Christmas Cheer, Where Does It Come From?

Christmas Cheer is back! Yes, it is once again that time of year when we release our fan-favorite, holiday-smashing stocking stuffer! This year our Lead Roaster Kat has scoured through many different Ethiopian coffees to find the perfect blend that says, “Happy Holidays!” Cup of Cheer, as I prefer to call it, has fruity tartness with the right amount of spice to suggest warmth and comfort as you snuggle down by a fire.

The farmers are really what make this offering so special.  Christmas Cheer is a blend of two Ethiopian coffees that are both natural processed. Our first coffee is from Idido, Yirgacheffee. By selecting a village rather than an entire region, our importer, Café Imports, has better traceability of the coffee’s origin and an understanding of this exquisite coffee’s cultivators.  Yirgacheffee coffee is known for its blueberry notes; this village has produced a coffee with flavors of dried berries and nutmeg that help comprise our spice profile of mulled wine and frankincense. The second Ethiopian coffee that Kat has chosen comes from Keramo, Sidama. Keramo has a washing station where the farmers process the coffee cherries to get to the coffee seeds. It is owned by brothers Asefa and Mulugeta Dukamo. There is a group of 381 smallholder farms that bring their coffee to be processed and sold together. Keramo produces coffees with notes of cooked coffee cherry, and mellow candy-like sweetness. With Idido and Kermo combined, we capture notes of cranberry, mulled wine, and frankincense.

As we get closer to December and the end of the year, let’s drink some Christmas Cheer. Drink it in the morning, in the evening, with friends, or on your own. May this coffee bring joy and happiness as we have longer evenings and darker mornings. In the dreariness of winter, something bright is always welcome.