The Magic of African Coffees
We’ve released a whole lot of African coffees lately. That’s exciting and special in many ways — read on to learn why.
Do you know that feeling when a sensation brings back specific memories?
Two seconds of a song overflooding you instantly with emotions dating back to summer 2009?
One glance of a friendly face sending shivers down your back as they remind you of a person you’ve somehow seen before?
A special scent that catapults you right back into childhood?
To Ivan, our head of quality and education, African coffees are doing this exact thing.
Magical.
He can’t think of a better word to describe his first sip of an Ethiopian bean: «I was first transported and touched by African coffees when I captured the scent of Jasmin in a cup. I perfectly remember it. It was a washed processed filter brew from the region of Yirgacheffe and I was drinking it during a festival in Berlin.» That experience brought him to the conviction he has today:
«Exceptional coffee can transport you to unexpected places like your own childhood becoming much more than “just” a cup of coffee.»
Ivan, Head of Quality and Education at miró
Ivan’s professional experience throughout the years only confirmed his conclusion: «I can’t think of another origin that reaches the bar of Ethiopia’s constant high quality in green coffee.»
Fraol Getachew, coffee cupper, roaster and quality expert leading experimental processing projects at Dimtu Coffee Industry in Ethiopia shares Ivan’s opinion. He’s proud of the uniqueness of their beans: «Ethiopia is the birthplace of coffee, home to thousands of indigenous heirloom varieties found nowhere else.»
Dimtu Coffee Industry — where two of our newest gems come from — is a specialty coffee exporter based in Guji, Ethiopia. They operate their own 151-hectare farm and processing stations while collaborating closely with surrounding smallholder farmers.
«Ethiopian coffees are celebrated for their floral aromas, vibrant fruit notes, tea-like clarity, and extraordinary diversity — qualities that make African coffees central to the specialty coffee world.»
Fraol Getachew, Coffee Cupper, Roaster and Quality Manager at Dimtu Coffee Industry
As a further reason why not only Ethiopian, but all African beans stand out, Fraol and Ivan both name their natural environment.
«Altitudes where you can grow coffee in Ethiopia, Kenya or some other regions of Africa are incredibly high — often over 2200 masl. Special ground components are an ulterior environmental characteristic of certain African regions», Ivan explains. These conditions contribute the base for the development of their recognizable aroma profiles.
«Rich volcanic soils, a natural forest canopy and slow cherry maturation at high altitude result in coffees with exceptional clarity, balanced acidity, and layered sweetness.»
Fraol Getachew, Coffee Cupper, Roaster and Quality Manager at Dimtu Coffee Industry
As much as the aroma of these coffees stands out, they’re quite delicate when it comes to roasting. Because of their high density, African beans — compared to Central American coffees — need a different approach to keep the floral part and the vibrant acidity, our head roaster Alfonso explains.
«With washed African coffees in particular I need to be very careful in every step of creating the roasting profile — especially in terms of temperature.»
Alfonso, Head of Roasting at miró
Even with their unmatched reputation, African coffees seem to be harder to find among competitions.
What could be the reason for that?
Despite the global trend of experimental processing, African coffees are often processed traditionally — natural or washed — since these methods are deeply rooted in their coffee culture. They consistently bring out the clean, vibrant, and complex flavours that African origins are known for.
«That said, I don’t think the limited presence of African coffees in global competitions is mainly because of traditional processing. It’s more about access, infrastructure, and market exposure», Fraol explains. Also: Many African producers lack the resources or connections to experiment or submit their coffees to international events in the first place.
Fraol also points out that there are exceptions: «At Dimtu, we combine traditional Ethiopian methods with modern innovations.» They often experiment with anaerobic or extended fermentation, honey and cold river methods — making Dimtu stand out on cupping tables worldwide.
«We don’t move away from our heritage but explore new dimensions of what African coffees can offer. It’s about combining tradition with innovation.»
Fraol Getachew, Coffee Cupper, Roaster and Quality Manager at Dimtu Coffee Industry
As unique as they may be, even African coffees are not spared from one thing: climate change.
Fraol sees the future of their coffee as both challenging and promising. «Global demand for unique, traceable, and sustainable origins continues to grow, and Ethiopia — with its unmatched diversity — will remain a leader in specialty coffee. Meanwhile the main challenges lie in climate adaptation, fair pricing and innovation in processing.»
Our latest African Drops
At miró, a whole lot of African coffees has been released lately — even our new Subscription Filter is Kenyan — leading to a whole lot of excitement!
Now is the perfect time to release fresh crops of African coffee as their harvest dates just a few months back, Alfonso says. «The freshness of the green beans is something that makes a huge difference in terms of flavours — especially with African beans.»
Besides our washed processed Dimtu, we’re soon releasing the naturally processed version of the Ethiopian bean. Another very special thing Ivan points out is that we’re serving the washed Dimtu as our 2nd Espresso in all our stores. «I truly believe that having such a high quality bean served as an Espresso is rare — even around specialty cafés.»
High praise from our head of quality — curious about his favourite gem?
«Definitely the one from Ethiopia, Banko Gotiti. It stands for core characteristics of Ethiopian coffees — at least in my humble opinion.»
Which one is yours?
Find your favourite among our new African drops online or come by our stores for a sip
— and get to know true magic, as they say.