ENJOY STIRRING MOMENTS THROUGHOUT YOUR DAY WITH THESE TWO DIFFERENT COFFEES FROM TANZANIA and ETHIOPIA. . . AND YOUR FAVORITE COFFEE OF THE MONTH CLUB . . .
TANZANIAN PEABERRY — FULL CITY ROAST —
Tanzania is the origin of truly great coffee. Often overshadowed by its neighbor Kenya, Tanzanian coffee offers an equal alternative at a much lower price. Tanzania is ranked 8th in production of all African nations, and 24th worldwide. Coffee comes from three major growing regions: Mochi District on the slopes of Mt. Kilimanjaro, Arusha on the border along Kenya, and Pare, encompassing the high plateau between Lake Nyassa and Tanganyika.
Tanzanian, as well as most African coffee, follows a grading format which has become well known from its use regarding Kenyan coffee. The top grade is AA, indicating the largest bean size with the fewest defects per pound. Approximately 14% of Tanzania’s crop is AA grade. Following AA is grade A, which contains slightly more defects per pound, with a smaller screen size. Additional grades that are found are AB, BB, and CC, in diminishing quality.
The final grade, and our choice this month, is Peaberry, designated by the mark PB. It is specially sorted out of the standard flat bean coffee. While Tanzania produces both peaberry and the more familiar flat bean coffee, peaberry has become synonymous with Tanzania.
During normal development of a coffee cherry, a bean forms at the center. This bean is made up of two halves with a flat seam in the middle where the halves sit against each other. (See illustration at left.) If you take two coffee beans and hold them together, you’ll see what we mean. Peaberry beans occur when, through the mysteries of nature, only one “half” forms. Because it does not have a partner inside the cherry with it, it develops into a small round bean without a flat side!
ETHIOPIAN SIDAMO — VIENNA ROAST —
Ethiopia is very unique within the coffee growing countries of the world. It has several different growing regions, and each produces two types of coffee. The mostly commonly seen Ethiopian coffees are Harrar, Sidamo, Djimma and Limu. The names of these coffees come from the major city of the area where that coffee is grown.
Regardless of where the coffee is grown, it is either processed with the washed method or the natural method. For example, coffee from Djimma is sold as Djimma coffee which is processed naturally and it is sold as Lekempti, which is processed with either the wet or washed method. This creates a unique offering in the fact that Ethiopia offers a huge selection of different coffees, each with slightly different taste profiles. In comparison, most other countries export coffee with the different regional marks to them, but typically all coffee from any given country is processed in the same way.
If Ethiopian coffee is (or may become) one of your favorites, as you experiment with the different offerings available, take note of the name by which it is sold and how it is processed. There are several different Ethiopian coffees on the market, and their flavor profiles are quite varied.
Ethiopian Sidamo coffee is a washed arabica variety. It has a slightly acidic character to it, with medium body and rich aroma. This is an excellent stand-alone coffee, and should be brewed without blending with any other coffee. For true coffee pleasure, most forgo using sweetener or creamer.
