Back
Sidama, our new beautiful coffee, has arrived. Mid-September, our team began rounds of roasting and cupping and once satisfied, beans were bagged which we now offer to you. Sidama like our other coffees, organic, fairly and sustainably sourced, is grown on the most fertile lands on the African continent. Our Sidama is a washed coffee grown on small family farms. Washed Sidama coffee is particularly appreciated for its round cup and balanced acidity which gives us notes of Earl Grey, Pineapple and Lemon Syrup.
Sidama is the resultant collaborative work of the Sidama Coffee Farmers Cooperative Union (SCFCU). Founded in 2001 to represent a collective of coffee growers in Sidama, Southern Ethiopia, the SCFCU set in motion a transformative approach to sourcing Ethiopian coffee. The SCFCU is a tribally based organisation, representing the Sidama people for whom the Sidama coffee-growing region is named. And today this union of cooperatives has grown to support over 80,000 smallholder coffee farmers, making it the second-largest coffee producing cooperative union in the country. Directly purchasing from the cooperative ensures farmers are paid upfront for their coffee crop — at prices supported by the FairTrade premium. It is these premiums that enable families to invest in their households and their community. And in the broader sense, we are collectively designing the future of the speciality coffee industry.
Their beans are predominantly shade-grown under mixed canopies of natives and enset trees. Enset, also known as 'false banana', is a staple food crop in Ethiopia. It not only sustains the farmers and their families but traps rainwater for the coffee trees to access when water is in short supply. Farmers sell the coffee cherry to their local cooperative where it is processed at large cooperatively owned washing stations. The beans are of medium size and green-grey. There, the coffee cherry is machine pulped, fermented, washed and sorted, and then dried in parchment on raised tables for about a week and a half. Harvest starts in late November following the rainy season and runs through to early March. Sidama varieties are generally grown at altitudes between 1700 m and 1950 m above sea level. However, each farmer grows to their hyperlocal conditions to achieve optimal crop yields.
Those in the industry perhaps will be familiar with' Sidamo', directly in reference to one of the finest coffees originating from Ethiopia. There are no Sidamo people; there never were. This naming was a deliberate and derogatory act — part of a campaign to humiliate and undermine the newly conquered territories in the South of the country. In recognition of this, in 2008 the government and ECX officially change the coffee name from Sidamo to Sidama. We confirmed with the cooperative, and they clearly stated their preference for Sidama. And as such, Sidama is available for you to serve to others or self caffeinate at home.
Our tasting notes for Sidama
Aroma Floral, Lemon, Honey
Flavour Earl Grey, Lemon Syrup and Pineapple
Acidity Juicy Pineapple
Body Medium, rounded body
Roast profile Light-medium, best suited to Aeropress, V60 and Moccamaster
Brewing For our cafe owners and those expanding their coffee drinking experience at home, Sidama is suited to filter option either on Batch Brew or hand brew. Sidama is not recommended for espresso.
Grab one for home, here.
Share
Back to articles
