Ethiopia
Arsosala
Special Preparation

Arsosala washing station currently serves 1,200 smallholder producers in Urga woreda, Guji. Their coffee has notes of white peach, jasmine, and bergamot.

Washed process Heirloom

Flavour: white peach, jasmine and bergamot

Body: Acidity:

Roast: omni (filter + espresso)

Arsosala is a washing station founded in 2015 that currently serves about 1,200 smallholder producers in the Urga woreda (district) of Guji, a beautifully forested area in southern Ethiopia. Before the early 2000s, this region was considered part of Sidama but has since become its own ‘independent’ one.

Growers here tend small coffee gardens at very high altitudes in the rich red soil of the highlands; they often grow other crops as well. As commonly happens in the rest of the country, smallholders deliver their coffee in cherry to the closest washing station—in this case, Arsosala—where their coffee will be sorted, weighed, paid for or given a receipt, and later processed in bulk.

Blending all these cherries (typically separated or tagged per day lots) makes it virtually impossible under normal circumstances to know the producers participating in each bag; that’s why the coffees are sold under and referred to the name the washing station.

The cherries of this lot were picked ripe and de-pulped the same day, then fermented overnight before being washed clean and dried on raised beds (it typically takes the coffee 8–15 days to dry under sun and 15–20 days to dry when there are cloudy skies).

The ‘special preparation’ refers to an additional inspection during hand-sorting stage, just before the fermentation starts, to make sure only the ripest cherries make it to this lot.

Learn everything about this coffee:

Ethical, traceable sourcing

This page has all the sourcing information (variety, process, region, story, importer, and more) that our importers share with us, and give us permission to use.

The transparency helps us talk confidently about the quality and background of our product, and it helps you know exactly what you’re buying.

Learn more:
Coffee page transparency legend
Our coffee philosophy
Our business approach

Fresh harvest coffee

We only source and roast coffee from each country’s latest harvest season (so the green coffee is never older than 1 year from the time of picking, processing and packing). This ensures the sensory qualities are always at their peak and unaffected by excessive ageing.

Roasted for espresso and filter (best enjoyed black)

Roast style: omni. Omni roasts are designed to brew and taste great both as espresso and filter. Our omni single origins generally sit on Agtron values in the ~70-60 value range. So, technically, they are somewhere in the lighter side of the medium spectrum.

Designed for espresso and filter brewing. Best enjoyed black.

Learn more:
Our Loring Kestrel S35 roaster
Our roasting style and approach

Best brewed within days 15-49 post-roast

The ‘fresh is best’ saying doesn’t apply to coffee (contrary to popular belief). Waiting before opening and brewing your bag of whole coffee beans helps develop peak flavour and acidity.

But heads up: if you buy pre-ground coffee, brew it as soon as possible.

Learn more:
Our recommended brewing window

Try our custom brewing recipes

Our recipes and ratios are tailored to our coffee sourcing and roasting styles, bringing the best flavour and feel out of each coffee.

For pour over, immersion, and other filter brewing styles, check our brew guides.
For our espresso single origins, we recommend a coffee:yield ratio of 1:3:

Dose: 20g ground coffee
Yield: 60g espresso
Total brew time: ~24-28 seconds

This is just a starting point! We encourage you to experiment, taste, and adjust to find the recipe that you enjoy the most.

Learn more:
Our espresso brew guide (single origin)
Brewing ratio calculator

Packaging and sustainability

Bags: ABA-certified home compostable (AS 5810-2010)
Labels: recyclable
Valves (only on +250g bags): general waste
Box and tape (online orders): recyclable

Learn more:
Our packaging

Producer: 1200 Smallholders
Country: Ethiopia
Region: Guji
Altitude: 1800-1900m above sea level
Variety: Heirloom
Process: washed
Harvested: November 2022
Importer: Cafe Imports
Body: Light
Acidity: Refined
Tasting notes: White peach, jasmine and bergamot
Roast style: Omni (filter + espresso)

The location

Coffee from Ethiopia

Seen as the birthplace of domesticated coffee, there are not many more exciting times at the Sample warehouse as when our fresh Ethiopian lots arrive. Legend says it’s our favourite origin…

The Yirgacheffe region of Ethiopia

Unique for its floral and highly aromatic coffees. Some our of very favourite and memorable Ethiopian coffees have emerged from this legendary region.

Farm processes

Washed process

Machines are used to remove the flesh from the coffee cherry before being fermented in water, washed again, and finally sun dried. This process tends to result in more distinct, cleaner flavours.