“This coffee tastes like it’s from Kenya.”
Anytime someone says this in a room full of coffee professionals or aficionados in a cupping session, everyone in the group already knows what this means, and you’ll find a mix of people going “ooh!” with an inquiring smile and gathering around to take a sip. Kenyan coffees have a reputation for their wine like acidity and citrus, berry, and herbal notes. But the ones that garner the most attention are bright, tomato-y, and herbaceous, and we found just the right one to feature on our menu.
Coffee blossoms. each flower will turn in to a coffee cherry
In Central Kenya, Mount Kenya stands out as the second tallest peak in the continent of Africa. It’s a stratovolcano and is surrounded by a thicket of national forest and active game protection communities. Some of the best coffees of Kenya are grown along the lower edge of the forests, in wet, high elevation communities with mineral-rich soil. Nyeri is perhaps the most well-known of the central counties. This coffee is produced by the Ichamama Factory (washing station), the largest washing station under the Othaya Farmers Cooperative Society. Othaya FCS is one of the key member societies of Kenya Cooperative Coffee Exporters (KCCE), an organization of nearly 4000 individual cooperatives. It was established in 2009 with the goal of managing marketing and exporting operations cooperatively, as opposed to working with third parties. By managing more of the value chain, the organization is able to capture a greater margin on behalf of the farms.
At the Ichamama Factory, coffee is depulped and fermented for 27-35 hours. The changing mountain climate dictates fermentation temperatures, and the staff checks on the coffee every three hours to track fermentation progress. After this initial fermentation, the coffee is rinsed, fresh water is replenished, and coffee soaks in water for an additional 12 hours. Afterwards, the coffee is sorted by density and placed on tables to dry for approximately two weeks. After drying, the coffee is stored on site before being taken to the Othaya dry mill for grading and another density sort. This meticulous, double washing process is starting to become increasingly unusual in Kenya because of the extra time and labor required–it can prevent more coffees from being processed and can clog up a processing area. A factory must be highly dedicated to quality to do a second wash and keep up with this standard. While washing coffee removes mucilage and helps produce a clean coffee, double washing adds to a coffee’s overall flavor intensity and shelf life.
While Kenyan coffees are known for high acidity, it can be too tart and distracting for some. But we love this coffee for its balanced acidity and flavor. It reminds us of sweet, ripe, sungold tomatoes, velvety lemon curd, and has an herbaceous aftertaste akin to thyme. It’s a tasty coffee for any time of the day.
