Ethiopia Bensa Bombe Washed

Ethiopia Bensa Bombe Washed

Region: Sidama
Altitude: 1,920 – 2,020 masl
Plant Varietal: Heirloom
Tasting Notes: Floral, Cherry, Cocoa Nibs

Bombe is named after Bombe mountains in the Sidama region, which is located south from Bombe washing station. This site is the culmination of several years of hard work and preparation from Sidama coffee man Asefa Dukamo and his family.

The outgrowers delivering to Bombe live high in the lush and lovely Bombe mountain valley. They are part of a member organization consisting of 667 producers in various parts of the mountain range.

Bombe cherries are processed at Bombe Abore Washing Station situated next to Bonora river, which joins with Gatta river upstream. I was lucky enough to visit the site, back in 2018. The station is one of the locations from which Daye Bensa spreads knowledge of improving processing techniques geared towards quality.

The cherry delivered there grows between 1920 and 2020 meter above sea level. The beans are very dense, with heavy concentrations of the smaller screen sizes (the majority of the coffee screen sizes at 13-14) which reflects slow maturation at higher altitudes.

The washed Bombe is traditionally wet fermented during 36 to 72 hours, and then dried on African beds with clean plastic mesh and sheet, for about 9 to 12 days to around 10% moisture. during high sun, the beds are covered to prevent over drying.