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Darling

NewDak's FavouriteBrightJuicy

Darling comes from Danche Washing Station in Gedeb, and it’s one of the more delicate Ethiopians we’ve had this year. The coffee goes through a 48-hour anaerobic fermentation before being washed, resulting in a cup with good clarity despite the additional fermentation. Wild florals lead, followed by peach iced tea and a black-tea finish. Light, elegant and very tea-like.


Origin Ethiopia
Region Gedeb
Producer / Farm Produced by Danche Washing Station
Harvest 2026
Tasting notes Black Tea, Peach Iced Tea, Wild Florals
Altitude 2200masl
Varietal Heirloom
Process Anaerobic Washed
Intervention Level Low

Weight
Roast Profile

FROM ORIGIN TO CUP

Danche Washing Station sits in Gedeb, Gedeo, and has been a source of some of the clean, expressive Ethiopian coffees we’ve worked with this year. For Darling, only ripe cherries are selected before being depulped and fermented for 48 hours in sealed tanks. The coffee is then washed twice and slowly dried on raised beds. Despite the additional fermentation, the cup remains delicate and very clean, with wild florals, peach iced tea and black tea.

Origin

Danche Washing Station sits in Gedeb, Gedeo, at around 2200 masl. The coffee is collected from surrounding producers and brought to the station for processing. For this lot, the cherries are hand-sorted and floated before processing, with only the ripest cherries selected.

Varietal

Ethiopian heirloom, a broad term used for the locally grown varieties found across the country rather than one single cultivar. In Darling, we find a particularly floral and tea-like expression, with wild florals followed by peach iced tea and a black-tea quality on the finish.

Processing

Anaerobic washed. After sorting and floating, the cherries are depulped and fermented for 48 hours in sealed tanks without oxygen. The parchment is then washed twice with clean water and dried on raised beds for 15 to 20 days, depending on the weather.

Intervention level

Low. The 48-hour anaerobic fermentation adds a controlled step, but the overall process remains relatively simple: the coffee is depulped, fermented, washed twice and dried on raised beds. The result is clean and origin-driven rather than heavily processed or boozy.

Black Tea
Peach Iced Tea
Wild Florals

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THE DAK BREW GUIDE

These are the recipes we use every day at the roastery and showroom. We keep them simple on purpose: water, ratio, grind size. The coffee does most of the work when the basics are right. Every setup is different, so treat these as a starting point. Adjust based on what you're tasting and what your equipment gives you.

General

For most grinders and most bars. Balanced, works black and with milk.

• Ratio: 1:2.5
• Dose: 18 g
• Yield: 45 g
• Brew time: 25 seconds
• Pressure: 9 bars
• Temperature: 93°C

For our roast level 1:2.5 ratio fully extracts, balances and opens the cup without thinning it compared to the classic 1:2.

Modern

Longer ratio, lower pressure, shorter contact. More clarity and acidity.

• Ratio: 1:3
• Dose: 18 g
• Yield: 54 g
• Brew time: 20 seconds
• Pressure: 6 bars
• Temperature: 93°C

A note on equipment: 1:3 relies on a flat burr set capable of a very even grind.
On an E65, E80 or Mythos this ratio often tastes watery. If that happens, pull back to 1:2.5.

Advanced (pressure profiled)
For machines with flow or pressure control. This is the showroom recipe.

• Ratio: 1:3
• Dose: 18 g
• Yield: 54 g
• Total brew time: 40 seconds to 1:20 total
• Pre-infusion at 2 bars (about 1 to 2 g/sec flow rate) until 1g in the cup, 20 to 40 seconds
• Main extraction: 6 bars until 18g yield. (about 5 to 6 g/sec flow rate)
• Post-infusion: 2 bars (about 1 to 2 g/sec flow rate) until 54g final yield
• Temperature 93°C

Washed

• Ratio: 1:16.6
• Dose: 15 g
• Water: 250 g
• Brew time: 2:30 minutes to 3 minutes
• Temperature: 95°C

Poring structure

Start your timer with the first pour. The weights below are the total water added.

• 0:00 pour to 50g (8 g/sec, medium)
• 0:30 pour to 100g (8 g/sec, medium)
• 1:00 pour to 250g (3 g/sec, very low)

Pouring very slowly keeps the bed open. Let the water draw down to finish the brew.

 

Natural and other fermented processes

• Ratio: 1:15
• Dose: 16.5 g
• Water: 250 g
• Brew time: 2:30 minutes to 3 minutes
• Temperature: 92°C

Poring structure

Start your timer with the first pour. The weights below are the total water added.

• 0:00 pour to 50g (8 g/sec, medium)
• 0:30 pour to 120g (8 g/sec, medium)
• 1:00 pour to 190g (3 g/sec, very low)
• 1:30 pour to 250g (3 g/sec, very low)

Pouring very slowly keeps the bed open. Let the water draw down to finish the brew.

Water is 98% of your cup, so it changes everything. Mineral content varies between cities, neighbourhoods, and even seasons depending on which reservoir is supplying the tap. If your water is hard (above 150ppm), switch to a soft bottled water around 50ppm. Too soft is always better than too hard. The difference in the cup is immediate.

Ethiopian coffees
Ethiopian beans are more brittle and produce more fines when grinding. Too much agitation during brewing pushes those fines into the filter and slows everything down. Keep agitation low. If the cup still tastes over-extracted or the drawdown stalls, grind coarser and extend the ratio or brew time slightly to compensate.

The look of a shot
Naked portafilters show you what’s happening, but what you see has no reliable connection to what you’ll taste. A messy-looking shot can taste clean, and a photogenic one can taste flat. Taste every shot, even the ones outside your parameters, and adjust from there.

Crema
Crema is gas escaping coffee under pressure. It carries very few desirable flavour compounds and can actually taste harsh. Removing it will almost always improve the cup. With light roast espresso especially, ignore the crema and focus on what’s in the liquid.

Freezing coffee
Freezing keeps coffee at peak flavour, but roasted coffee can’t be thawed and refrozen without losing quality. Vacuum-seal in single doses before freezing. When you’re ready to brew, grind it frozen. Don’t let it thaw first. Every grinder handles frozen beans without issue, and the results are often better. One dose out, the rest stays sealed.

Long ratio (for harder extraction)
For when extraction is more difficult: hard or heavily filtered water, a grinder past its best, or a dense lot.

1:18 ratio. 14g in, 250g out. 2:30 to 3:00. 97°C.
• 0:00 pour to 45g
• 0:30 pour to 90g
• 1:00 pour to 250g

1:20 ratio. 12.5g in, 250g out. 2:15 to 2:45. 97°C.
• 0:00 pour to 40g
• 0:30 pour to 80g
• 1:00 pour to 250g

Adjusting

• If the cup tastes thin, dry or harsh: raise the dose. Move from 15g to 16 or 16.5g at the same 250g yield.
• If espresso tastes watery at 1:3: shorten to 1:2.5 before touching the grind.
• Water: very low or very high TDS shifts everything. Check the water before changing the recipe. If the water cannot be changed, go to the long ratio recipes.