Rwanda Aime Gahizi

Gitesi is a private washing station, owned and run by father and son: Alexis and Aime Gahizi. It was built in 2005, and began processing coffee a year later. It is located in the Gitesi sector of Rwanda’s Western Province. The dynamic duo struggled to keep it operating during its launch and fought hard to turn it into a profitable business. In 2010, they finally managed to turn a profit, and have since built a sustainable company.

Alexis (Aime’s father), is originally from the Karongi District, where the washing station is located. His family has been growing coffee in this region for generations. Aime has a degree in engineering. He has created a water purification system for the washing station (wastewater management), which is being used as a model throughout the country’s coffee production industry.

This lot has been produced by Aime Gahizi on his private farm, different from the earlier Gitesi lot that we showcased. Both lots were processed in the Gitesi Washing Station, which is also owned by Aime.

The cherries of this lot are processed separately from the rest of the cherries entering the station and then exported as a single-farmer coffee.

We have been buying from Alexis and Aime since 2014 and it's definitely one of the most tasty and consistent coffees that we get to try from Rwanda. We love the vibrancy and clarity of flavours, coupled with good sweetness that comes from coffees in this country, so unrated but always overdelivering.