Limu-Kossa RFA FW

Owner Gidey Berhe Retta started trading coffee in 1993 in Jimma. He soon opened his own wet and dry mills. He purchased Limu-Kossa Estate in 2000. The estate combines age-old agroforestry knowledge with modern processing machinery and techniques.

Gidey keeps the farm involved with local communities. Limu-Kossa Estate has helped build school rooms, several wet mills and distributed disease-resistant coffee tree seedlings. Many call Gidey by his nicknamed, Abba Ollie, which roughly translate to means “the one who uplifts.”

Coffee trees are shaded by endemic species. Limu-Kossa Estate uses agroforestry techniques to nurture coffee trees while preserving the plant and animals species in the area.

The estate sits in the Eastern Afromontane Biodiversity Hotspot, a region with an extremely density of flora and fauna species. This biological diversity can help maintain soil health. The ecosystem also provides drinkable water for much of East Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. 

Coffee trees are intercropped with indigenous tree species that are endemic to forests in the region. Over 100 beehives foster a lively bee population that help pollinate. The entire farm is organic (NOP & USDA) and Rainforest Alliance certified.

After selective handpicking, the farm’s state-of-the-art machinery pulps cherry while separating it into 3 grades by density. These grades are then each processed separately to produce the highest quality lots possible. After fermentation, parchment is washed in clean water and laid to sundry on raised beds. Parchment is raked frequently to ensure even drying. It takes approximately 7 to 12 days for parchment to dry.

The estate’s machinery was purchased with ecological impacts in mind and are designed to use minimal water during processing.

Once dry, parchment is rested in a warehouse on the farm for 60 days. Then, parchment is transported to the Gidey Berhe dry mill in Jimma.

RFA stands for Rainforest Alliance, a certification system that emphasizes climate-smart agriculture. RFA farms have at least 40% of land covered by canopy, significant species diversity (at least 12 native tree species per hectare, on average) and a system of natural vegetation buffers between agricultural land and bodies of water.  The farms also use organic fertilizers.

In the Ethiopian grading system, grade 2 refers to the cup quality as well as physical quality of a coffee. A grade 2 allows between four and 13 full defects per 300gr green sample. The cup typically has fruity and clean characteristics without any off-flavors.  

Ethiopia Sidamo 2 is a classic in every coffee range and is especially popular in blends. The cup quality can be very surprising for prices well below the grade 1 price point. For us, grade 2 coffee typically sits around an 83-84 cup score.