How to Roast Ethiopia Yirgacheffe at Home: NCT Filter E After 14 Roasts
A data-backed case study of dialing in washed Ethiopia Yirgacheffe: batch size, failed dark F-WSH runs, and the NCT Filter E corridor that worked.
BrewedLate Coffee
Coffee Expert
The short answer: for washed Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Grade 2, the best home-roast result in this log was NCT Filter E at level 2.4 / 100g — about 11% DTR, ~14% roast loss, smooth and lightly fruity without green. Going darker on F-WSH or NordicLight did not fix underdevelopment.
This is a case study from 14 logged roasts (John Burton, heirloom, ~1,700–2,200m, goal: origin clarity), with klog metrics and tasting notes — not a generic Ethiopian guide.
Ethiopia · Yirgacheffe · Washed · 1,700-2,200 MASL · G2 · John Burton
Aroma of dried red fruits, citrus and vanilla biscuit. Flavours of toasted tea, lemon zest, caramel, spiced cookies and floral notes. Roasted nuts and caramel aftertaste. Low acidity and medium body. Score: 82.5+
“This is not bad, it's smooth, it's nice, it's a little bit fruity… better than the 91 roast.”
Winning batch R-090 · 2026-07-09
Cup quality across 14 attempts
Each point is a roast scored from tasting notes (1 = miss, 5 = dialed in). The series stops at the teal halo — once dialed in, later repeats aren’t scored the same way.
Where the good cups live
Roast level vs batch size. Color = profile family; larger dots = better cups. Notice how quality clusters once batch size moves to 100–120g.
Roast mechanics that stuck
DTR, roast loss, and rate-of-rise across attempts with klog data. Each series is scaled on its own axis so shapes are comparable.
What the data taught us
- 160g F-WSH loads stayed green — thermal mass mattered as much as level.
- 2Cranking F-WSH / NordicLight darker (3.0–3.3) did not fix underdevelopment; it often stayed grassy or went bland.
- 3NCT Filter E at ~2.4 / 100g first delivered smooth fruit without green (R-090) — better than Filter B/D at similar levels.
- 4Still a work in progress: fruit is there but bloom still a touch dark; R-096 at 2.2 is the lighter fine-tune.
Want to log a journey like this?
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What is this Yirgacheffe lot?
Yirgacheffe is one of Ethiopia’s signature washed origins — tea-like, citrus, florals when roasted for clarity. This Grade 2 lot aimed at origin clarity: preserve delicate notes, avoid heavy caramelization or second-crack territory.
Supplier cup notes pointed at dried red fruit, citrus, vanilla biscuit, toasted tea, lemon zest, and light florals (~82.5+).
The journey
1. Small loads and green cups (early F-WSH)
Early F-WSH 1500-2200 at 60g tasted very green. Notes blamed both profile and underload. Bumping level on small batches did not magically produce fruit.
2. Darker is not always more developed
Pushing F-WSH and NordicLight into 3.0–3.3 / 120g was a natural instinct (“more development”). Cups often stayed grassy after rest, or went subtle/sour without clear sweetness. One NordicLight run showed fruit but still felt underdeveloped; later higher levels were “still terrible” weeks later.
Lesson: for this bean, underdevelopment was not a simple “roast darker” problem.
3. NCT Filter E unlocks clean fruit
NCT Filter E @ 2.4 / 100g (R-090) was the first note that sounded like a keep recipe: smooth, nice, a little fruity, no green — better than a parallel Filter B roast that still wanted more fruit. A later 2.2 batch is the lighter fine-tune direction.
Dialed-in recipe (current best)
| Setting | Value |
|---|---|
| Profile | NCT Filter E |
| Level | 2.4 (try 2.2 if bloom looks dark) |
| Batch size | 100g |
| DTR | ~10.8% |
| Roast loss | ~13.6% |
| ROR pre-FC / dev | ~31 / ~8 °C/min |
| Rest | 7–10 days |
Interactive charts, full attempt list, and tasting trail:
Open the Yirgacheffe case study →
What not to do
- Don’t underload standard F-Series profiles at 60g and blame the green coffee.
- Don’t keep raising level into the 3.x band hoping grass will turn into fruit.
- Don’t cup washed Ethiopia at day 3–5 and call the profile dead.
- Don’t assume the profile that won on Kenya Gatugi (F-WSH 1500-2200) auto-wins here.
Related reading
- Ethiopia Sidamo case study (blog)
- Kenya Gatugi peaberry case study
- Kaffelogic Nano 7 profiles
- Ethiopian coffee regions guide
- Data page: /roast-logs/ethiopia-yirgacheffe-grade-2
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How to roast Ethiopia Yirgacheffe on a Kaffelogic Nano
Home-roast recipe from a 14-attempt log for washed Yirgacheffe Grade 2
Load 100g green
Use a full NCT reference load. 60g F-WSH batches stayed green in this log.
Select NCT Filter E at level 2.4
Filter E is the delicacy/light-filter pack; 2.4 preserved fruit without the green notes that plagued darker F-WSH runs.
Check metrics
Aim near ~11% DTR and ~13–14% roast loss if ambient and bean moisture allow.
Rest 7–10 days
Judge after full rest before dropping level further (e.g. 2.2 fine-tune).
Taste for smooth fruit, not green
Target toasted tea, citrus, light florals — not grassy underdevelopment or flat dark roast.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best roast profile for Ethiopia Yirgacheffe on a Kaffelogic?
Why did my Yirgacheffe taste green or grassy after roasting?
What DTR and roast loss work for washed Yirgacheffe?
Should I use NordicLight for Yirgacheffe?
How long should washed Yirgacheffe rest?
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