This washed Ethiopian coffee comes from the Gedeb region, produced by smallholder farmers delivering cherries to the Danche washing station owned by Neguesse Debela. The Wolisho and Dega varieties grow at 2200 meters altitude. The coffee exhibits bright fruit-forward flavors of peach, watermelon, honeysuckle, and orange blossom.
Bow Smith, Holden Curran, and Jessi Lee Cord launched Rowan Coffee in October 2020 as a mobile espresso operation in Asheville, North Carolina, growing quickly into a permanent home. Bow brings nearly a decade of barista, roasting, and management experience, and began roasting in house in January 2023 on a 15 kilo Mill City Roasters machine. Rowan centers mainly on washed process coffees, prizing clarity and complexity, with green beans sourced from specialty importers including Semilla, Osito, Red Fox Coffee Merchants, and The Coffee Quest. Everything is roasted to order on Tuesdays and shipped the following day. The approach is deliberate and seasonal, letting each coffee speak to where and how it was grown.
