Ethiopia — Chelbessa Ethiopian Landrace (Washed)

Tastes Like — 🍉 Watermelon • 🍑 Peach • 🍋 Citrus

DETAILS

• Station: Chelbessa
• Region: Gedeb, Gedeo, Ethiopia
• Varietal: Ethiopian Landrace
• Process: Washed
• Altitude: 2,200 MASL
• Harvest: January 2026
• Size: 250g

INTRO

A long-standing and deeply valued partnership — Chelbessa in Gedeb, Yirgacheffe, returning to the SEY menu as a mark of summer. One of the most consistently expressive and well-structured washed Ethiopians in SEY's programme, and always anticipated. In the cup: watermelon, peach, and citrus.

THE PRODUCER

Chelbessa is a washing station in Gedeb — the southernmost woreda of Gedeo, a region that only began producing coffee one or two generations ago, making its trees young by Ethiopian standards. Where a decade ago much of Gedeo's coffee would simply have been sold under the broader Yirgacheffe name, SEY's ongoing work in Ethiopia has allowed them to identify and isolate distinct woredas — Dilla, Dilla Zuria, Bule, Wenago, Yirgacheffe, Kochere, and Gedeb — as individual producing areas, each with their own character and potential. Gedeb continues to fascinate and reward that attention.

Ethiopia is widely acknowledged as the birthplace of coffee, and its extraordinary biodiversity — with DNA testing confirming over 60 distinct varieties — means that most Ethiopian coffees are blends of many co-existing heirloom cultivars, referred to collectively as Ethiopian Landrace. At 2,200 MASL in Gedeb, this diversity finds ideal conditions to express itself with exceptional aromatic clarity.

THE PROCESS

The Washed process at Chelbessa involves:

🍒 Hand-picking — Cherries picked at peak ripeness 💧 Flotation — Floated to further remove defects before processing 🔧 De-pulping — Outer skin removed before fermentation 🔍 Grade 1 density separation — Beans separated by density, with only the finest Grade 1 beans proceeding 💧 Underwater fermentation — Fermented submerged in water for 36 hours ☀️ Raised-bed drying — Dried on raised beds for 10–14 days

The Grade 1 density separation combined with 36-hour underwater fermentation is the defining step — separating by density ensures only the most consistent, highest-quality beans are processed, while the extended submerged fermentation builds the clean watermelon freshness, peach sweetness, and citrus brightness that define this lot, with the careful raised-bed drying preserving every nuance of the Gedeb terroir.

THE CUP

A pristine and beautifully expressive washed Ethiopian from one of SEY's most enduring and beloved seasonal partnerships — watermelon freshness, peach sweetness, and a bright citrus acidity in a cup of exceptional clarity and seasonal charm. Chelbessa on the menu means summer has arrived.

Flavour Notes

🍉 Watermelon 🍑 Peach 🍋 Citrus