Ethiopia Tagel
ETHIOPIA
TAGEL
BERGAMOT, SWEET KEY LIME, SPRITE, PINEAPPLE + BERRIES
BEAN DETAILS:
ORIGIN: Hambela, Guiji, Ethiopia
PRODUCER: Tagel Alemayehu
ELEVATION: masl
VARIETY: Kurume and Dega
PROCESS: Washed
TASTING NOTES: Bergamot, sweet key lime, Sprite, pineapple, and berries.
ROAST TYPE: Light
Farm Level
Tagel Alemayehu and Olkai Coffee - Ethiopia
Via Crop to Cup:
After visiting with smallholders and single farmers around Yirgacheffe, we were picked up in a truck driven by Tagel Alemayehu, the owner of Olkai Coffee—a former race circuit driver whose efficiency behind the wheel is matched only by his humility and warmth. Over dinner at Aragesh Lodge (in addition to teasing him about his car's sound system, which sounded as awful as his reflexes were quick), we got to know Tagel better.
For Tagel, coffee runs deep. He grew up in Bule Hora, the son of a local coffee trader who built the first washing station there and installed the first Pinhalense dry huller in Ethiopia. Starting in 2004, he worked as a washing station manager at one of the first specialty natural stations in Guji, and founded Olkai in 2018 as government export regulations opened up. Olkai is a family business—his wife works as the export manager.
Tagel and Olkai operate a half dozen washing stations in the south, dotting many of the most sought-after regions for quality in Guji, Bule Hora, and Sidama. Tagel's ties to the community were forged over 20 years of collecting cherry from these regions. Community members later sold land to make space for him to operate washing stations in their communities, and many stopped us along our journey out of Hambella to say hello to Tagel and chat.
General Brewing Instructions
- Filtered water. Spring water is ideal. Removing chloride, sulfur, and iron is essential.
- A burr grinder. The more even the coffee particles, the better the coffee. Burr grinders, whether manual or electric, will do a better job than "whirly-blade" grinders. Invest in a burr grinder. Your taste buds (and coffee roaster) will thank you.
- A scale. I know using a scale can seem a bit like you're doing something you shouldn't be. Trust me, you can only brew consistently great coffee with a scale. Water and coffee are hard to measure without one.
- Clean equipment. Properly cleaning your equipment is the only way to avoid stale and rancid coffee flavors entering your cup. Please keep your equipment clean. The sooner and more often you clean your gear, the easier it will be in the long run. Add it to your ritual and thank us later.
- Delicious and freshly roasted Color Coffee
- Hario V60 02. Check out Scott Rao's video on how to brew a better pourover than your local cafe does.
- French Press. Check out James Hoffman's video on how to brew a next level cup.
- Aeropress. Check out Tim Wendelboe's video on how to brew an exceptionally easy and delicious cup.
Coffee Faq
IS YOUR COFFEE ORGANIC OR FAIR TRADE?
In many cases, yes. However, our first priority is quality and flavor. Sometimes these priorities align and our producers are certified organic and/or fair trade. We always pay well above fair trade rates (which are quite low and don’t guarantee sustainability or quality).
Often times, the producers we work with are too small to gain certifications. It’s expensive and laborious. Many of our producers are certified organic and fair trade, including many of our producers in Peru, Ethiopia, and Mexico.
WHAT IS THE BEST TIME-FRAME TO DRINK MY COFFEE?
We recommend drinking our coffee within one month of the roast date. Most of our coffees taste best however within 2 - 14 days of roast date.
For espresso, we recommend using coffee that has rested at least 7 days after roast date. This is because coffee gives off CO2 after roasting that can interfere with extraction. One way to get around this is to let your ground espresso dose sit for 30-120 minutes before pulling the shot. Email info@colorroasters.com for more questions about this.
If you are pre-grinding the coffee, we recommend drinking the coffee within one week of grinding.
CAN YOU GRIND MY COFFEE ON WEB ORDERS?
Yes, we can. Please select how you want your coffee to be ground at the time you place your order. Simply click on the arrow beside "Grind" and make your selection. If you need help choosing let us know the brewing method you will be using to prepare the coffee, in the notes of the order. And we will be happy to grind the coffee for you on our commercial grinder.
DO YOU HAVE BREW RECIPES?
These are in the works! We are compiling a bunch and even shooting some video, to help you brew like us at home.
In the meantime...go here: Pour Overs | Aeropress to get some expert advice.
MY COFFEE TASTES WEAK, WHAT'S THE PROBLEM?