Is the coffee from Ethiopia good? what are the varieties of coffee? introduction to the varieties of Ethiopian Coffee

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When we mention Ethiopian coffee, we use "rose fruit" and "magnolia" to describe it. But if you want to know what particular breed produces these gorgeous notes, you are usually trapped by one word: family heirlooms.

In the early days of the third wave of coffee, family heirlooms were used as a general name to describe coffee from Ethiopia. But it's not a very useful term. In the absence of recognition of different varieties Ethiopian producers are deprived of transparency and opportunities to earn higher incomes. Roasters cannot tell the difference between Ethiopian coffee and consumers do not have the opportunity to taste new and exciting flavors because it is not clear which varieties are available.

But changing the terminology is easier said than done. Let's take a closer look at what heirloom means and the difficulties in improving the transparency of Ethiopian varieties.

What exactly does family heirloom mean?

The word family heirloom describes an ancient variety of plants used for food. Some people say that a variety must be over 100 years old to be listed as a family heirloom, while others say that it must be over 50 years old to be listed as a family heirloom. Others classify family heirloom plants as pre-1945, when hybrid varieties were introduced, or in 1951, when hybrid varieties became more common.

In the coffee industry, you will find that the term "family heirloom" applies to varieties introduced into Latin America and Asia more than a hundred years ago, as well as to many African coffees, especially Ethiopian ones.

Getu Bekele is the East African supply chain Manager of American Bakery counter Culture. He also wrote a reference guide to Ethiopian coffee varieties. In Ethiopia, he says, the word "family heirloom" comes with a special movement. Professional coffee buyers don't know what kind of Typica and bourbon they're buying, and they classify everything as a family heirloom.

But he told me that Ethiopian coffee producers have their own names for different coffee trees. They are likely not to use the globally accepted scientific name for the variety, but to use a local word. A community may borrow the name from a local tree that has the same physical characteristics as the coffee tree.

Medina Hussein is the export manager of DW Coffee Export, an Ethiopian coffee supplier. She told me that professional buyers would distinguish Ethiopian coffee by region, altitude and cupping score, but not by variety.

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