Processing Details
Coffees are grown and harvested in smallholder farmers’ backyards, known as “garden coffee,” throughout the Yirgacheffe region.
Cherries are delivered to the washing station, where lots from multiple smallholder farmers are combined and hand-sorted to remove under-ripe and over-ripe cherries. Only cherries measuring between 18–22°Brix are selected.
The cherries are then dried on raised beds in full sun for 18–30 days, allowing the beans to absorb sweetness and fruit characteristics from the cherry pulp and skin.
During drying, the cherries are regularly turned to ensure even moisture reduction and maintain clarity in the cup profile. On very hot days, they are covered with plastic to help control the drying rate.
Moisture content is gradually reduced to 10–12%.
Once dried, the beans are stored inside the dried cherry pod to protect them and maximize the absorption of sugars and fruit flavors until milling and export preparation.
Our local partner, Primrose, conducts additional quality control and sorting during milling. At a minimum, the coffee passes three times through a color sorter and three times through hand-sorting tables to further improve overall quality.
Grade 2 and Grade 3 natural lots are categorized by the ECX and typically have a higher defect count than Grade 1 lots. However, Primrose performs additional sorting and defect removal during milling to ensure that Project Origin’s Grade 2 and Grade 3 lots exceed the minimum quality standards and are cleaner than typical coffees in these categories.