Blind Assessment: Crisply sweet, fruit-forward. Ripe strawberry, aromatic orchid, honey, toasted pine nut, a hint of sumac spice in aroma and cup. Lavish, elegant structure, with sweet-tart-savory in harmonious balance. Syrupy mouthfeel. The finish is resonant, long and flavor-saturated, maintaining the promise of the complex flavor notes from the cup.

Notes: This exceptional coffee was selected as the No. 24 coffee on Coffee Review’s list of the Top 30 Coffees of 2017. Yirgacheffe is a coffee region in southern Ethiopia that produces distinctive coffees from traditional varieties of Arabica long grown in the region. This is a “natural” or dry-processed version, meaning the beans were dried inside the fruit, encouraging a flavor profile that is less predictable and deeper than the more familiar wet-processed floral- and citrus-toned Yirgacheffe profile. Like virtually all southern Ethiopia coffees, this coffee is produced by villagers on small, garden plots interplanted with food and other subsistence crops. Espresso Republic, founded in 2010, specializes in sourcing quality coffees and roasting them in small batches for both retail and wholesale customers. Visit www.espressorepublic.com for more information.

The Bottom Line: A thrill of a natural-processed Ethiopia: fruit, florals and savory notes in intricate, lively harmony.