Ethiopia — Legesse Botasa Muntasha Station JARC 74158 (Natural)

Tastes Like — 🌹 Rose • 🍒 Cherry • 🫐 Blueberry • 🍍 Mixed Tropical Fruits • 🍵 Lapsang Souchong Tea

DETAILS

• Producer: Legesse Botasa (2022 Cup of Excellence 1st Place)
• Station: Muntasha — Mulugeta Muntasha
• Region: Arbegona, Sidama, Ethiopia
• Varietal: JARC 74158
• Process: Natural
• Altitude: 2,150–2,400 MASL
• Harvest: January 2026 — Arrived May 2026 by air

INTRO

From Legesse Botasa — the 2022 Ethiopia Cup of Excellence champion — processing at Mulugeta Muntasha's station in Arbegona. A naturally processed JARC 74158 from one of Sidama's most extraordinary high-altitude growing environments, at a station whose competition pedigree is virtually unmatched. In the cup: rose florality, cherry and blueberry fruit depth, mixed tropical fruits, and a distinctive Lapsang Souchong tea finish.

THE PRODUCER

Mulugeta Muntasha was born in Bursa Village — a region that only recently began cultivating coffee — and began his career as a coffee cherry picker in Arsi before returning home and founding his own mill, Dawencho, in 2021. In his very first year, he placed 2nd at the Cup of Excellence under the Dawencho cooperative name and 6th under his own name. In 2022, four of his lots ranked in the CoE top 10 — including the 1st place winner by Legesse Botasa, his brother-in-law and close collaborator.

Legesse Botasa's 2022 CoE first place win is the defining chapter of this station's story — establishing Muntasha as one of Ethiopia's most celebrated and consistently excellent addresses. The station works in close partnership with local smallholder farmers across farm altitudes ranging from 2,150 to 2,400 MASL — among the highest in all of Sidama, where cool temperatures, volcanic soils, and exceptional growing conditions build the aromatic intensity and refined sweetness that make lots from this station so compelling.

JARC 74158, developed by the Jimma Agricultural Research Centre and selected for its disease resistance and quality potential, reaches its fullest expression at these extreme altitudes — delivering a cup of remarkable complexity and depth that fully justifies the attention it has attracted on the competition stage.

THE PROCESS

The Natural process at Muntasha involves:

🍒 Hand-picking — Ripe JARC 74158 cherries selectively harvested at peak ripeness 🔍 Sorting — Carefully sorted before drying to ensure only the finest cherries proceed ☀️ Raised-bed drying — Whole cherries dried on raised beds, turned regularly throughout to ensure even drying and prevent overfermentation

The raised-bed natural drying is the defining step — the beans rest inside the intact cherry throughout the drying period, slowly absorbing the fruit's sugars and aromatic compounds and developing the rose florality, cherry and blueberry depth, tropical fruit sweetness, and Lapsang Souchong tea character that define this lot.

THE CUP

A deeply expressive and aromatic natural JARC 74158 from one of Ethiopia's most decorated and high-altitude specialty stations — rose florality, cherry and blueberry richness, tropical fruit sweetness, and a distinctive Lapsang Souchong tea finish in a cup that carries the weight of a 2022 Cup of Excellence championship behind every sip.

Flavour Notes

🌹 Rose 🍒 Cherry 🫐 Blueberry 🍍 Mixed Tropical Fruits 🍵 Lapsang Souchong Tea