Bright, juicy, and vibrant with a flavor profile similar to a fruit forward but robust red wine.

Carbonic maceration is a prolonged fermentation within the coffee cherry, where sugars break down into acids or alcohol due to bacteria and yeast activity. The process occurs in airtight vessels filled with CO2 to eliminate oxygen, creating internal pressure that must be regulated. This method prolongs fermentation, enhancing complexity and clarity while avoiding acetic notes. It can be applied to washed or natural processing, with cherries either pulped or placed whole in fermentation tanks before drying. At Tracon’s Deri Kidame Washing Station, cherries are washed, sorted by density, fermented for 72 hours using the carbonic maceration process, and then dried on raised beds for 21 days to ensure uniform drying and flavor development.

Tracon, a family-owned business with 30 washing stations across Ethiopia, processes all experimental coffees at its own facilities, including the Deri Kidame Washing Station managed by Kenzu Ahmed, who oversees cherry selection, post-harvest production, and farmer compensation. Tracon operates a state-of-the-art milling facility in Addis Ababa, equipped with advanced Pinhalese processing technology for precise sorting and quality control. Committed to supporting local farmers, Tracon provides training in modern farm management and prebooks coffee contracts to offer early premium payments, reducing financial risks for producers while ensuring a stable market for their harvests.