If you think your morning coffee routine is sacred, wait until you learn about the Ethiopian Jebena coffee ceremony.
In Ethiopia — the birthplace of coffee itself — drinking coffee is not something you do on the way to work with one hand on the steering wheel. It is a ritual. A celebration. An act of community and connection that can last up to three hours and brings family, friends, and neighbors together in a way that very few other traditions in the world still do.
At the heart of this ceremony is the Jebena — a traditional clay pot that has been used to brew coffee in Ethiopia for centuries. And once you understand what goes into this ceremony, you will never look at your coffee maker the same way again.
What Is the Ethiopian Coffee Ceremony?
The Ethiopian coffee ceremony — known locally as Bunna (the Amharic word for coffee) — is the central social ritual of Ethiopian culture. It is performed multiple times a day in homes across the country and is considered one of the highest expressions of hospitality a host can offer a guest.
According to the Smithsonian Magazine, Ethiopia is widely recognized as the birthplace of coffee, with the Kaffa region of southwestern Ethiopia believed to be where the coffee plant was first discovered — likely as far back as the 9th century. The ceremony that grew around that discovery is considered one of the oldest continuous coffee traditions on earth.
Being invited to participate in an Ethiopian coffee ceremony is not casual. It is a gesture of deep respect and friendship. Declining the invitation, in Ethiopian culture, is considered impolite — because the ceremony is not really about the coffee. It is about the time, the presence, and the willingness to sit together and simply be.
The Jebena: The Soul of the Ceremony
The Jebena is a round-bottomed clay pot with a narrow neck, a long pouring spout, and a woven grass or straw stopper at the top. It is handmade, unglazed, and entirely traditional — and it has not changed significantly in design for hundreds of years.
The shape of the Jebena is not decorative. Every element serves a practical purpose. The round bottom allows it to sit directly in hot coals. The narrow neck traps heat and concentrates the brew. The long spout allows for a controlled, graceful pour from a height — which both aerates the coffee and, frankly, looks absolutely beautiful.
Jebenas are typically made by local craftspeople and are considered household treasures. They are not mass-produced. Each one is slightly different, shaped by the hands that made it, and many Ethiopian families have Jebenas that have been passed down through generations.
The Coffee and Climate initiative notes that Ethiopian coffee culture is so deeply embedded in the country’s identity that UNESCO recognized the social practices around Ethiopian coffee as part of the country’s intangible cultural heritage — a designation that acknowledges traditions of outstanding cultural value to humanity.
What You Need for an Authentic Jebena Ceremony
Part of what makes the Ethiopian coffee ceremony so special is how deliberately simple its tools are. There is no electricity involved. No plastic. No convenience shortcuts.
Here is what a traditional ceremony requires:
- Green coffee beans — The ceremony begins with raw, unroasted coffee beans, not pre-roasted coffee. This is one of the most striking differences from any other coffee tradition in the world.
- A flat pan or skillet — Used to roast the green beans over an open flame or charcoal brazier.
- A charcoal brazier — The heat source for both roasting and brewing. The smell of burning charcoal is as much a part of the ceremony experience as the coffee itself.
- A mukecha and zenezena — A wooden mortar and pestle used to grind the freshly roasted beans by hand.
- The Jebena — The clay brewing pot, filled with water and set directly on the hot coals.
- Small handleless cups called sini — Delicate porcelain or clay cups without handles, arranged on a tray for serving. The smallness of the cups is intentional — this is coffee to be sipped slowly, not gulped.
- Tena Adam (rue herb) — A fragrant herb sometimes added to the coffee for flavor and aroma.
- Incense — Burned throughout the ceremony to purify the space and add to the sensory atmosphere.
- Fresh grass — Scattered on the floor around the ceremony space as a symbol of freshness and welcome.
The Ceremony Step by Step
Step 1: Preparing the Space
The ceremony begins before a single coffee bean is touched. Fresh green grass is scattered across the floor of the ceremony space, and incense — typically frankincense or myrrh — is lit and allowed to fill the room with fragrant smoke. This preparation is not just aesthetic. It signals to everyone present that something intentional and meaningful is about to happen.
Step 2: Washing and Roasting the Green Beans
The host — traditionally a woman, as the ceremony is typically led by the woman of the household — washes the raw green coffee beans and places them in a flat pan over the charcoal brazier. She roasts them slowly, stirring constantly with a long-handled spoon, until they turn deep brown and the room fills with the extraordinary smell of freshly roasting coffee.
This moment is considered one of the most important in the entire ceremony. The host will often walk around the room holding the roasting pan so that each guest can wave the aromatic smoke toward themselves and breathe it in deeply — a gesture of appreciation and blessing.
Step 3: Grinding the Beans
Once roasted to the right color and aroma, the beans are transferred to the mukecha — the wooden mortar — and ground by hand with the zenezena pestle. The rhythmic sound of grinding is considered part of the ceremony’s music. The grind is medium-fine, similar to what you might use for a French press.
Step 4: Brewing in the Jebena
Cold water is added to the Jebena and placed on the coals to boil. Once boiling, the freshly ground coffee is added directly to the water and the Jebena is returned to the heat to brew. The coffee brews for several minutes — the exact time varies by family tradition and personal preference.
When ready, the host lifts the Jebena and pours the coffee through a fine strainer — often a piece of horsehair or a small woven filter — directly into the small sini cups arranged on a tray. The pour is done from a height, in a single continuous stream, without spilling a drop. This pouring technique is considered a skill and an art form in itself, and a skilled host can pour perfectly from several inches above the cup every single time.
As National Geographic notes, watching a skilled host perform the Ethiopian coffee ceremony is genuinely one of the most beautiful food and drink rituals you will encounter anywhere in the world.
Step 5: The Three Rounds — Abol, Tona, and Baraka
Here is where the Ethiopian coffee ceremony truly separates itself from every other coffee tradition on the planet. The ceremony involves not one but three rounds of coffee, each with its own name, meaning, and character.
Abol is the first round — the strongest and most prized cup. The coffee is at its most intense and aromatic. This is the cup that is offered to the most honored guest first, and it is considered the heart of the ceremony.
Tona is the second round. More water is added to the Jebena and the same grounds are brewed again. The flavor is slightly lighter but still deeply satisfying.
Baraka — meaning “blessing” in Amharic — is the third and final round. The lightest of the three, it is believed to carry a blessing for everyone who drinks it. Leaving before the third cup is considered somewhat rude, as it means declining the blessing being offered.
Together, the three rounds represent a complete journey — from the intensity of first encounter, through the warmth of familiarity, to the peace of blessing and closure.
Step 6: Sugar, Salt, or Butter?
Ethiopian coffee is typically served with sugar, but depending on the region you are in, you may encounter it served with salt or even a small amount of nit’ir qibe — a spiced clarified butter — stirred in. The Oromo people of western Ethiopia have a long tradition of coffee with butter, which sounds unusual but produces a rich, almost nutty flavor that is genuinely delicious.
What the Ceremony Really Means
It would be easy to read all of this and think of the Ethiopian coffee ceremony as simply an elaborate brewing method. But that misses the point entirely.
The ceremony is fundamentally about time. It is about choosing to give your full presence to the people around you for as long as it takes to roast, grind, brew, and share three rounds of coffee together. In a world that increasingly treats time as a resource to be optimized rather than a gift to be shared, the Ethiopian coffee ceremony is a radical and beautiful act of prioritization.
It says: you matter enough for me to do this slowly.
The Ethiopian Tourism Organization describes the coffee ceremony as the cornerstone of Ethiopian social life — the space where community decisions are made, where conflicts are resolved, where news is shared, and where relationships are deepened. It is not background to the real conversation. It IS the conversation.
How to Experience the Jebena Coffee Ceremony at Home
You do not need to travel to Addis Ababa to experience a version of this tradition. With a few key ingredients and a willingness to slow down, you can bring the spirit of the Ethiopian coffee ceremony into your own home.
Start by sourcing Ethiopian green coffee beans — look for single-origin beans from regions like Yirgacheffe, Sidama, or Harrar, which are among Ethiopia’s most celebrated coffee-growing areas. Roasting your own beans at home is easier than you might think and the difference in freshness and flavor compared to pre-roasted coffee is remarkable.
A traditional Jebena can be purchased from Ethiopian specialty retailers online, and while it takes some practice to master the pour, the ritual of using one is deeply satisfying in a way that no modern coffee maker can replicate.
Most importantly — invite people. Light some incense. Scatter something green. Put your phones away. Make three rounds. And let the coffee do what it has always done in Ethiopia: bring people together and give them a reason to stay.
Final Thoughts
The Ethiopian Jebena coffee ceremony is not just one of the world’s most beautiful coffee traditions — it is a reminder of what coffee was always meant to be before it became a commodity, a caffeine delivery system, and a to-go cup.
It was meant to be shared. Slowly. With people you care about. In a space made sacred by intention and presence.
The next time you feel rushed through your morning coffee, remember that somewhere in Ethiopia, someone is sitting with their neighbors, watching green beans turn brown over charcoal coals, and preparing to pour three rounds of blessing into small clay cups.
And they are in absolutely no hurry at all.
Enjoyed this deep dive into Ethiopian coffee culture? Explore more of our guides to the world’s most extraordinary coffee traditions right here at Our Coffee Corner.
