Ethiopia - Guji

About the Coffee

Kayon Mountain Coffee Farm sits 510 kilometers south of Addis Ababa in Ethiopia's Guji zone, Shakiso district. Ismael Hassen Aredo and his family have owned and managed the farm since 2012. The property spans 500 hectares total, with 300 dedicated to coffee cultivation at elevations between 1,900 and 2,200 meters. During harvest, the farm employs 25 full-time workers and brings on up to 300 seasonal laborers.

Ismael competes with a nearby mining village for that seasonal workforce, so the farm offers competitive wages to keep the same pickers returning year after year. The farm also provides free transportation for workers and has contributed funding toward local schools and administrative buildings. An on-site nursery supports the farm's own planting, while acacia and other indigenous trees provide shade over the coffee plants and drop leaves that break down into natural compost. Kayon Mountain processes both natural (dried with the fruit still on the bean) and washed lots on site.

This coffee is a natural process, meaning the whole coffee cherries are dried in the sun before the fruit is removed. That extended contact between the bean and fruit is what gives natural-processed Ethiopian coffees their typically full, sweet character. The beans used here come from two Ethiopian varieties, 74110 and 74112, which were developed specifically for quality and disease resistance in the country's growing regions.