Bekele Yutute Natural
Rich and sweet, with fruit forward complexity and great intensity. Mango, passionfruit, lime and Earl Grey tea.
This coffee was produced by Bekele Yutute, who grows and processes coffee on his 3.9-hectare farm, Denbi. The farm is located in the woreda (administrative district) of Daye, in the Bensa political zone, in Ethiopia’s Southern Nationalities, Nations, and People’s Region. Denbi is privately owned and operated by Bekele and his family.
Being able to purchase a lot from a single producer in Ethiopia is rare and incredibly special. Most farmers are not able to connect to buyers directly and must sell their cherry at local washing stations where it is combined with other farmers’ lots, losing transparency and distinction. To access support to process and market his coffee separately, Bekele joined the Lalisaa Project, an initiative that aims to provide opportunity and resources for smallholder farmers and to connect them to overseas buyers like MCM directly. Head here to learn more about this incredible program and their work in the region.
Although Bekele only joined Lalisaa in 2021, he has been farming coffee for over 30 years, first establishing his farm in 1991. For years he’s been confident in the quality of his crop, but has lacked the exposure and resources necessary to access the international market, thereby limiting his potential livelihood from his coffee. By partnering with the Lalisaa Project, Bekele has been able to find stability and financial security, as well as the opportunity to help the community of member farmers by sharing the wealth of knowledge he has gained throughout his long career.
Bekele’s farm sits at a staggering 2,150m above sea level. This high elevation of the farm, combined with the region’s cool climate is ideal for the slow ripening of coffee cherries, leading to denser beans and a sweeter, more complex cup profile. Coffee is grown as a cash crop, alongside other food crops like corn, grain and bananas. The coffee is intercropped amongst native forest and grows under the shade of Birbira, Wanza, and Acacia trees. Like many Ethiopian smallholder farmers, Bekele uses organic farming practices that rely heavily on the manual labour of his and his family.
ABOUT THE SIDAMA COFFEE REGION
Historically, the Sidama coffee region refers to a wide geographical area encompassing much of central-south Ethiopia, that is well known for producing exceptional natural and washed coffees. The region is located in Ethiopia’s South East Coffee Zone, and includes renowned coffee-producing localities such as Yirgacheffe, Kochere, West Arsi, Bensa and Guji. After a 2019 Referendum, some of the territories within the Sidama coffee region formed an autonomous regional state. This coffee region now extends across the states of Sidama, Oromia and the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and People’s Region (SNNPR), three of eleven ethnically-based regional states of Ethiopia.
Coffees that are grown and processed in Sidama showcase an extremely diverse range of flavour profiles, and are noted for their intensely fruit-forward, tea-like, floral and complex character that is sought after worldwide. It is widely accepted that the coffee species, Arabica, originated in the lush forests of southern forests of Ethiopia and hence growing conditions in this area are perfectly suited for producing exquisite coffees.
The Sidama coffee region is named for the Sidama people, a tribe with a long and proud history of coffee production. Coffee has been here for centuries and is an important source of income for rural households, who grow it as the primary cash crop. Family plots are small and intensively farmed with intercropped coffee, food crops like pulses, grain and yams, and other cash crops like khat (similar to tobacco) and Ethiopian banana. Most farms are planted amongst or alongside indigenous forest trees, which provide a thick canopy of shade for the coffee trees. Historically, farmers in this area will use organic farming practices (although it is unlikely to be certified) as there is no ready access to artificial fertilisers or pesticides.
VARIETY
This coffee is made up of JARC varieties 74158, 74110 and 74112.
For many years, most Ethiopian coffees have been described as being a mix of cultivated and wild varieties, referred to as “heirloom varieties.” This is a term that is all-encompassing and used by many actors in the coffee industry to generally categorise Ethiopian coffee varieties that are from native forest origins. Whilst this describes many of the varieties found in Ethiopia, it is also a bit simplistic and does not acknowledge the varieties that are already locally recognised and cultivated, or those that have been specifically developed and widely distributed by the Jimma Agricultural Research Centre (JARC).
JARC varieties were developed using “mother trees” from Ethiopia’s coffee forests, and are now grown for disease and pest resistance, as well as exceptional cup profile, and are released by number. For example, 74110, 74112 and 74116 are all widely propagated in the Sidama growing region. Along with these, Ethiopia is also home to many native or “landrace” varieties in the region that were originally selected from the forest and have been propagated by farmers for decades. There are five popular ones that all have been named after indigenous trees in the area—Bedessa, Kudhumi, Mique, Sawe and Wolisho. There is little documentation on the history of these varieties, and it is hard to know if they represent single varieties or a wider group of varieties; however, it is widely accepted that they play a major role in the quality and floral flavour profile of the coffee from this region.
PROCESSING
This coffee was processed using the natural method; a complex process requiring a high level of attention to detail in order to be done well. Ethiopian coffee has been processed this way by generations of farmers who have mastered the art of the natural method through centuries of tradition and experience.
In collaboration with Lalisaa Project, Bekele employs best practices to dry his natural processed coffees, as the aim is to produce high quality, exportable grade coffee. This coffee is classified as Grade 1, indicating that a lot of effort has been put into the selection, grading and drying to ensure the very highest quality coffee is produced.
Each day, Bekele and his team selectively handpick the ripest red cherries. The cherries are meticulously hand-sorted prior to processing to remove unripe, overripe, or damaged fruit, in order to enhance the quality and sweetness of the cup.
The coffee is then graded by weight and spread evenly on raised African beds (screens) to dry in the sun. Initially, it is laid very thinly and turned regularly to ensure consistent drying and prevent over-fermentation. This is done very carefully to avoid damage to the fruit.
After a few days, when the coffee has reached 25% humidity—this is called the “raisin stage”—the layers of coffee are gradually increased. Careful attention and control during this drying phase ensures the coffee is stable and that a clean and balanced cup profile is achieved. The coffee is turned constantly whilst drying to ensure that it dries evenly and consistently. At midday, the coffee is covered to protect it from full sun. It is also covered overnight to prevent damage from morning dew.
Once the coffee reaches the optimum moisture level (usually over 2-4 weeks, depending on weather conditions), it is moved to an onsite warehouse where it is rested (or ‘conditioned’) before being transported to the dry mill to be hulled and sorted before export.
HOW THIS COFFEE WAS SOURCED
Since 2018, regulation changes within the Ethiopian coffee industry have allowed smallholder producers and coffee washing stations to export coffee directly to the international market, rather than through the Ethiopian Commodity Exchange (ECX). While the ECX has provided stability and opportunity for many Ethiopian coffee farmers, it does not service the specialty market well, as there is an inherent lack of transparency and traceability in its auction model, and more points for potential corruption or confusion between the producing communities and the final buyer.
The recent changes enable a more streamlined coffee supply chain and provide an opportunity for the increased traceability and transparency of coffee trade in Ethiopia. Beyond this, producers who market and trade their coffee directly can access higher prices and more direct payments for their coffees. All of the coffee we purchase in Ethiopia is bought outside of the ECX system.
This coffee was sourced through our on-the-ground Ethiopian supply partner, Sucafina Ethiopia, who help connect us to single estates, privately owned washing stations and quality-focused exporters in different regions of Ethiopia. Based in Addis Ababa, Sucafina Ethiopia work as a service provider connecting local farmers and exporters (colloquially known as ‘shippers’) with international buyers like MCM. By Ethiopian law, they (and other foreign-owned entities) are not permitted to buy cherries directly, or to own washing stations or mills; however, their expertise is invaluable in coordinating multiple shippers, ensuring quality standards are met and handling all logistics in the preparation and local transport of our coffees. Through our shared commitment to responsible sourcing practices, quality and traceability, we have been connected to likeminded shippers, who work to produce delicious and consistent coffees while running social programs that directly and meaningfully support coffee farmers and their families.
