Keramo Washed

Turning heads around the world together with Catalyst Trade, this coffee has both exceptional quality and the sustainability of direct partnership.

In the beginning of 2017, the Ethiopian coffee market was finally released from the restraints by the central exchange. Through our partners at The Coffee Quest, we found a way to collaborate with a Catalyst Trade, possibly the best sourcers we know who are specialized in Ethiopian coffees. With their approach to working with Keramo village and the Bombe washing station, they have inspired professionals all around the world.

In 2017, we started working together with Catalyst Trade through the Coffee Quest. Emily and Michael McIntyre are the duo behind this Ethiopia-specialized exporting company. For the past years, they have been restlessly working on finding cooperatives to work with and ways to improve them sustainably. Their vision, focus and joy is unparalleled.

Emily and Michael had already been working with Shantawene washing station for some time. There, they collected coffee from many different neighbouring villages, as is usually done in Ethiopia. Since some of those villages, like Keramo, are really high up in the mountains, they do not have their own washing station.

In 2018, they had the first opportunity to separate Keramo’s coffee from the rest, having it processed at Bombe washing station, named after the Bombe mountains. They immediately experimented with isolating screen sizes, which did not only give huge insights in the incredible potential of this coffee, but it also gave the coffee more focus. This is what earned Sam LaRobardiere of Theory Collaborative the Golden Bean Award at the 2018 competition, using a screen-15-isolated natural Keramo.

2018
February: received organic certification
September: natural used by Theory Collaborative to win the NA Golden Bean Award

2019
August: first shipment reached the Netherlands