Ayla Shantawene

Just south of Shantawene village, the Ayla washing station rests on open grassland bordered by a winding river — a landscape that brings cooler temperatures and steady airflow across the drying beds. Throughout harvest, 725 organic smallholder farmers deliver carefully selected cherry to the station, much of it picked and sorted by hand within family-run farms.

Only fully ripe, red cherry is accepted at Ayla. Once delivered, the fruit is meticulously hand sorted to remove underripe or damaged cherry before being cleaned and transferred to raised drying beds. During drying, the coffee is turned and resorted continuously to encourage even moisture loss and maintain quality at every stage. Depending on the weather, the process takes between 15 and 20 days.

The result is a coffee shaped as much by patience and precision as by the landscape itself — layered, expressive, and deeply connected to Sidama’s coffee traditions.

Ayla is owned by Testi Trading and operated by the Yonis family alongside their team. Through their Project Direct initiatives, they continue to invest in the communities surrounding their stations — including the construction of primary schools and the first high school in Hamasho, a small town in Sidama.