Ethiopia Natural Sidamo Awash River (Lot 3)

Awash River is a curated coffee sourced from smallholder farmers serviced by the river Awash in the Sidamo region of southern Ethiopia. These farmers rely on the great river and its many tributaries to cultivate coffee and sustain their communities.

The Awash carves through almost 750 miles of Ethiopia’s great rift valley, providing a vital water source for millions. Archaeologists believe humans have lived along the river since the dawn of man. Known as “the cradle of humankind”, the middle Awash is home to some of the most important archaeological discoveries in history, including perhaps the most famous hominid fossil ever found: “Lucy”.

In a poetic twist, Ethiopia is also the birthplace of the arabica coffee tree. As farmers started to harvest the wild forest coffee of Southern Ethiopia they in turn began to cultivate them on their own land. Nevertheless, wild coffee can still be found throughout Ethiopia and is represented by thousands of distinct varieties, many of which are still cultivated by farmers in Sidamo to this day.