Ethiopia's Regions - Jimma / Limu

Situated in the southwest of Ethiopia, between 1,100 to 2,100 m.a.s.l., Jimma is one of the largest coffee growing areas in Ethiopia. Famed for its coffees with a pronounced citric edge, the region is unique in that washed and natural process coffees are granted different names based upon the method of production. Naturally produced coffees are labeled Jimma with the washed lots being called Limu.

Bantam, one of the farmers at Anderacha.

We’ve been working in the region for many years and love the quality and complexity of coffees produced each harvest. With such a distinctive profile dominated by citric acid, the washed Limu coffees have an abundance of citrus fruits, berries and floral notes in the cup, balanced with a juicy yet smooth finish.

The naturally produced Jimma coffees again hold a lot of citric acidity, coupled with wine-like characteristics. Chocolate, caramel and ripe red fruits bring the sweetness and a pleasingly syrupy mouth-feel.

As through the rest of Ethiopia, coffees grown in Jimma are regularly classed as local landrace varieties. However, located in the region is the Jimma Agricultural Research Centre (JARC), which has done important work for the area and the wider Ethiopian coffee industry as a whole. By developing disease resistant and high yielding varieties that retain quality in the cup, many farmers in the region now grow one or more of the 40 or so JARC cultivated varieties throughout the Jimma region.