PRODUCER: Tagel Alemayehu
REGION: Guji
PROCESS: Washed
VARIETY: 74110 & 74112 Heirloom Varieties
ELEVATION: 1900-2100m
TASTING NOTES: Bubble gum, ginger, chrysanthemum
Producer Story
In the highlands of Guji, Ethiopia, Tagel Alemayehu has spent more than two decades earning the trust of smallholder farmers across the region. Raised in a coffee-trading family in Bule Hora, Tagel managed washing stations long before founding Olkai Coffee, the family business he now runs with his wife.
Olkai operates six washing stations across Guji, Bule Hora, and Sidama, strengthened by long-standing partnerships with growers who deliver their best cherry each harvest. Tagel’s hands-on approach, deep community ties, and investment in quality infrastructure have helped elevate the coffees coming out of this remote part of Ethiopia, creating new pathways for traceable, smallholder-grown lots.
The Process
This coffee is built on careful harvesting and processing practices that reflect both local experience and Tagel’s quality-focused standards. Farmers selectively pick ripe cherry and deliver it to the washing station, where it undergoes washed processing — flotation, depulping, controlled fermentation, thorough rinsing, and slow drying on raised beds.
Local landrace varieties, grown at high elevations under cool conditions, contribute to the coffee’s clarity and expressive profile. Each step is managed to preserve the clean, elegant character that washed Guji coffees are known for.
The Cup
Expect a clean, crisp, and floral profile with bright sweetness and refined structure. The cup opens with high-toned aromatics, carries a lifted acidity, and settles into a soft, tea-like finish. It’s a classic expression of washed Guji — delicate, balanced, and quietly complex.
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roasted with care
Here at Tinker Coffee, we never operate on autopilot in pursuit of a shortcut. Great coffee requires not only precise timing, but real-time human perception and the careful application of heat. There’s no secret formula or little-known trick. Just thoughtfully sourced beans, roasted with care. That’s how we produce a remarkably delicious and evocative coffee experience in every batch. Pretty simple, really.
