Description
Muranga county is situated on the western slope of the Aberdare Mountains. The soil is rich and red with a climate that is cooler than most of Kenya. There are many valleys and streams throughout the area, where 80% of the population is reliant on agriculture, and most coffee producers operate on less than one hectare of land.
The Kirimahiga factory is operated by the New Kiriti Farmers Cooperative Society (F.C.S.), which has 560 members. Also operates the Gondo mill, which is one of my favorites! Coffee is picked and brought to the factory that same day for selection and separation, as sorting happens before depulping begins. The ripe cherry is processed using fresh water from the local Kananahu stream, and the coffee is dried under full sun.
The New Kiriti F.C.S. has an executive committee of seven elected members and three supervisory-committee members who oversee the management committee and reports to the farmers in an annual meeting. The society has a workforce of 19 permanent staff and about 25 seasonal workers.
Coffee in Kenya is typically traceable down to the factory, or mill level: Most farmers own between 1/8 to 1/4 of a hectare, and often grow crops other than coffee as well, which means they rely on a central processing unit for sale and processing of their coffee. Producers deliver in cherry form to a factory, where the cooperative will sort, weigh, and issue payment for the delivery. The coffee is then blended with the rest of the day’s deliveries and goes on to be processed. Because of this system, which serves many hundreds to several thoughts of smallholder farmers per factory, there is limited traceability down to the individual producers whose coffee comprises the lots.
Tasting Notes: A cup everyone should love! A perfect example of Kenya coffee. Great cup at lighter roasts, a bit sizzling with higher acidity, awesome depth of flavor. Comes off very lemony/floral with a nice raspberry like accent, balanced with a clean almost green tea (spice) like undertone. A little hint of caramel can be found but is pretty easily overpowered by the acidity or spice depending on your roast curve. As the beans roast darker, a chocolaty factor will appear & overpower the brighter notes flipping the main tones of the cup. Strong chocolate spice, just a hint of floral/fruity/citric. Accentuates the body of the cup turning it much fuller. The darker you go, the less bright the cup gets, but no roasting the crispness out of this cup!
Roasting Notes: Like most stand-up lots, this coffee holds the lighter roasts very nicely but will have strong acidity – light roasts will only be for those who love the Kenyan acidity. As one slows down the roast or pushed more to the medium mark, the cup balances out better yet still provides an exotic cup with clearly present acidity. The brighter tones will burn out around 2nd crack but the potency of the cup will only increase into the dark roasts.
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