Coffee Cultivation in Ethiopia: A Travel Report by Philip Weller

In November 2024, a long-cherished wish came true: I traveled to Ethiopia with our green coffee partner Plotcoffee. A small group of people from roasteries in Germany, Switzerland, and Ukraine accompanied us. Since the opening of our roastery in 2018, I had always wanted to experience Ethiopia, the country of origin. The opportunity arose, and I knew: This is my chance! Finally, I could experience firsthand the people, the cultivation, the processing, and the export of the product I work with daily. I was in a fever of anticipation. As a roaster, I knew that coffee plants in Ethiopia often grow semi-wild, mostly in the gardens of small farmers – unlike in many other countries of origin. But nothing can replace a visit to the site.

Our collaboration with Nastya and Sebastian from Plotcoffee began with a cupping in Hamburg in April 2024. The imported coffees from Kenya and Ethiopia tasted there immediately thrilled us. The quality was outstanding: both the dry-processed naturals with their incredible floral notes and the very clear washed beans convinced us completely. We were particularly fascinated by Nastya and Sebastian's extensive expertise. Sebastian reported in detail on the changes in coffee cultivation and trade in recent years and the new challenges associated with them. It quickly became clear: we want to work with Plotcoffee.

On November 17, 2024, our journey began. We flew overnight from Frankfurt to Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethiopia. There we met Yisak, the nephew of the founder of Testi Specialty Coffee, Plotcoffee's Ethiopian partner. With Yisak and his team, we spent six insightful days in Ethiopia, which I fondly remember and about which I will report in detail here.

Day 1: Arrival in Hawassa

After our arrival in Addis Ababa, Yisak picked us up and first took us to the new headquarters of Testi Coffee, which also houses the dry mill. Afterwards, we used the rest of the day to acclimatize in Addis. We enjoyed authentic Ethiopian cuisine in two different restaurants and visited a new Testi Coffee roastery. In the evening, we traveled on to Hawassa, the ideal starting point to explore the southern coffee-growing regions of Ethiopia. Since departure for the next morning was already scheduled for 7:30 AM, we went to bed early. I was excited.

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Day 2: Washing Stations Deri Fahmi and Adorsi

On the second day of our Ethiopia trip, we set off punctually from Hawassa and embarked on a nearly 5-hour car journey to the Deri Fahmi Washing Station. Although the journey was bumpy and quite uncomfortable, it felt quicker. It offered me profound first impressions of rural life in southern Ethiopia – of the roads, the houses, and especially the people. It was an overwhelming mix of beauty and oppression, especially since it was my first stay in Ethiopia and in Africa at all. The visible reality of a life so completely different from mine in Europe was impressive.

Many of the roads we traveled on looked like this. Beyond the paved main thoroughfares, there are still many unpaved roads in Ethiopia.

Rural Life and Architecture

My impression from the dusty window of the bumpy car was that life mainly took place outdoors. The streets were lined with mud huts in all stages of construction: from mere wooden frames to plastered and painted small mud houses. Depending on the region, the construction method changed slightly. I particularly noticed many traditional roundhouses. Often, smoke rose through the roof, as there was typically a fireplace inside. In villages and settlements, it smelled strongly of smoke from the fireplaces, which were often located directly in front of the houses and used for cooking or burning trash.

An impression from the roadside on the way to Deri Fahmi Washing Station.

A traditional round hut.

On the way to the Guji Zone

November marked the beginning of the 2024 coffee harvest season. The closer we got to the growing areas, the more frequently we saw coffee cherries laid out on the ground everywhere, probably for personal consumption, to dry. Our bumpy journey led us through these landscapes into the Oromia region, specifically into the Guji Zone, known for its coffee cultivation. We crossed the border into the Hambela District and finally into Kebele Deri Kedame, the smallest administrative unit in Ethiopia, often consisting of just one village. Yisak explained the administrative structure to us: Region, Zone, District, Kebele. Given the size of the Guji Zone, which is roughly equivalent to Saxony, I thought that this would not make the origin information on a coffee bag particularly precise.

Arrival at Deri Fahmi Washing Station

Just before our destination, we visited a small farmer who cultivated his garden with more or less wild coffee plants. These grew amidst other plants that provided shade or were used for self-consumption. The soil was covered with leaves and grasses to protect it from drying out. The coffee plants themselves were hardly pruned, as farmers preferred to leave the plants alone for fear of harvest failures, as Yisak explained to us. Hundreds of such small farmers deliver their cherries to the Washing Station each year.

“We have arrived,” Yisak said. Upon our arrival at the Deri Fahmi Station, located 2000 meters above sea level, amidst the just-begun harvest operation, the heavily laden bags of coffee farmers were visually inspected and weighed. After weighing, the Washing Station workers transferred the cherries into other bags to check the quality in the lower part of the bags as well.

Coffee Processing: Natural Coffees at Deri Fahmi

Yisak led us towards the African beds and explained that only naturally processed coffees, known as naturals, are produced at Deri Fahmi. Before us stretched a large grass-green area with numerous bamboo structures – the so-called African beds – some empty, others covered with coffee cherries. I took a closer look at the beds: the coffee cherries were not spread too thickly to ensure good air circulation and thus prevent uneven drying or even rotting. Yisak explained that in case of rain or excessive sunlight, the cherries are covered. The drier the cherries become, the slower the further process should be, he told us. High-quality lots are therefore redistributed to beds in the shade. The drying process is complete when the seeds of the cherry, i.e., the beans, have reached a residual moisture of about 12%. Yisak also told us that the cherries on the beds are sorted and divided into five quality grades. Grades 1 and 2 are destined for export because the best prices can be achieved here; the rest is sold on the local market.

Workers sorting fresh coffee cherries.

My first visit to a washing station in Ethiopia had deeply impressed me. I could hardly stop taking photos and asking questions. But time was pressing, and we had to move on to our next destination, the second washing station of the day.

Breakdown on the way to Adorsi Washing Station

With our three SUVs, we drove back north for a while. The bumpy ride, lined with impressions of the roadside, led us to the Adorsi Washing Station. The roads remained rough, mostly gravel tracks full of potholes, and soon we had a flat tire. A puncture stopped us, but we were quickly assured that this was an everyday occurrence in Ethiopia. And indeed, the skilled maneuvers and quick tire change suggested nothing less. So we continued with four intact tires.

Our journey now took us to the Gedeo Zone, specifically to the Yirgacheffe district, which is also very well known for its coffee cultivation. Soon we reached the Kebele Aricha and at about 2000 meters, the grounds of the Adorsi Washing Station opened up.

Processing Variety at Adorsi

Here, Yisak explained, in addition to naturals like at Deri Fahmi, coffees are also processed using the Washed, Honey, and Anaerobic methods. One of the highlights at Adorsi was the opportunity to participate in the production of a very special lot, but more on that later.

Here, too, freshly harvested coffee cherries were constantly delivered during our stay: on foot, by donkeys, or on sputtering motorcycles. After visual inspection, weighing, and repacking, the coffee farmers received a coupon, which they exchanged for cash in a building at the station. All deliveries were meticulously recorded.

Challenge: Sorting Coffee and "Simple" Life

After observing the bustling activity for a while, we were allowed to try our hand at sorting coffee cherries on the African drying beds ourselves. This was momentarily a lot of fun for me, not least because of the great atmosphere with the women and men who sorted cherries at an incredible pace. However, the fun quickly ended: back pain from the slightly bent posture and sticky hands from the juicy, sugary cherries took their toll. Nevertheless, I was glad for this experience and the brief insight into the sorting work.

Luckily, Yisak came by at that moment and rescued us. He picked us up for dinner. A meal was specially cooked for us, which I considered a great honor, as the usual provisions at the station were rather meager. There was a toilet, but without running water, and we washed our hands with soap and water from buckets. This was also necessary, as we were now eating with our hands. We had the traditional injera, a kind of savory crêpe, with which we picked up the side dishes. At Adorsi, that day there was bean stew and cooked goat meat.

A Special Lot: Carbonic Maceration

After dinner, it was time: Sebastian and Yisak had planned beforehand that we would set up a Carbonic Maceration Lot in a tank. We filled about 400 kg of coffee cherries, previously sorted on a drying bed, into a large stainless steel tank. This was hermetically sealed, and CO2 flowed in through a valve. At the same time, the lighter oxygen escaped through a valve at the top of the tank. The cherries remained in the tank for four days for fermentation.

The second day was drawing to a close, the sun was slowly setting, and we continued our journey. We drove to a lodge in the town of Dilla, where we spent the night. This would allow us a shorter drive to the next washing station the next day.

Day 3: Washing Stations Gara Sole, Gara Agena, and Ayla Bombe

The alarm clock woke us up early, as a full day lay ahead. After a quick breakfast, our journey began northeast. With our convoy of SUVs, we headed for the Sidama region in the late morning, specifically the Bensa District and the Hamesho Kebele, where our first destination lay: The Gara Sole Washing Station, named after the nearby Mount Sole.

Gara Sole: Naturals at High Altitudes

The drive there led over bumpy gravel roads, past countless small villages, over hills with wide views of the highlands, and through valleys where Ethiopia's characteristic red earth repeatedly appeared. Even the traditional roundhouses in this area differed from those I had seen in previous days.

A round hut in a different construction style.

The last meters up to the Washing Station at 2300 meters were extremely steep. I wondered how trucks with green coffee would ever get down here for transport to Addis Ababa. Gara Sole itself, located on a steep slope overlooking a neighboring valley, presented itself differently from the stations of the previous day: The drying beds, arranged in terraces, were almost all covered with coffee cherries. Yisak explained to us that here, as at Deri Fahmi, only natural processing is used, as the lack of proximity to a river would make washed processing uneconomical.

Ripe and unripe coffee cherries sorted by workers.

The station manager showed us around and explained the different quality grades. He also reported on a special premium program by Testi Coffee, where cherries from particularly well-located farms are separately sorted and dried to bring out the best in the coffee – like the beans for our "Ethiopia Gara Sole" roast (now sold out). Yisak told us that during the harvest season, 67 people worked at Gara Sole to weigh, sort, dry, and prepare the cherries from 450 farms for return transport to Addis Ababa.

As the sky clouded over and the first raindrops fell, Yisak urged us to move on. He warned that if the rain got heavier, we wouldn't be able to leave the station by car. That reminded me of the question about the trucks, and Yisak explained that the sacks would first be taken in smaller cars to the nearest village and only then loaded onto trucks. We got back into the SUVs and set off.

Quick Hello at Gara Agena

After about 20 minutes, we reached the Gara Agena Washing Station at 2250 meters. This place particularly stuck in my memory, as a Natural coffee was produced here that deeply impressed me with its clarity, notes of black tea, peach, and floral aromas.

Gara Agena is picturesquely situated on the steep slope of a headland embraced by a river. The climate here was very fresh and clear. As we descended to the water, it became noticeably warmer and more humid. The river provides the water for the washed process, which takes place in one of the station's buildings. Since no cherries were being washed at the moment, we drove on to our next stop: the well-known Ayla Bombe Washing Station.

Philip Weller at Gara Agena.

Ayla Bombe: Live insight into the washing process

The bumpy ride took a good 30 minutes. Yisak told us that the station was named after the nearby village of Bombe in the Bensa district and processes both natural and washed coffees.

On site, we were greeted by Supervisor Samy, who first showed us the large fermentation tanks where the freshly pulped coffee beans awaited the actual washing process. After an initial tour of the station, which was also located on a hillside, we were invited to eat. In an almost completely darkened hut, an incredibly spicy and delicious bean stew was prepared over an open fire, which everyone thoroughly enjoyed.

After the meal, the diesel generator was started to power the water pump. This pump transported water from the nearby river uphill into the station's large, round concrete tanks. Here, we were to witness the washing process live. The coffee cherries had previously been pulped, meaning they had lost their skin and most of their pulp. Afterwards, they were stored for 48–72 hours in the fermentation tanks so that the last remnants of pulp would dissolve.

Now they were ready for the washing process, which, by the way, was invented in Ethiopia and served to sort and clean the beans, as Yisak informed us. The gates at the bottom of the fermentation tanks were opened to guide the beans into slightly sloped channels. Workers repeatedly pushed the beans upstream against the water flow with long wooden rakes. This separated the denser beans, which are indicative of better roasting and a more complex aroma profile, from the lighter ones. The denser beans remained higher up, while the lighter ones flowed off and were removed. This so-called "raking" of the beans lasted about an hour, and I even got to lend a hand and worked up quite a sweat.

After the beans were rinsed out of the channels and collected in nets, they went directly onto the raised beds to dry. Samy explained that the beans are completely exposed to the sun during the first few days to quickly lose moisture. Towards the end of the drying phase, they are moved to shaded beds to slow down the process and prevent quality loss.

Our visit to Ayla Bombe was coming to an end, as we still had the long journey back to Hawassa ahead of us.

Day 4: West Arsi and the AASH Washing Station

The fourth day of travel began early with the journey to the AASH Washing Station in West Arsi, specifically in the Nensebo district, Bulga Town, in the Oromia region. The route led over a mountain about 3000 meters high, where we made a short stop to enjoy the cool mountain air and the vast view. Despite the altitude and cold, we repeatedly encountered people, often in poor clothing, as well as young children herding livestock along the roadside. The landscape at this altitude appeared barren but still lively.

After about four hours, we reached the AASH Washing Station. There was a lot of activity, as apparently an official event was taking place – local politicians were on site, as we were told. The station was festively decorated with flags, and the employees wore traditional hats as they tirelessly turned and sorted the coffee cherries and beans on the drying beds.

Farm visit: Where the coffee plants grow

After a brief overview of the station, we set off with a small group to a nearby farm to inspect the coffee plants more closely. On the way, we were accompanied by a man in a religiously-styled robe. We also passed armed men in uniform, who, according to Yisak, were responsible for security in the area.

The small coffee garden, located on a hillside, presented itself as a densely overgrown area with dark, rich soil and lush green growth. The coffee trees here, typical for the region, were not pruned and some were very tall. Among them, banana plants and other trees provided additional shade. The coffee trees appeared to be older, with moss on their trunks, and bore cherries rather irregularly. I tasted some ripe cherries, which were very sweet and fruity. Next to a small hut among the trees, we also discovered planted vegetables, including zucchini. Large, vulture-like birds observed us from the treetops. Later, I would see them again at the washing station.

The densely overgrown coffee garden with banana plants, coffee bushes, and other plants.

Back at AASH: A look at the depulper

Back at the Washing Station, where five people regularly work and about 250 additional pickers are employed during harvest season, we were shown the depulper in action. The machine mechanically separated the beans from the cherries – an essential step for producing washed coffee. The ripe cherries were guided through vibrating channels to two rotating, vertically arranged discs, which rubbed the beans out of the cherries.

Afterwards, the beans fell into water channels. Less dense beans, which were either damaged or unripe, collected on the surface and were separately drained and dried. The “good” beans were passed on for fermentation and subsequently, as already described, washed in channels with wooden sliders. Finally, we visited the warehouse, where two large stacks of dried parchment coffee were already located. This is what the fully dried beans, still surrounded by their parchment skin, are called.

A mountain of dried coffee beans in the Aash warehouse.

With many new impressions, we began our return journey to Hawassa. However, the approximately four-hour drive was delayed by another car breakdown – everyday Ethiopian life, after all. Fortunately, the defect was quickly remedied this time too, so we arrived safely at the hotel, full of experiences. We ended the evening with a barbecue, to which Faysel, the founder of Testi Coffee, had invited us. The food, including grilled fish from the nearby lake, was once again excellent.

Day 5: Adnan Washing Station

The day again started early with the drive to the Sidamo region, specifically to the Bura District, to visit the relatively new Adnan Washing Station in Kebele Hamsho Kebena. It had rained overnight and Yisak managed expectations: he told us that the gravel roads might be impassable and we might not be able to visit all the planned washing stations. Another disadvantage of unpaved roads.

The journey was indeed adventurous: muddy, sometimes very steep roads uphill and downhill challenged the off-road vehicles. One of the vehicles was no match for the rough terrain, so we had to switch to the remaining two cars. Fortunately, we reached Adnan a short time later, dry and greeted by the sun.

At the washing station, which is about three years old and located directly on the Ogita River, washed coffees were processed for the first time with the 2024/2025 harvest. As in other places, the drying beds were built on a steep slope, many of them already covered with whole coffee cherries for Natural processing. We were told that 450 to 500 farmers bring their cherries here annually and the station employs around 70 people during the harvest season.

Although the station manager was also responsible for the nearby Duwancho Washing Station, from which we had already roasted a Natural and a Washed and which I would therefore have liked to visit, the road conditions did not allow a detour on this fifth day in Ethiopia. We therefore stayed at Adnan.

It was unusual that new coffee trees were being planted near the station, as washing stations usually only process and do not grow their own. The Ogita River offered an idyllic picture: children played and bathed in it, while cows and sheep grazed on the banks. After a strengthening meal, we began the journey back to Hawassa, from where we flew back to the capital Addis Ababa that same evening.

Traditional Ethiopian food.

Day 6: Capital Addis Ababa

A highlight on the last day of travel was the tour of the Testi Coffee Dry Mill and a planned cupping with the first coffees of the current harvest. The anticipation was great! The path led us to the impressive new building of the Testi headquarters in an industrial area on the outskirts of Addis. The huge production facility spans several floors and serves as the delivery point for all coffees from the Testi Washing Stations. The delivered coffees arrive either as whole, dried cherries (Naturals) or as hulled, dried beans with intact parchment skin (washed coffees).

In the Dry Mill, the beans undergo an elaborate sorting process, beginning with the removal of the parchment skin. First, a destoner removes foreign objects such as stones, twigs, or husk remnants. This is followed by sorting by density and color, as well as sieving for size sorting of the beans. Finally, manual re-sorting is carried out by employees on the conveyor belt. After these steps, the green coffee beans are ready for bagging and preparation for export.

Yisak explained this exciting process to us in detail before we went to the in-house coffee laboratory. There, two large tables full of coffees awaited us, sorted by processing method: washed, natural, and anaerobic. Tasting so many coffees was super exciting and a great challenge at the same time. I tried my best to take notes and get first impressions of the new harvest.

My concluding thoughts

The six days with the coffee producers in Ethiopia were a deeply impressive experience. I was able to see the country of origin of our coffee with my own eyes and experience the entire value chain – from semi-wild cultivation in the smallholders' gardens to the elaborate sorting in the Dry Mill – firsthand.

What particularly sticks in my mind are the people who welcomed us with great hospitality, and the simple but intense life in the countryside, which we were able to get to know at washing stations like Adorsi, Ayla Bombe, or Gara Sole. The insight into the hard work during harvesting and processing, be it sorting cherries or the strenuous "raking" of beans in the washing channel, has enormously increased my respect for the product. It became clear: every single bean in our bags has a long, challenging journey behind it.

The trip has strengthened my conviction that direct cooperation with partners like Plotcoffee and Testi Coffee is the only right way. Only then can we ensure the quality of the green coffee and at the same time ensure that appreciation and a fair price directly reach the farmers and workers who lay the foundation for everything. Projects like those of the Testi Project Direct Foundation also show how important sustainable local engagement is.

I am very grateful for this opportunity and firmly determined to expand the partnership in the coming years. With great anticipation, we now look forward to the arrival of the containers with the new harvest, so that we can soon taste the fruits of this special journey in our cups.

We taste Orange Blossom, Peach und Black Tea. What do you taste?

Try our ETHIOPIA Gara Agena.

Best suited for:

Try now

PS: If you want to delve deeper into the topic of coffee cultivation in Ethiopia and Kenya, I highly recommend the detailed podcast with Sebastian and Philipp Schallberger from Kaffeemacher:innen about coffee in Ethiopia and Kenya.