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Agaro

An Ethiopian landrace from the west of the country, distributed to Malawi and elsewhere. Floral and clean.

Agaro is a named Ethiopian landrace from the town and district of the same name in western Ethiopia, in the Jimma zone.

Named landraces

Most Ethiopian coffee is labelled simply “heirloom”, because the country’s forests hold thousands of uncatalogued populations. A handful — Agaro, Wush Wush, Gesha, Kurume, Dega — have been identified, propagated and named.

Those named landraces are the ones that have travelled.

Where it grows outside Ethiopia

Malawi, notably in the Misuku Hills, where Agaro plantings sit alongside genuine Geisha. It has also been distributed to a handful of Latin American farms.

The profile

Floral and citric with a clean body and a bright acidity — recognisably Ethiopian in character, generally less delicate than Gesha and more approachable.

Why it matters

Ethiopian genetic diversity is the reservoir the entire species depends on. Named landraces like Agaro are how that diversity reaches farms elsewhere, and how coffee’s genetic base gradually widens beyond the tiny founding sample that produced Typica and Bourbon.

Brewing it

Filter, light roast, a clean brewer. Treat it as a washed Ethiopian.

What you need to make it

The equipment this actually requires — not a shopping list, the shortest route to doing it properly.

  • The reference pour-over Manual brewers

    Hario V60 02 Ceramic

    60° cone · spiral ribs · 1–4 cups

    The most transparent cup you can brew for twenty euros, and the least forgiving. Ceramic holds heat where plastic does not — and the open bottom means your pour, not the dripper, decides the coffee.

    Best for: Someone who wants to taste what a single-origin coffee is actually doing.

    8.2/10

    ≈ $25 / £20 / 22 €

  • Best filter grinder Grinders

    Fellow Ode Brew Grinder Gen 2

    64 mm flat burr · filter only · single dose

    64 mm flat burrs, near-zero retention and a footprint the size of a mug, built for filter and honest about not doing espresso. For pour-over it is the clearest grind you can buy at this price.

    Best for: V60, Chemex, AeroPress and batch brewing, where clarity is the whole point.

    8.7/10

    ≈ $345 / £275 / 300 €

  • Best pour control Kettles

    Fellow Stagg EKG Pro

    0.9 L · ±1 °C hold · counterbalanced gooseneck

    The best-pouring kettle sold, and the hold function matters more than the thermometer. Expensive for boiling water — but if you brew pour-over daily, it is the accessory that most improves the cup.

    Best for: Daily pour-over, where flow rate is the variable you are trying to control.

    8.6/10

    ≈ $195 / £165 / 180 €