Short & Sweet
Roast Level: Light-medium
Tasting Notes: Strawberry, Peach, Blackberry
Washing Station: Adame Gorbota
Process: Naturally processed
Altitude: 1,937 – 1,950 MASL
Species: 100% Arabica
Varietals: Indigenous heirloom cultivars
The Story
Katerco Coffee's Ethiopia Single Origin coffee offers a unique flavor experience, with a well rounded combination of fruit notes and a delicate body.
Beans for this coffee are sourced from the Adame Gorbota Farmer's Cooperative in Wenago, which is in the northwestern part of the coveted Gedeo Zone—the narrow section of highland plateau whose coffee is known the world over as “Yirgacheffe”, after the Zone’s most famous district.
Processing for Adame Gorbota members occurs at sites outside the town of Wenago. Cherry is often delivered directly by farmer members or, in the case of members living further away, to select collection sites run by the cooperative. The arrival cherry is sorted by hand first to separate the less dense cherries. Then, the best cherries are taken to raised beds to dry under the sunlight for about 21 days. After the coffee is dried with cherry, it is then milled to remove the husks. Fully dried coffee is rested for one month on cooperative property.
We hope you will enjoy this coffee as much as we do!
Mission
Our mission is to develop the skills of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities through employment, education and training. We will provide an exceptional customer experience while serving the finest cup of coffee in Richmond. We believe that all people have the ability to thrive when given the opportunity to learn in a supportive environment.
The Thrive Foundation, Inc is a 501c3 not-for-profit organization that is working to provide the best coffee to our community while fulfilling our mission to develop the skills of individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities through employment, education and training.
Story
Keri Lee was a Special Education teacher in Chesterfield County, Virginia who noticed something extremely important while teaching High School students - after graduating, there are not many paying jobs for these members of our society. The unemployment rate for people with disabilities typically floats right around 7%.
Soon after coming to this realization, the idea for Katerco Coffee was born. Established in 2019, the original concept for Katerco Coffee was a local coffee shop in the Richmond, Virginia area that would employ, educate, and train people with disabilities. The Thrive Foundation, INC, the 501c3 nonprofit that operates Katerco Coffee, was formed to allow our community to make tax-deductible donations toward our success.
After spending months scoping out a location for the shop, and having preparations made for construction, the Coronavirus pandemic took the nation by storm. Keri and the team at Katerco Coffee made the difficult decision to put the in-person coffee shop on hold for the time being and began to brainstorm ways to continue our mission.
As an answer to this unfortunate situation, Katerco was launched in May of 2020. As a local, small-batch, craft roaster, Katerco Coffee excels in producing some of the finest coffee ever consumed. This amazingly roasted coffee is paired perfectly with our continuing mission of providing employment opportunities to people with disabilities, and we are proud to have made this change. As a nonprofit, the money that is made off of our roasted coffee goes directly back to our mission of employing people with disabilities. Every three bags of coffee that we sell helps us to pay for one hour of labor for these great employees.
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