ethiopia - nardos

sidamo, in southern ethiopia, is one of the country's classic growing zones — and for most people, the place where their idea of "ethiopian coffee" begins. it grows on small family plots rather than estates, often right around the house, in the shade of other trees. the varieties are heirloom: local landraces nobody deliberately bred, they have simply been growing here for centuries.

the nardos lot is a 2025 harvest, natural processed. this is an everyday coffee — steady, predictable, with a recognisable ethiopian character. the kind you brew in the morning without thinking about it.

natural is the oldest processing method and still the most common in ethiopia. the cherry is never pulped: it dries whole on raised beds, spread thin and turned regularly so it dries evenly. the bean stays inside the fruit the whole time, taking on its sugars and aromatics.

black tea, herbs, dried apricot.

a calm, tea-like cup: the dry tannic structure of black tea, a green herbal note through the middle, and dried apricot sweetness on the finish. soft acidity, medium body. holds up well as filter and stays recognisable in milk.