Kenya Chorongi

Kenyan coffee has always been very popular with coffee drinkers. Blessed with great terroir and good processing methods, coffees from this country seldom fail to impress. This year however, proved to be a little more challenging to source Kenyan coffees due to the local geopolitical situation that unfolded in the earlier part of the year in the Nyeri region where most good coffee come from within the country. Due to our small buying volumes from Kenya and countries within the continent, we have always depended on our friends from Nordic Approach to find the best of the gems that they can find. These guys does all the hard work on the ground, travelling to the same origin during every harvesting season, sometimes more than once a year to ensure that everything is prepped and ready for the new harvest.

Chorongi is derived from the name of this coffee factory (also known as washing station) which is one of the 7 factories that make up the Mutheka Coffee Farmer’s Society. Smallholder farmers around the factory have an average of 250 coffee trees each, which is really a very small number compared to many other parts of the coffee producing regions in the world. Besides coffee, they also grow maize, bananas and beans to supplement their income.

Chorongi is a new addition to our lineup this year. This coffee shines immediately the moment one grinds the beans; the lovely aromatics simply fill the air. The initial taste might remind you of a typical Kenyan profile, but let it cool a little more and you will find the complexity of the layers within. Blackcurrants, rosehip, blackberries and raspberries, rounded up by a superb mouthfeel.

• Producers: ~ 5600 smallholders in the surrounding areas deliver cherries to the wetmill. 
• Wetmill: Chorongi
• Region: Nyeri, Kenya
• Altitude: 1500 masl
• Varietal: SL 28, SL 34 and Ruiru 11
• Processing: During harvesting season, the farmers deliver cherries to the factory where they are hand sorted for unripes and overripes. A disc pulping machine then removes the skin and pulp and the coffees are graded by density in to 3 grades by the pulper. Grade 1 and 2 go separately to fermentation. Grade 3 is considered low grade and is usually sold to the local market. The coffee is then fermented for 16-24 hours under closed shade. After fermentation the coffees are washed and again graded by density in washing channels and are then soaked under clean water for 16-18 hours. Drying is done on African dry beds for 7-15 days and the coffees are covered in plastic during midday and at night.

Kenya Kangocho AB

Welcoming the year of the Horse, we present to you a new coffee from the Kangocho Factory (wet mill) from the Nyeri District in Central Kenya. The Nyeri region is made up of mainly smallholder farms, each with some 100 trees. They are organized in Cooperative Societies that act as umbrella organizations for the Factories (wet mills), where the smallholders deliver their coffee cherries for processing. There is a lot of competition in Nyeri. Many of the farmers are surrounded by several wet mills. They are free to choose where they want to deliver their cherries as members. Due to the traditional auction system in Kenya, quality is rewarded with higher prices. The better factories will then attract more farmers by producing coffee getting the highest prices, as well as giving high payback rate to the farmers.

The Kangocho Factory is part of the Gikanda Cooperative Society, which is made up from the Gichatha-ini, Kangocho, and Ndaro-ini Cooperatives. The name takes the first few letters of each factory/wet mill to arrive at GiKaNda. For years, it has been one of the most respected producers in Nyeri. They have been very consistent on quality over the years and have fetched high prices in the market. The amount given back to the farmers has been above 88%. Over the years, they have set up good systems for traceability and quality control.

In the cup, look for magnolia-like floral aroma. We get loads of black grapes, oranges and apricots with a distinct citrus acidity. This is a juicy cup with a well-structured body and an outstandingly clean finish.

We enjoyed this coffee a lot and hopefully you will too!

• Cooperative: Gikanda Cooperative Society
• Wet mill: Kangocho Factory Region: Nyeri
• Altitude: 1800 – 1900m asl
• Producers: Hundreds of smallholders in the surrounding areas deliver cherries to the wet mill.
• Varietals: Mainly SL 28 and SL 34.
• Grade: AB refers to the bean size. AB in Kenya is screen size 15/16.
• Process: All coffees are pulped, dry fermented, washed, soaked and sundried. Cherries are hand-sorted for unripe and overripe by the farmers before they go in to production. The cherries are then put through a pulping machine,which removes the skin and pulp. The coffees are graded by density in to 3 grades by the pulper. Grade 1 and 2 goes separately to fermentation. Grade 3 is considered low grade. The coffee is then fermented for 24-36 hours under close shade. After fermentation the coffees are washed and again graded by density in washing channels and are then soaked under clean water for 16-18 hours. After soaking, the coffee is sun-dried up to 21 days on African drying beds. Coffees are covered in plastic during midday and at night.

Kenya Kapsokisio

As we approach the new year, we are very excited to roll out another coffee from our current list of fresh crops from Africa - Kenya, our first from the country. We have always been fans of Kenyan coffee, not only because of its unique flavor characteristics, but also because the beans are generally of high quality. This country has great altitudes, climate, and soil, and its varietals have adapted to the local growing conditions and have excellent cup quality. The coffees are truly unique and recognizable in flavor, and the coffee sector has developed a structure to maintain quality as well as traceability.

The new coffee is from the Kapsokisio Factory and Cooperative Society, which lies on the slopes of Mt. Elgon in western Kenya on the border of Uganda. This region is not as well known as Central Kenya, but has a huge potential for producing coffee of great quality. In the past, coffee farming was adversely affected by frequent clan fighting in the area but now, it has cooled down and farmers are going back to their farms.

• Cooperative: Kapsokisio Cooperative Society
• Wet mill: Kapsokisio Factory
• Region: Busia/Mt. Elgon
• Altitude: 1600 – 1700m asl
• Producers: About 800 -1000 smallholders in the surrounding areas deliver cherries to the wet mill.
• Varietals: Mainly SL 28 and SL 34
• Grade: AB refers to the bean size. AB in Kenya is screen size 15/16

Process: All coffees are pulped, dry fermented, washed, soaked and sundried. Cherries are hand-sorted for unripe and overripe by the farmers before they go in to production. The cherries are then put through a pulping machine,which removes the skin and pulp. The coffees are graded by density into 3 grades by the pulper. Grade 1 and 2 goes separately to fermentation. Grade 3 is considered low grade. The coffee is then fermented in painted concrete tanks without water for 20 – 30 hours to remove the mucilage. After fermentation, the coffees are washed. They are again graded by density in washing channels and are left to soak under clean water for 16-18 hours. After soaking, the coffee is sun-dried up to 21 days on African drying beds. Coffees are covered in plastic during midday and at night.

Tasting notes: Red berries and hints of floral aromas. Berries and blackcurrant-like acidity profile. Light and delicate with a juicy finish.

This coffee is up on our retail racks and we love brewing it with the Kalita wave dripper. Pick up a bag to brew yourself a fruity cup for a fruitful year!