This outstanding organic coffee comes to us from one of our long-time organic partners, InterAmerican Importers, and is from the Konga Cooperative, a large partnership of Yirgacheffe coffee farmers with tasting notes of Fiji Apple, Bergamot, and Black Tea and showcasing a full body and bright acidity.This exceptional organic coffee is sourced from our long-time partner, InterAmerican Importers, and hails from the Konga Cooperative—a large collaboration of Yirgacheffe coffee farmers. It features tasting notes of Fiji apple, bergamot, and black tea, with a full body and bright acidity.
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Coffee Ceremony in Ethiopia on John Clark’s origin trip to the area.
Sankofa - Black History of Coffee
February’s Black History Month originated in the United States as a time to recognize the historic and present day contributions of black people here and across the world. Vienna Coffee knows that the rich and complex blends that make up the diaspora of people of African descent are an integral part of the coffee journey. Like much of the story of Black people in America this history is tainted by the bitter acidity of slavery, the present flavored by the dregs of that past, and the future is dependent on our willingness to acknowledge those elements.
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Asnakech Thomas, owner of Amaro Gayo
Amaro Gayo and One of Ethiopia's Only Female Coffee Exporters
This month we have the pleasure of having Ethiopia Amaro Gayo as our featured coffee. So what better time to tell you about the incredible farm, and equally incredible woman that this coffee comes from.
This coffee comes from a farm in the Amaro Mountains of Ethiopia. The area is full of waterfalls, bamboo forests, and local coffee varietals. Nestled between a National Park and tribal land, the farm is unique and beautiful. This land is the home of one of Ethiopia’s only female coffee millers and exporters, Asnakech Thomas, who returned to Amaro in 2005 to improve the quality of coffee and the living conditions of her home region. Through her farm she helps provide medical assistance, jobs, and schooling to her community.
Asnakech’s farm is unique in that the coffee is harvested, sorted, and milled all on-site, which gives her extraordinary control over the quality of the coffee. She only accepts the highest quality coffee cherries at the peak of freshness. Her cherries are then dried on raised beds to create a cleaner coffee by removing contact with the ground soil. These beds also help the coffee dry evenly on all sides, resulting in a more consistent flavor and quality.
Aside from running and incredible farm and coffee mill, she also helped found an advocacy program for other female coffee growers called the EWiC (Ethiopian Women in Coffee Association). This group helps fight for women at an economic disadvantage that may not be getting recognized for their role in the coffee community. The organization also helps provide training and networking for these female producers.
“Our hostess, Asnakech Thomas is a force of nature. Her Estate in the Sidamo region produces some of the finest semi-washed coffees you will find and she is a delight. Organic and local to her core, her influence on coffees in the region reaches well beyond her own estate.” - John Clark on his 2015 Origin Trip
Asnakech has overcome and powered through every challenge (including a literal war on her farm) to keep providing great coffee to the world and better lives for those in her community. It is our honor to get to roast and serve up her crops and we hope you taste every ounce of her hard work and ambition in every drop.
Ethiopia Origin Trip Report - December 6-18, 2015
Read about owner, John Clark's adventure to the birthplace of coffee, Ethiopia in December.
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