Ultraviolet

Months of snow melts into cool streams, which feed the Kickapoo River. Morning dew greets each day, and the first signs of green push its way through the sand. The Driftless area wakes up. This year's Spring Blend is made up of three coffees from three distinct growing regions in Ethiopia: Oromia, Sidama and Yirgacheffe. Each offers crisp citrus and floral notes that compliment the season. About Limu Kossa: The Kossa farm is vaulted high in the Western Highlands of Ethiopia in the town of Limu, Oromia. Here, indigenous heirloom varieties of coffee cover the countryside and produce cherries more slowly due to high altitude conditions. This slow maturation makes the coffee more dense with sweetness and amplifies the unique flavors of this region. Unlike production in the rest of the world, in Ethiopia, coffee fermentation takes place underwater, which allows the coffee seeds to slightly germinate and impart a distinct flavor. After washing away the remaining softened fruit, coffee is spread in a thin layer on raised beds and allowed to slowly dry in the sun. This process produces an extremely clean and nuanced cup that is an articulate expression of the region's terroir. About Haru: We first visited Haru back in 2012 on our first sourcing trip to Ethiopia. Since that trip, we have been there two more times, visiting the wet mill and farmers of the Haru community. The Haru Cooperative was established in 1975, and they joined the ranks of the Yirgacheffe Farmer Union in 2002. Their wet mill is situated at an extremely high altitude of 1900 meters. This Yirgacheffe is floral forward. Delicate and dramatic, its lemongrass quality is balanced by a round, honeyed sweetness. About Fero: We've tasted coffee from many groups in the Sidama Union of Growers, but over time, we have zeroed in on the Fero Cooperative. Their coffee shines due to their particular locale, which is vaulted high in the mountains above the Rift Valley at nearly 2,000 meters. The Fero cooperative is a long-standing partner of our importing cooperative: Cooperative Coffees. We always look forward to tasting this coffee each year.