across the country, most Ethiopian coffees are blends of many co-existing heirloom cultivars, each contributing to the layered complexity that defines the region's finest lots.

THE PROCESS

The Natural process at Bensa involves:

🍒 Hand-picking — Ripe cherries selectively harvested by community producers at peak ripeness 🔍 Sorting — Carefully sorted before drying to ensure consistency and quality ☀️ Raised-bed drying — Whole cherries dried on raised beds, turned regularly to ensure even drying throughout

The raised-bed natural drying is the defining step — the beans rest inside the intact cherry throughout, slowly absorbing the fruit's sugars and developing the stone fruit sweetness, berry depth, and creamy white chocolate base that define the Iron Lion profile.

THE CUP

A juicy, fruited, and creamy natural espresso from one of Sidama's most revered growing districts — stone fruit and berry expressiveness layered over a white chocolate base, in a cup that is, as Daye Bensa put it, truly coffee for the people. One of DAK's best value picks of the year.

Flavour Notes

🍑 Stone Fruits 🫐 Berries 🍫 White Chocolate