Bagersh Cupping

Today we got up and all headed over to Abdullah Bagersh's office for a cupping of mostly washed Ethiopia coffee.  Almost all of the coffee we cupped today was purchased on the ECX, so traceability ends at the Bagersh warehouse.  The cupping was quite enjoyable, and truthfully it is the best cupping we have had so far in Ethiopia.

The highlight of the day though was the ad hoc session we had with Abdullah before the cupping started.  Abdullah who is both an exporter in Ethiopia (famous for the Aricha and Beloya coffees of former years, now lost to the ECX) is also on the ECX board.  He spent over an hour with us walking us through the logistics of the ECX, giving us the history and rational which influenced the implementation of the ECX. It was a great session and I learned so much about the current process and had opportunity to ask questions which clarified a lot of things for me.  It was great to have time with someone so knowledgeable and integrated into the Ethiopian coffee culture.  Abdullah is a passionate and positive man focused on raising the quality of Ethiopian coffee to new heights.  I was excited to hear that he has a number of farms in various regions in Ethiopia, which means that in the years to come, he will be able to sell traceable coffee either directly or even through the DST if he so chooses.  He is committed to raising quality, now in terms of horticulture, harvesting, processing and timely delivery.  My hat goes off to him for his hospitality and his willingness to spend time with us all on a Saturday.  Tomorrow we depart Addis and head south towards Sidama and Yirgacheffe.

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