Alo Chilaka Anaerobic Natural

$35.00
About This Coffee

ROAST: Light
ORIGIN: Chilaka Station, Sidama, Ethiopia
NOTES: Raspberry, Watermelon, Milk Chocolate

This anaerobic natural from Tamiru Tadesse and Alo Coffee is a vibrant expression of Ethiopian coffee built around ripe fruit, fermentation, and an incredibly silky structure.

Produced at Chilaka, one of Alo Coffee’s newer stations in Sidama, the coffee undergoes a 72-hour fermentation before shade drying. The process amplifies the natural fruit character of the coffee, creating a cup that is bright and expressive while retaining the elegance and clarity we love in great Ethiopian coffees.

Think ripe strawberry layered with dense raspberry jam sweetness. Underneath all that fruit is a silky texture that keeps the cup structured and clean rather than simply heavy or funky.

Story

Tamiru Tadesse began producing his own high-altitude coffees in 2021 and won Ethiopia’s Cup of Excellence that same year. Since then, Alo Coffee — named after Tamiru’s home village in Bensa, Sidama — has become known for coffees that showcase both the quality of the region and Tamiru’s approach to processing.

Across Alo’s stations, Tamiru works with coffees from smallholder farmers while exploring washed, natural, honey, and experimental fermentation methods.

Chilaka represents the more experimental side of that work: taking exceptional Ethiopian coffee and using controlled fermentation to push its fruit character and texture in a distinctly different direction.

About Chilaka

Chilaka opened in 2022, directly next to Alo’s Safo Main station and overlooking the hillsides of Bensa.

Since opening, the station has become the processing site for many of Alo’s experimental lots, giving Tamiru a dedicated place to explore how fermentation and drying can create different expressions of coffees grown around Sidama.

This particular lot is a perfect example of that approach — intensely fruit-driven, but with enough brightness and structure to keep the cup lively and composed.

Origin & Process

This coffee is processed as an Anaerobic Natural, with fermentation taking place while the coffee remains in cherry.

🧪 72-Hour Fermentation – The coffee undergoes a 72-hour fermentation designed to develop its fruit character before drying.

🍒 Natural Process – The coffee remains within the fruit rather than being depulped and washed.

🌤 Shade Drying – Following fermentation, the coffee is shade dried, allowing the cherries to dry gradually before final processing.

📍 Station: Chilaka

🌎 Region: Sidama, Ethiopia

🌱 Producer: Tamiru Tadesse / Alo Coffee

🧪 Process: Anaerobic Natural

⏱ Fermentation: 72 Hours

🌤 Drying: Shade Dried

Brewing Recommendation

Best brewed as a pour-over to highlight its bright berry character, silky body, and deep raspberry jam sweetness.