Kenya — Karimikui Wet Mill, Rungeto Cooperative SL28, SL34, Ruiru 11 & Batian (AA, Washed)

Tastes Like — 🍒 Red Currant • 🍋 Meyer Lemon • 🌿 Basil Blossom

DETAILS

• Producer: Rungeto Cooperative Society (2,600 producers)
• Wet Mill: Karimikui
• Region: Githure, Kirinyaga, Kenya
• Varietal: SL28, SL34, Ruiru 11 & Batian
• Process: Washed (wet mill), AA Separation
• Altitude: 1,800 masl

INTRO
A heartfelt welcome back for Kenyan coffee on the menu, with two lots from the Karimikui wet mill, this one the AA separation. Lots of bright red currant and Meyer lemon, as you'd expect from a beautiful Kenyan, with added complexity, florality, and the mildly savoury quality of basil blossom on the finish. In the cup: red currant, Meyer lemon, and basil blossom.

THE PRODUCER
The Karimikui wet mill sits at 1,800 masl on the southern foothills of Mt. Kenya, about 9 km north of the regional hub of Embu. It's a member of the Rungeto Cooperative Society, which has yielded many of the best Kenyan lots over the previous five years and is made up of 2,600 contributing producers. The mill draws fresh water from the Nyamindi River for processing, and most producers plant grevillea robusta and macadamia trees to shade their coffee.

This offering combines the four most common Kenyan varieties. SL28, a Bourbon-group cultivar released by Scott Agricultural Laboratories in 1935, is perhaps the most lauded African cultivar for quality and drought resistance. SL34, of the Typica genetic group, was selected from a single tree on the Loresho Estate in Kabete and prized for quality and coffee berry disease resistance. Ruiru 11 is a composite with Catimor as its female parent, released in 1985 in response to the 1968 coffee berry disease epidemic that halved Kenya's production that year. Batian, created at the Ruiru research station in 2010 from several varieties including SL28, SL34, Sudan Rume, K7, SL4, and Timor Hybrid, is known for leaf rust resistance and quality potential at altitude.

THE PROCESS
This lot is processed at the Karimikui wet mill, then separated by screen size to the AA grade, the larger, denser beans.

The AA separation is the defining step. Separating the largest beans is what concentrates the bright red currant and Meyer lemon character behind this cup, with basil blossom adding complexity on the finish.

THE CUP
Bright and complex: red currant and Meyer lemon lead, as you'd expect from a beautiful Kenyan, with florality and a mildly savoury basil blossom note on the finish.

Flavour Notes
🍒 Red Currant 🍋 Meyer Lemon 🌿 Basil Blossom