Ethiopia Guji Hambela Dabaye

Delicate and delicious, this wet-processed lot from Hambela Dabaye packs impressive sweetness, and Guji floral cup characteristics. The dry fragrance smelled tea-like, with hints of dried flowers, a note of berry syrup, and a lingering honey sweet note. A more intense sweetness emerged from the wetted grounds and, when running my spoon through the coffee crust, released a potent mix of raw sugars, fragrant florals, and a hint of grapefruit. In the cup, City roasts produced layers of sweetness that when peeled back, revealed raw sugars, as well as pectin-type, fruited flavors that shape shift a little as the coffee cools. Floral notes open up as well, and notes of jasmine and honeysuckle left quite an impression in the cup aroma. The sweetness underneath was a bit like demerara sugar (unrefined cane sugar with some molasses intact), with an aromatic note of honey, and tart note of hibiscus tea. As the coffee cooled down some, I picked up on more fruited flavor notes like sweet citruses, pink grapefruit, and tangerine. So much of the coffee character can be described as light and delicate, and you should give it a light treatment in the roaster too. Pulling 1 minute and 30 seconds after the start of 1st Crack is not too soon! Those have been some of my favorite roasts for brewing.