Rhea - Ethiopia Banko Gotiti Worka

• Producers: Worka Sakaro & Worka Chelbessa Kebele Smallholders (Banko Gotiti Washing Station)
• Mill/Washing Station: Banko Gotiti Washing Station by Tracon
• Region: Banko Gotiti, Gedeo Zone, Yirgacheffe
• Elevation: 1,970 MSAL
• Grade: 1
• Variety: 74112
• Process: Lactic Anaerobic Natural
• Anaerobic Environment Fermentation Time: 96 Hours
• Drying Time: 20 Days on raised beds

SUMMARY

Tracon’s reputation is well regarded and are no strangers among COE members globally. In 2021, Tracon chose to participate in Ethiopia’s second ever Cup of Excellence Auction and had 2 different coffees score an impressive placement in the top 20 of all the coffees submitted in the Ethiopia COE Auction. In 2021, a record-breaking number of entries 1,849 for any countrywide Cup of Excellence competition entered the competition to compete that particular year. Placing in the best of top 20 coffees produced in Ethiopia should speak volumes for itself..

This is our first year sourcing and working with Tracon Trading. From our experience over the years of consistently sourcing from local Kebeles (villages) in and around Gedeb, Worka Sakaro & Chelbessa in particular, the coffees grown in these areas are nothing short of absolute bangers and are highly coveted around the world for their very high quality and unique flavor profiles. Add careful antiquated experimental processing to the mix and a very methodical approach to dry milling, you might have lightening in a bottle.

Tracon is a family owned business who owns a total of 30 washing stations located around Ethiopia. All experimental coffees are processed at Tracon’s own washing stations. First, local farmers and brokers who collect cherries from the surrounding villages of Worka Sakaro & Worka Chelbessa come to deliver their cherries to Tracon’s Banko Gotiti Washing Station. The Banko Gotiti Washing Station is managed by Ali Yasin. Ali oversees and manages these experimental projects for Tracon at Banko Gotiti. His day to day during harvest is loaded with providing oversight of cherry selection, post harvest production and compensation distribution directly to their local farming partners. The Banko Gotiti Washing Station happens to also be the second largest washing station in the Tracon network of washing stations they own. Over the years, proceeds raised from Banko Gotiti have been reinvested into the local community by investing in several local area school projects, water drilling projects and has also trained many locals in the nearby communities different forms of fermentation techniques with free expert led workshops.

Tracon has developed a state of the art modern coffee cleaning and milling facility in Addis Ababa where the coffees are all transferred for final milling following the initial collection and post harvest production phase of all their coffee. The facilty is equipped with the latest Pinhalese coffee processing equipment to sort coffees by density, size and also utilize high level pieces of automated equipment like optical color sorters for final sorting. Each lot contracted with Tracon this year was done on a prebook basis prior to the coffee harvest. We believe embracing this model equips partners with the tools and resources to provide early harvest premium payments directly to farmers and to help producers mitigate and calculate risk knowing they have a secured buying partner on the other end to support their efforts.

PROCESSING

Once the cherries arrive to Tracon’s Banko Gotiti Washing Station, they are submerged in clean water to wash out any possible dirt or contamination that could disrupt the development of lactobacillus cultures during fermentation (the same bacteria mainly used in the development of fermented dairy, sourdough, vegetable foods or used as probiotics). Once all cherries are clean and classified by their density, the heaviest cherries and cherries recorded with the highest sugar content measured by BRIX are selected and placed inside the fermentation tanks. These tanks were modified to have a one way relief valve added to the top of the tanks along with a hose that is placed inside a water bottle outside of the tank. The hose is placed inside the water bottle allowing the water to act as a barrier so that no oxygen can enter inside the tank and only allowing gasses to exit the tank, creating an environment free of oxygen within the tanks. The process is methodically controlled by checking pH levels, temperature, and oxygen levels to create the perfect environment and conditions for the lactobacillus to strive during this stage of fermentation. The Lactobacillus during fermentation multiply rapidly in the fermentation matrix, by taking up nutrients from the surrounding environment, and cause rapid acidification in the fermenting system via the production of organic compounds that convert fermentable sugars from the cherries into mainly lactic acid resulting in an enhanced characteristics of the coffee. After fermenting in the tanks for 96 hours, the coffee is then transferred to complete drying on raised drying beds for 20 days where the coffees are routinely raked and rotated by hand to assure consistent exposure and uniform drying during the drying phase.

Orders are typically shipped out within 3 business days of placement. We use USPS and UPS to deliver orders. You will be receiving an email with tracking info once your order has shipped.