Halo Beriti Special Prep, Ethiopia

Yirgacheffe is home to one of the most cherished coffees in the specialty industry, the natural process known for its distinct blueberry notes. For many enthusiasts, this coffee and its intense fruity profile marked a turning point in their appreciation of the beverage, becoming a signature flavour profile sought after from the region.

The landscape across Yirgacheffe varies between villages and washing stations but is consistently at high altitudes, rich in natural resources, with ideal temperatures and ample rainfall that create the perfect conditions for coffee cultivation. These factors contribute to coffees of vibrant character, with diverse expressions depending on which station a particular lot originates from.

Established in 2014, the Halo Beriti washing station serves over 750 smallholders from surrounding villages. Like most stations in the region, it is also equipped with raised African drying beds for producing natural coffees, which is one of the two main processing methods practiced. During peak season at the busiest stations, they can receive cherries from over a thousand producers delivering fresh harvests from their coffee gardens.

Standard practice for natural coffees in Ethiopia begins with an initial sorting for ripeness, followed by rinsing and drying on raised beds for one to four weeks, depending on weather conditions.

The 'special preparation' lot, also referred to as 'premium', follows a stricter protocol. Smallholders and station workers are incentivised to perform careful sorting at each stage, from cherry delivery to final drying, resulting in a highly uniform lot with minimal defects. These are typically collected from a limited group of smallholders within a single day’s harvest, targeting 90 percent perfectly ripe cherries, with up to 5 percent semi-ripe and 5 percent overripe. Such lots are limited and stored separately from the regular production.

In Ethiopia, coffee is mostly grown on small plots by farmers who also cultivate other crops. Most coffees are shade-grown under organic practices, as farmers generally lack access to chemical fertilisers or pesticides. Cultivation occurs between 1,600 and 2,400 masl in the southern highlands. Smallholders deliver their cherries to nearby washing stations or central processing units, where the coffee is sorted, weighed, and recorded before payment. Because cherries are combined into day lots, tracing specific smallholders is nearly impossible. However, it is increasingly common for buyers to establish relationships with particular washing stations, ensuring consistent profiles and steady quality improvement from year to year.