Manhattan – Shoondhisa 250g | Ethiopia

Shoondhisa is one of those coffees that makes the case for Guji on its own terms — a naturally processed lot with enough range to work as filter or espresso, which isn't something you can say about every Ethiopian natural. In the cup it leans into a round, generous mouthfeel, carrying berry compote and strawberry juice alongside a gentler thread of white sugar sweetness running underneath.

The coffee comes from Sookoo Coffee, a station founded in 2018 by brothers Ture Waji and Assefa. Based in Odo Shakiso, in the Oromia region, Sookoo has built its reputation on close relationships with the surrounding Kebeles — smaller administrative communities that each supply cherry with its own distinct character depending on elevation, soil and microclimate. This particular lot comes specifically from the Shoondhisa Kebele, which lends the coffee its name.

The varieties here are Gibirinna 74110 and Serto 74112 — both developed by the Jimma Agricultural Research Center back in 1974, originally selected for their resistance to coffee berry disease. It's a reminder that a lot of what reads as "heirloom" Ethiopian coffee actually has a documented breeding history behind it, even if the varieties have circulated informally for decades since. After picking, the cherries are dried naturally on raised beds — the slower, more controlled version of natural processing that tends to produce cleaner, more consistent sweetness than ground-drying.

Grown at 2,173 MASL, well into the altitude range that tends to reward growers with more complexity and structure, this lot is a solid showcase of what Sookoo Coffee — and Ture Waji's specific approach to sourcing and processing — brings to Guji's increasingly well-regarded coffee scene. It's a coffee built to be versatile: brew it as a bright, juicy filter and the berry compote and strawberry juice notes come through clearly.

Freshly roasted by Manhattan Coffee Roasters in Rotterdam and imported to the UK by ROAST EDIT Co.