Gatomboya AA | Kenya

Kenya — Gatomboya Factory Barichu FCS Batian, Ruiru 11, SL28 & SL34 AA (Fully Washed)

Tastes Like — 🫐 Blackcurrant • 🌺 Hibiscus • 🍬 Sugar Cane

DETAILS

• Producer: 600+ Smallholder Farmers — Barichu Farmers' Cooperative Society
• Station: Gatomboya Factory
• Region: Nyeri County, Kenya
• Varietal: Batian, Ruiru 11, SL28 & SL34 (AA Grade)
• Process: Fully Washed
• Altitude: 1,400–2,000 MASL
• Size: 250g

INTRO

From Gatomboya Factory — one of the wet mills operated by the Barichu Farmers' Cooperative Society in Nyeri County. A fully washed AA lot of vibrant blackcurrant, hibiscus, and sugar cane sweetness from over 600 smallholder farmers growing the celebrated domestic Kenyan varieties across a wide altitude range. Classic Nyeri character in every cup. In the cup: blackcurrant, hibiscus, and sugar cane.

THE PRODUCER

Gatomboya Factory serves as a central processing station for surrounding smallholder farmers in Nyeri County — each cultivating small plots of land and delivering selectively hand-picked ripe cherries to the factory, where the Cherry Clerk oversees meticulous visual sorting and floating to ensure only dense and ripe cherries proceed to processing. As part of the broader Barichu Farmers' Cooperative Society, Gatomboya provides fair access to processing infrastructure, technical support, and a direct route to market for over 600 member farms.

The cooperative model promotes long-term sustainability through resilient coffee varieties and responsible soil management, fostering continuous quality improvement through knowledge sharing among farmers year after year. Nyeri County is one of Kenya's most historically celebrated growing regions — sandwiched between the foothills of Mount Kenya and the Aberdare mountain range, with rich red volcanic soils, consistent rainfall, and a stable highland climate that produces coffees of exceptional vibrancy and complexity.

SL28 and SL34, developed by Scott Agricultural Laboratories in the 1930s, form the backbone of Kenya's specialty identity — responsible for the bold blackcurrant acidity and complex fruit character that define the country's finest lots. Batian and Ruiru 11, developed by the Coffee Research Institute of Kenya for disease resistance, contribute additional sweetness and structural complexity.

THE PROCESS

The Fully Washed process at Gatomboya involves:

🍒 Hand-picking — Ripe cherries selectively harvested by smallholder farmers and delivered to the factory 🔍 Sorting & flotation — Meticulous visual sorting and floating at intake under the Cherry Clerk's supervision 🔧 Pulping — Cherries pulped before fermentation 🧪 16–24 hour fermentation — Beans fermented for 16 to 24 hours to break down mucilage 💧 Clean water washing & 8–14 hour soak — Thoroughly washed with clean water then soaked for a further 8–14 hours ☀️ Raised-bed drying — Dried on raised beds for approximately 21 days, with frequent raking for even drying and covered during the hottest part of the day and overnight

The overnight soaking and covered raised-bed drying are the defining steps — the extended soak after washing produces the exceptional brightness and clarity that distinguish Kenyan fully washed coffees, while the careful covering regime during drying ensures slow, even moisture loss that preserves the blackcurrant depth and sugar cane sweetness throughout the 21-day process.

THE CUP

A classic and vibrantly expressive fully washed Kenyan AA from one of Nyeri's most cooperatively managed and quality-focused factories — blackcurrant depth, hibiscus florality, and a clean sugar cane sweetness in a well-structured, bright, and deeply satisfying cup. Nyeri County at its most characterful.

Flavour Notes

🫐 Blackcurrant 🌺 Hibiscus 🍬 Sugar Cane