In the Kebele Gersay, located in the Woreda Yirgacheffe, the local people follow time the same way all small villages of Ethiopia follow time – by the sun. Should you decide with the local guides to meet at the airport to begin your journey at 2, be sure to arrive two hours after the sun has risen from the horizon, and not at 2pm, as read by your watch that is wound to the local time zone according to the world clock. Failure to understand this may in fact result in a late fee, payable to your guide. The coffees processed at the Gersay washing stations can eithe r be of the natural or the washed methods.

The Yirgacheffe environment and weather has proven to be perfect for the natural process – it is dry, sunny, and reliable throughout the harvest seasons and results in evenly dried coffees, but we are grateful that the washed method is still an option for these Woredas, as it adds just another element to the unique range of coffee tree varieties that exist around Ethiopia. With the greatest genetic diversity of coffee varieties in the world, we are forever amazed at the complexity of the cup profiles that stem from every Ethiopian washing station, including the ones at Gersay.