What is Gesha Village estate in Ethiopia?
Gesha Village is a high-altitude specialty coffee estate (1,900–2,200 m) located in the Bench Sheko zone of south-western Ethiopia. Founded in 2011 by a team of passionate investors on montane forest land, it is considered one of the world's most accomplished coffee production projects, producing Gesha variety lots (and other local heirloom varieties) that regularly score between 90 and 95 on the SCA scale.
Gesha Village Estate was founded in 2011 by a group of coffee enthusiasts — including Adam Overton, Rachel Samuel and other partners — on land in the foothills of the Bench range in south-western Ethiopia, at exceptional altitude for the region (1,900 to 2,200 m). The location is deliberately close to the wild forests where natural Gesha populations have been documented, enabling work with rare genetic diversity.
The Gesha variety grown at Gesha Village is directly related — but not identical — to the Panama Geisha that revolutionised the specialty coffee market from 2004 onwards. The Panamanian Geisha traces its lineage to a 1931 collection from Gesha, Ethiopia, via the Kenya Coffee Research Station, then transferred to Costa Rica and ultimately to Hacienda La Esmeralda in Panama. Gesha Village thus works with local Ethiopian populations of the same genetic family, but displaying unexploited diversity.
Gesha Village lots are divided by fermentation block, altitude, variety and processing. Key lots include 'Ancestral', 'Lot 1' (washed), 'Lot 2' (natural), experimental anaerobic lots, and rare variety lots such as Gori Gesha, Setemi, Bunsha and other accessions collected from the surrounding forests. Mill-gate cupping SCA scores regularly exceed 90 points, and some nano-lots have achieved 96–97 at competitions.
The project is equally notable on a human level: Gesha Village employs roughly 400 local workers, has built a school and a health centre, and pays above-market wages. Green coffee sale prices regularly reach 50 to 300 USD per kg depending on the lot, making it one of the highest-remunerated productions in the world. For the end consumer, a cup of washed Gesha Village filter coffee reveals notes of jasmine, Earl Grey tea, white peach and bergamot — a finesse rarely matched.
Gesha Village's flagship lots
- Lot 1 (Washed): floral-tea profile, phosphate-like acidity, maximum finesse, SCA 91–95
- Lot 2 (Natural): jammy-fruited profile, mango and peach, fuller body, SCA 90–93
- Gori Gesha: forest-collected wild variety, exotic and complex profile, SCA 92–96
- Anaerobic lots: controlled fermentation, passion fruit notes, SCA 90–94
- Setemi / Bunsha: documented rare accessions, micro volumes, reserved for competitions
- Ancestral Blend: blend of local varieties, balanced profile, more accessible price