I’m writing this from the airport in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia whilst I wait for my flight back home. In case you didn’t know already, Ethiopia is the birthplace of coffee, and home to some of the world’s most sought after cup profiles. Somehow it’s taken me a decade since starting Red Bank to make it out here. It’s been an assault on the senses, full of soaring highs, and a few challenging lows.
These trips are a necessary part of understanding the complexities of the coffee supply chain, which has its unique nuances in each origin. Over the years we’ve established solid relationships with farmers and exporting partners in most of the countries that we source coffee from - Red Beetle in Mexico, Muraho in Rwanda, Raw Material in Colombia, and Cocarive in Brazil to name a few - but Ethiopia has proven a difficult one to crack, not for want of trying.
Relationships we have previously entered into with importers in good faith and with intent to establish long term partnerships have broken down for a number of reasons - disappointing quality, poor customer service, conflicts of interests, or a combination of the three.
Determined not to give up, last year I decided to source our Ethiopian coffee from Nordic Approach, a coffee importer based in Oslo, Norway renowned globally for the high quality of their Ethiopian coffees. Quality is of utmost importance when we make purchasing decisions, but of equal importance is relationship, both with the producers, and with the importers that we work with.
Nordic has been working in Ethiopia for eight years, and unlike most importers, they have an office in Addis Ababa, meaning they have people on the ground keeping in close personal contact with the producers and exporters whose coffee they represent. This means they get access to some of the best available lots each season, and know the producers and exporters they work with on a deeply personal level.
I travelled to Oslo last April for Nordic’s ‘Spring Cupping’ which, outside of visiting Ethiopia, is the best chance to secure some of their finest lots. The coffees on the table were exceptional, but of equal importance, the Nordic team were friendly, knowledgable and passionate. I selected three Ethiopian coffees from Buku Sayisa, Banko Gotiti and Buku Abel, and they have all been absolutely delicious both from our own perspective, and from the great feedback we’ve received from you all.
Once we establish an intention to work long-term with an importer, we then tend to visit the origin in question and to learn all that we can about the producers and the supply chain, to make us better buyers and more meaningful partners.
I landed in Addis early on the morning of 14th January, and was met by Nordic’s main man on the ground, Adham Yonis. Adham was born in Ethiopia and grew up in Texas, before returning to Addis in 2014. He has been running Nordic’s office there for three years, and alongside QC and lab manager Sisay Wamanale, is a formidable force. Whilst Adham focusses on sourcing and supply chain management, Sisay rigorously manages QC, including regular visits to the dry mills they work with during harvest to collect samples.
With Adham and Sisay being permanently stationed in Addis, as opposed to only visiting during harvest season, they are able to maintain strong relationships with producers and exporters. They are also able to gain access to, and QC samples faster than most other exporters, and therefore secure the highest quality lots before they’re snapped up elsewhere.
Joining me on the trip was an international lineup of roasters from Finland, Holland, Norway, Japan, Denmark, Romania, Greece and South Africa. I honestly could not have wished to share this experience with a better group. We instantly gelled, and the trip was punctuated with laughter throughout, helping greatly to provide levity during some of the more challenging parts of the trip.
After a day acclimatising in Addis, we spent three long days on bumpy roads in the back of Toyota Land Cruisers, visiting washing stations in Sidamo, Gedeb and Guji. Harvest season finished earlier than expected this year, so we weren’t able to see processing at the stations in full swing, but the important thing was to see them with our own eyes, and to meet the people behind them. We were greeted with great hospitality at each station, and ate enough injera to last a lifetime.
The unpredictability of things in Ethiopia meant that we frequently had to change plans on the fly, resulting in a couple of big disappointments. A planned, and greatly anticipated visit to Buku Abel and Buku Sayisa had to be dropped as it clashed with an important local religious festival. We made it to Banko Gotiti, but sadly the station staff were also away that day and we only got to see the bare bones.
On the other hand we made a host of new connections, including Bombe and Shantawene in Sidamo, and Konga and single producer Muligeta Sentayo in Gedeb.
Of particular note was Danche, also in Gedeb, a beautiful station high on the hillside, with a cool breeze, and an enormous keraro tree casting a huge shadow, and providing welcome relief to the station workers and ourselves during the heat of the day.
Station manager Ferew Ayalew was smart and kind, and the operation was clearly incredibly well managed and maintained. We were treated to a delicious lunch of the traditional fermented flatbread injera, made from the native teff grain, topped with a dahl like thick stew of chickpea and broad bean called shiro.
It’s no surprise that coffees from Danche are some of the gems in Nordic’s Ethiopian offering, and we hope to share some of their incredible coffees with you next season.
After around 16 hours in the back of the Land Cruisers we had a welcome rest by Lake Hawassa, including a morning boat ride on the lake with sightings of a multitude of birds… and hippos!
That evening we flew back to Addis and over the next couple of days cupped over 60 coffees. Quantities are limited, and the stars of the table were coveted by most of the roasters, but I’m hopeful that we’ve secured some stunning coffees for the season ahead.
It’s been the most challenging trip I’ve been on, both in terms of deciphering the complex way the supply chain works, but also in terms of engaging with the culture. When visiting new places I like nothing more than to walk around, explore, and engage with the people and the culture - but in this instance, a real threat of robbery and kidnapping lent an unwelcome edge to things, and meant we had to have our wits about us at all times.
This was not idle threat with a few members of the group thankfully escaping an attempted robbery unscathed. Another incident saw a blown tyre on the road attract a small crowd whilst we tried to fix it, including a young guy in plain clothes casually wielding an AK47 round his neck.
At the other end of the spectrum, we met a host of friendly and welcoming people, saw the achingly beautiful landscape, ate incredible Ethiopian, Yemeni and Egyptian food, cupped some exceptional coffees, and watched jazz at the iconic African Jazz Village, home of the legendary Ethiopian jazz musician Mulatu Astatke. I also made a whole of bunch of new friends who I’m sure I will stay connected with for many years to come.
But now, I’m looking forward to a few days rest, and a chance for all of this to sink in. I’m already excited to share some of these coffees with you later in the year, to share their stories, and to see how our relationships develop over the years to come.