Roasters Reserve - Bette Buna Cherry Spark - Ethiopia

Grapefruit and tonic water up top, liquorice and cacao nibs underneath, and a dark cherry and chocolate middle that lands close to Black Forest gateaux.

Bette Buna was started in 2020 by Dawit and Hester Syoum, after Dawit's grandfather died and his widow asked that the family's two hectare farm at Taferi Kela be kept open to the neighbours, as a place where people could learn and work together. The company now farms, processes, quality controls and exports its own coffee from Sidama and Guji, with its own dry mill and lab in Addis Ababa and no broker standing between the farm and the roaster.

This lot comes from the highland plots at Megadu in Guji, 220 hectares of semi-managed and wild coffee forest sitting between 1,900 and 2,300 metres. Cherry Spark is the longest ferment Bette Buna run, six days of whole cherry sealed in hermetic barrels under carbon dioxide before it goes out onto raised beds to dry. Taking the oxygen out slows the ferment and lets them steer it, which is why the fruit stays defined rather than blurring into alcohol.

Fifty cents on every pound (weight) of this lot funds a community composting hub at Megadu, and the farms Bette Buna buy from are named on the lots rather than pooled. We have 30kg, and once it has gone there will not be another.

• Origin: Ethiopia
• Producer: Bette Buna (Dawit & Hester Syoum)
• Region: Megadu, Guji
• Lot: W1 Cherry Spark Highlands, G1
• Varietal: 74112, 74110, Wild Guji Megadu
• Process: Natural, 144 hour CO2 fermentation
• Altitude: 1,900 - 2,300m
• Cup Score: 86.5
• Tasting Notes: Grapefruit, Tonic Water, Liquorice, Cacao Nibs
• Crop: 2025/26

Hand roasted and ground to order. Orders placed after 8:30 am are dispatched the next working day, and you'll receive an email as soon as yours is on its way. If anything is ever delayed, which can occasionally happen with certain artisan coffees and equipment, we'll let you know straight away and keep you updated.

ROYAL MAIL DELIVERY – UK

Free UK delivery on all orders over £35, sent via Royal Mail 2nd Class Tracked. Free delivery can't be combined with any other offer or discount code, and a few larger items are excluded. See our delivery page for the full list.

For UK orders under £35, choose one of two tracked options at checkout. Both are charged on the total parcel weight, including packaging:

Royal Mail 1st Class Tracked
Next working day – £5.40

Royal Mail 2nd Class Tracked
2–3 working days – £4.50

Applies to UK orders under £35 and up to 2.5kg. Heavier orders are sent via DPD (see below).

Tracked services aim for, but don't guarantee, delivery within their stated windows. Please double-check your address at checkout, as we can't dispatch your parcel if it's incorrect.

1st Class Tracked exclusion postcodes: GY, HS2, IM, JE, KW16–17, PA61–PA75, PA78, PH30, PH41–PH44, ZE2 and ZE3. 2nd Class Tracked exclusion postcodes: BT, GY, HS, IM, JE, KW, ZE2 and ZE3.

ROYAL MAIL DELIVERY – EUROPE, USA & CANADA

International orders are sent via Royal Mail Standard International and are restricted to a maximum order of 1.5kg.

Europe

0g – 500g – £7.00
501g – 999g – £9.50
1kg – 1.5kg – £14.00

US & Canada

0g – 500g – £9.50
501g – 999g – £16.00
1kg – 1.5kg – £23.00

DPD NEXT-DAY DELIVERY

Orders over 2.5kg are sent via DPD Courier, and your confirmation email will let you know if this applies to your order. Orders placed with DPD before 8:30 am go on a Next Day Delivery service; this doesn't include weekends, so anything dispatched on a Friday will arrive the following Monday.

This option excludes Northern Ireland and the Scottish Highlands.

For those local to York, we have free local collection points across the city, which we deliver to on Wednesday and Friday mornings. Orders placed from Friday to Tuesday will be delivered to your chosen collection point on Wednesday morning. You'll be notified by email when your order is ready. Please visit our collection points page for more information.

York Coffee Emporium Roastery – Nether Poppleton

Available to collect from the York Coffee Emporium roastery any time between 8:30 am and 5:00 pm during the week, once you've received your shipping email.

Oak & Smoke Deli – Micklegate, York

Available to collect from the cafe 8:30 am - 2 pm Tuesday to Friday, 9 am - 3 pm Saturday and 9:30 am - 2 pm Sunday. The cafe isn't open on Mondays.

The Greengrocer of Acomb – Acomb, York

Available to collect from the Greengrocer during opening hours on the Friday after you receive your shipping email. The store isn't open on Wednesdays.

Brew'd – Designer Outlet York

Available to collect from the cafe 8.30 am - 8 pm everyday except Sundays, when opening times are 9 am till 6 pm.

You'll have one week to collect your order from your chosen location. Any unclaimed orders will be returned to the York Coffee Emporium roastery for collection once this period has elapsed.