Ethiopia Wuri Yirgacheffe

This coffee is produced at the Wuri Washing Station in Worka-Sakaro, one of the 16 kebeles (villages) that make up Ethiopia’s Gedeb district. Located just south of Yirgacheffe, Gedeb has rapidly built a reputation for producing some of the world’s most exceptional coffees. Of the 1,276 hectares that make up Worka-Sakaro, 679 hectares are planted with coffee—highlighting the crop’s deep cultural and economic importance to the community.

Randy Evans visited the mill in 2018, shortly after Ethiopia relaxed its export regulations in 2017. That policy change allowed private washing stations to export coffee directly to buyers, creating new opportunities for traceability and giving well deserved recognition to the farmers and washing stations responsible for these coffees.

Processing at the Wuri Washing Station is meticulous and labor-intensive. After sorting and washing, the coffee is dried on raised beds under the sun for 12–15 days. The name “Wuri,” which translates to “high altitude,” reflects both the station’s location and the character of the coffee itself. At higher elevations, cooler temperatures slow the maturation of the coffee cherries, allowing more sugars to develop in the beans resulting in complex and vibrant flavor profiles.