Mutana Hill - Washed Red Bourbon | Burundi

Burundi — Long Miles Coffee Project, Mutana Hill, Red Bourbon (Washed)

Tastes Like — 🍋 Citrus Lime • 🍮 Caramel • 🍇 Grape

DETAILS

• Producer: Long Miles Coffee Project
• Farm: Smallholder Farmers, Heza Washing Station
• Region: Mutana Hill, Butanyerera, Burundi
• Varietal: Red Bourbon
• Process: Washed
• Altitude: 2100–2200 MASL

INTRO

In the remote hills of Butanyerera, the Long Miles Coffee Project works directly with local farming communities to improve both coffee quality and the livelihoods of the people who grow it. Founded by Ben and Kristy Carlson, the project connects hundreds of smallholder families across hills like Mutana, where coffee is grown on intimate backyard plots.

Mutana Hill coffee represents the collective effort of these producers: cherries carefully handpicked, meticulously processed, and slowly dried on raised African beds — a coffee built on community, dedication, and the transformative power of a well-structured supply chain at origin.

THE PRODUCER

The Long Miles Coffee Project has become one of East Africa's most celebrated direct-trade models. Working through washing stations like Heza, Ben and Kristy Carlson have helped smallholder farmers on hills such as Mutana gain access to the kind of precise processing and traceability that commands specialty prices. Families here typically cultivate coffee on very small plots — often just a handful of trees alongside food crops — making the collective infrastructure of Long Miles essential to realising the quality potential of the terroir.

The project not only improves processing standards but also funds ongoing community support programmes, ensuring that quality improvements translate into lasting, equitable benefit for farmers and their families across Butanyerera.

THE PROCESS

The Washed process at Mutana Hill involves:

• 🍒 Cherry Reception & Sorting — Freshly picked cherries are floated and hand-sorted to remove defects and ensure uniform ripeness.
• 🔧 Pulping — The outer skin is removed to expose parchment coffee.
• 🧪 Underwater Fermentation — Beans ferment submerged in water for approximately 36 hours, breaking down the remaining mucilage.
• 💧 Washing & Grading — Coffee is cleaned and separated by density using water channels.
• 💧 Final Soaking — A clean-water soak of several hours ensures maximum purity.
• ☀️ Raised-Bed Drying — Beans dry slowly on African beds for 16–20 days until optimal moisture is reached.

The result is a bright, clean cup that faithfully expresses the distinctive terroir of Mutana Hill.

THE CUP

Expect a lively and structured cup anchored by zesty citrus lime and rounded by warm caramel sweetness. A note of ripe grape brings depth and a gentle, fruit-forward finish that lingers pleasantly.

Flavour Notes

• 🍋 Citrus Lime
• 🍮 Caramel
• 🍇 Grape