Process: Natural - cherries dried whole in the sun
Bombe is a washing station located in Sidama with 750 active farmer members who deliver cherries. This washing station is owned by Faisel Abdosh and his brother Adam. Faisel and Adam were introduced to the coffee industry at a young age, they had close relatives who were involved in coffee farming. When asked why they wanted to produce speciality coffee, Adam said it was because he likes the challenge. If people tell him something can’t be done, he is even more motivated to achieve it. Both brothers believe focus is essential to achieve excellence and they have a laser sharp focus on each block of their operation.
The coffee cherries are harvested by family members of the 750 member farmers of the Bombe coop. Each family hand-sort the cherries to remove unripe and overripe cherries before they are delivered to the washing station for processing. Once delivered to the station, the cherries will then be moved to the drying beds. Underripe and defective cherries will be sorted out by hand during the first days. When producing naturals the level of fermentation will be determined by the thickness and layer during the first days of drying in combination with temperature. Fermentation is slower at higher altitudes as temperatures are generally lower.
The cherries are dried in a relatively thin layer at about 3-4 cm on the first days. They will build up the layers to 6- 10 cm after a few days. The coffees are moved frequently and they will be covered during the hottest hours of the day to protect the cherries from intense sunlight, then again at night to protect against humidity. This will also help improve quality as the coffee is rested and the drying more homogeneous. Drying naturals at these altitudes can take up to 21 days.
