Harenna forest wild coffee

In the Harenna forest in the Ethiopian region of Oromia, wild arabica coffee grows in the shade of tall trees. For the local farmers, selling this coffee is the main source of income. They harvest the ripe fruit by hand, a process that is quite often obstructed by cheeky baboons.

After the harvest, these berries don’t need to be stripped or washed – they are simply dried in the sun. The preparation of coffee in Ethiopia is a daily ceremony including all social classes. The coffee beans are roasted and ground in a mortar, and the obtained powder is traditionally poured into a coffee pot (known as jabana) filled with boiling water.

The first coffee, called abol, is sweetened with sugar and served in a small cup without handles to the oldest person. The next two coffees (tona and baraka) are made by adding water to the jabana. All three types of coffee are typically served with wheat, corn, or toasted barley.