Ethiopia Arsosala

Special Preparation

Arsosala washing station currently serves 1,200 smallholder producers in Urga woreda, Guji. Most of the coffee delivered to the factory is Bourbon. Bourbon is a varietal better known in Central and South America. The Ethiopian version of this varietal is typically genetically distinct from the ones found elsewhere.

Sorry, sold out!

Varieties: Typica, Bourbon
Process: washed

Flavour: White peach, jasmine, bergamot

Body: Acidity:

Roast: Omni (filter + espresso)

Origin story and details

Producer: 1200 Smallholders
Region: Guji, Ethiopia
Altitude: 1800m above sea level

The Testi West Arsi Washing Station was established in 2010 and serves about 850 smallholder producers in the area.

The farmers deliver their cherry to the washing station, where it is depulped, fermented for 24–48 hours, and washed before being dried on raised beds for 12-15 days.

Testi is a family-owned producer and exporter in Ethiopia. They own a farm and washing stations in the Guji region, and have relationships with partners in Limu and also West Arsi – where this coffee was grown.

Ethiopia’s going through an unusual shift in coffee production, with the formerly tightly government controlled coffee production and export business going through a wave of deregulation.

Until recently all coffee was traded through the Ethiopian Coffee Exchange (ECX). As part of the ECX sale process separate growing lots were typically mixed, making traceability difficult. This in turn meant that exceptional small lots of coffee were blended with lesser quality, reducing their value.

The recent opening up of coffee trade and export outside the ECX has made it possible to find and share coffees such as this one.

Traceability

100% Typica, Bourbon coffee beans, provided by Cafe Imports and roasted by us on Gadigal land / Sydney.

Country grade: Unknown ?

This page has all the sourcing information (variety, process, region, story, importer, harvest date, and more) that our importers share with us for public use.

Being transparent helps us to talk confidently about the quality and background of the products we sell. It also helps you to know exactly what you’re buying.

Learn more:
Coffee page transparency legend
Our coffee philosophy
Our business approach

Fresh harvest sourcing

We only source and roast coffee from each country’s latest harvest season (so the green coffee is never older than 1 year from the time of picking, processing and packing).

This ensures the sensory qualities are always at their peak and unaffected by excessive ageing.

Learn everything about this coffee:

Roasted for espresso and filter (best enjoyed black)

Roast style: omni. Omni roasts are designed to brew and taste great both as espresso and filter. Our omni single origins generally sit on Agtron values in the ~70-60 value range. So, technically, they are somewhere in the lighter side of the medium spectrum.

Designed for espresso and filter brewing. Best enjoyed black.

Learn more:
Our Loring Kestrel S35 roaster
Our roasting style and approach

Try our custom brewing recipes

Our recipes and ratios are tailored to our coffee sourcing and roasting styles, bringing the best flavour and feel out of each coffee.

For pour over, immersion, and other filter brewing styles, check all our brew guides.

For our espresso single origins, we recommend a coffee:yield ratio of 1:3:

Dose: 20g ground coffee
Yield: 60g espresso
Total brew time: ~24-28 seconds

This is just a starting point! We encourage you to experiment, taste, and adjust to find the recipe that you enjoy the most.

Learn more:
Our espresso brew guide (single origin)
Brewing ratio calculator

Packaging and materials

Bags: ABA-certified home compostable (AS 5810-2010)
Labels: recyclable
Valves (only on +250g bags): general waste
Box and tape (online orders): recyclable

Learn more:
Our packaging

Best brewed 15–49 days post-roast

When you leave your whole beans to rest (inside the sealed bag) until our recommended window, you’re brewing at optimum flavour and acidity.

This time allows for the gas compounds, absorbed during the roasting process, to leave the coffee. If you brew too early, it may not be bad, but you’ll miss out on each coffee’s best flavour.

Our recommended brewing window

FAQs

Do you ship anywhere in Australia?

Yes! We deliver our coffee and brewing gear Australia-wide, roasted to order and in compostable and recyclable packaging.

Do you ship internationally?

We ship coffee beans to select international countries. Check the list to see if we ship to your destination.

Can I buy pre-ground coffee?

Yes, we offer pre-ground options for different methods:

- Ground for domestic espresso (home espresso machine)
- Ground for stovetop (Bialetti)
- Ground for AeroPress / Kalita / Cold Brew / Moccamaster / Plunger / French Press (immersion style)
- Ground for V60/Chemex (pour over style)

Do you source your coffee ethically? How so?

We source our coffee from small growers, producers, and cooperatives through responsible importing companies; 95% of our green coffee beans are supplied by Caravela Coffee, Cafe Imports, Osito, and Melbourne Coffee Merchants (certified B Corporations), plus Condesa Co Lab, Cofinet, and a few more.

We share all the traceability information we have about each coffee lot (territory of origin, producer, variety, processing method, importer, quality grade) on each dedicated coffee page. This applies to the blend components in our espresso blends.

Learn more about our coffee philosophy.

Do you roast dark or light?

We roast our single origins using omni roast medium/light profiles. (Omni means you can use the coffee both for filter and espresso brewing, no need to buy different bean bags with specific roast styles.)

We roast our espresso blends using darker profiles.

Learn more about our approach to roasting.

What is ‘specialty coffee’?

The definitions and references to specialty coffee are tricky, if not controversial.

Historically, and as most people see it these days, specialty coffee is Arabica beans that score over 80 in the old Specialty Coffee Association point scale. Today, the SCA refers to specialty coffee as “a coffee or coffee experience that is recognised for its distinctive attributes, resulting in a higher value within the marketplace.”

Our single origins are Arabica +85 SCA score and our blend components Arabica +80, which could be considered ‘true specialty’ coffee. Though we prefer to use the term ‘high quality’ and back this claim with solid traceability data.

What’s the benefit of your coffee subscription?

When you subscribe, you get freshly roasted coffee delivered as often as you need, so you don’t have to be so hands-on in planning your coffee purchases.

Also, you get free shipping on every delivery, and you can cancel or pause whenever you need – no lock-in periods.

Can I buy these beans in your coffee shops?

Yes, definitely! You can walk into any of our cafes in Sydney (or our wholesale network) and grab what’s available on the shelves. You can also buy online here and select free pickup from the Sample Coffee stores.

See all our FAQs

Sample Coffee Roasters warehouse in St Peters, Sydney

With love, from Sample

We’re an independent coffee roasting company based in Gadigal land / Sydney, Australia

We’ve been sharing exceptional coffees since 2011, with a particular focus on rotating single origins, ethical sourcing, and homebrewing accessibility.

Our daily work is driven by quality, consistency, transparency, and fun. This approach has slowly and organically connected us with a community of homebrewers and professionals who value how we do business and, above all, love delicious coffee beyond the hype.

Learn about us