Cascara vs Koti: Coffee Cherry Tea or Coffee Leaf Tea?

Choose cascara coffee cherry tea when you want a fruity, honeyed cup with gentle tartness. Choose Koti coffee leaf tea when you prefer an earthy, smooth and vegetal infusion. Both come from the coffee plant, but they use different parts of it and have different brewing needs.

At Ethi CO, these two collections invite you to explore Ethiopian coffee beyond the roasted bean. Start with the flavor you enjoy, then use this guide to find your first blend.

The difference begins with the plant

Cascara is coffee cherry tea. It uses the dried skin and pulp of the coffee cherry, the fruit surrounding the coffee bean. Our cascara range includes pure coffee cherry, chamomile and spiced expressions.

Koti is coffee leaf tea. It uses the leaves of the coffee plant. Our Pure Koti is made from hand-picked, sun-dried Ethiopian coffee leaves; botanical blends add lemongrass, hibiscus or eucalyptus.

The familiar coffee bean is the seed inside the cherry. Roasting and brewing that seed produces a third experience from the same plant.

Compare the cup

Cascara and Koti at a glance
What matters to you	Cascara coffee cherry tea	Koti coffee leaf tea
Part of the plant	Dried coffee cherry skin and pulp	Coffee leaves
Pure expression	Hashara	Pure Koti
Flavor of the pure blend	Dried fruit, honeyed sweetness and light tartness	Earthy, smooth, vegetal and gently sweet
Blend choices	Pure, chamomile, or cinnamon, ginger and clove	Pure, lemongrass, hibiscus or eucalyptus
Caffeine	Naturally present; exact amount untested	Naturally present; exact amount untested
Steeping time	Hashara and Ganda: 5–7 minutes. Harar: 7–10 minutes.	2–3 minutes

Which should you try first?

For the coffee fruit on its own: try Hashara.
For a floral variation: try Ganda, with cascara and chamomile.
For warming spices: try Harar, with cinnamon, ginger and clove.
For a smooth, earthy leaf infusion: try Pure Koti.
For citrus brightness: try Koti + Lemongrass.
For a tart cup: try Koti + Hibiscus.
For a cooling aromatic character: try Koti + Eucalyptus.

Want to taste both sides of the plant? The Discovery Flight includes one bag from each of the seven varieties. Brew them separately, using the directions for each blend, and compare what you notice.

Give each blend the right brew

For cascara, use one bag in 8–10 fluid ounces of hot water. Steep Hashara or Ganda for 5–7 minutes; allow 7–10 minutes for Harar’s spices. For iced tea, brew hot, chill and pour over ice. See our complete cascara brewing guide.

For Koti, start with one bag in 8–10 fluid ounces of water at 175–185°F (about 80–85°C). Steep for 2–3 minutes and remove the bag; longer steeping can bring out bitterness. Reuse the same bag for one or two additional infusions during your tea session. This gentle starting range reflects our specialty-tea approach to sun-dried coffee leaves. See our Koti guide.

Which has more caffeine?

Both contain naturally occurring caffeine. We have not laboratory tested Ethi CO’s blends for exact amounts, so we cannot reliably rank cascara against Koti or promise a fixed comparison with brewed coffee. Choose by flavor and brewing style rather than assuming either is caffeine-free.