Gizaw Alemayehu

This coffee is produced by Gizaw Alemayehu, who comes from a lineage of coffee growers. His father cultivated coffee on large, privately owned farms in the Yirgacheffe region until the new socialist government nationalised these farms in 1974.

The hardships of this transition left a young Gizaw disillusioned with the idea of farm ownership, especially given the harsh new government policies. Instead, he redirected his efforts towards coffee processing, adopting a modern approach to realise his father’s vision, alongside his wife, Frehiwot.

Ripe coffee cherries are delivered to a wet mill, where they are checked for defects, graded, and then placed on raised African beds for drying. During the drying process, the coffee is shaded from 12pm to 3pm and turned frequently to ensure even drying. This process typically takes 20 to 30 days until the moisture content reaches 11.5%.

This information was kindly provided by our import partners, Utopia Coffee. We thank them for helping us share Gizaw Alemayehu's story.