Kirinyaga is the lush corner of Kenya. Most of the country's coffee grows in arid stretches that thin out the farther you get from Mt. Kenya, but Kirinyaga sits in the wet, jungle-like band right at its base, where shade and slow rainfall push the cherries to ripen dense and even. It is a small county doing some of Kenya's most consistent work, and the cup shows it.
What often sets coffee from Kenya apart is what happens after the cherries leave the tree. Every farmer in the country, large or small, is plugged into a Farmer Cooperative Society, a locally owned and locally run network that provides agronomy support, milling infrastructure, and a path to market. Cooperatives adapt to their own microclimates and run on their own decisions. That structure is the reason a smallholder lot in Kirinyaga can land at the same table as a top estate.
The final step runs through Kenya's auction and dry milling system. The country has some of the most precise dry milling facilities in the producing world, and almost every lot that comes out of them is a clean, well-sorted cup. This Top Lot AA from Burman Coffee Traders is the highest grade pulled off this year's harvest in Kirinyaga County, milled to the Kenya standard.
Washed Process: Cherries are depulped the day they are picked, fermented in tanks, then washed clean and dried slowly on raised beds. The wash strips the fruit pulp off the seed completely, which is what gives Kenya its signature clarity. Bright acidity, defined flavors, and no muddy fermentation notes hiding the cup.
Cupping notes: A very clean, brighter cup with a silky-smooth mouthfeel. The first sip is a vibrant burst of lemon and orange citric comingling with a slight red fruit, balanced by a creamy cocoa undertone and a gentle black-tea like spice in the aftertaste. Roasted nuts and cocoa anchor the profile. As the cup cools the acidity softens and a deeper chocolate note swells, yet the honey aromatics persist all the way down.
Resting: Best after 4 weeks of rest off roast. Washed Kenyans need time for the brightness to settle into the body; the citrus rounds, the honey opens, and the cup hits its stride about a month out.
8 oz. / 227 g WHOLE BEAN
Country: Kenya
Region: Kirinyaga County
Varietal: Batian, Ruiru 11, SL28, SL34
Process: Washed
Roast Level: Light
Elevation: 1,500-2,000 masl
Tasting Notes: Lemon, Cocoa, Black Tea, Honey
Body: Silky
(Coffee is roasted on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month. Orders placed by 5:00 PM EST on the preceding Tuesday are included in that week's roast and ship Friday. Orders placed after the cutoff will be roasted in the next cycle.)
Kirinyaga is the lush corner of Kenya. Most of the country's coffee grows in arid stretches that thin out the farther you get from Mt. Kenya, but Kirinyaga sits in the wet, jungle-like band right at its base, where shade and slow rainfall push the cherries to ripen dense and even. It is a small county doing some of Kenya's most consistent work, and the cup shows it.
What often sets coffee from Kenya apart is what happens after the cherries leave the tree. Every farmer in the country, large or small, is plugged into a Farmer Cooperative Society, a locally owned and locally run network that provides agronomy support, milling infrastructure, and a path to market. Cooperatives adapt to their own microclimates and run on their own decisions. That structure is the reason a smallholder lot in Kirinyaga can land at the same table as a top estate.
The final step runs through Kenya's auction and dry milling system. The country has some of the most precise dry milling facilities in the producing world, and almost every lot that comes out of them is a clean, well-sorted cup. This Top Lot AA from Burman Coffee Traders is the highest grade pulled off this year's harvest in Kirinyaga County, milled to the Kenya standard.
Washed Process: Cherries are depulped the day they are picked, fermented in tanks, then washed clean and dried slowly on raised beds. The wash strips the fruit pulp off the seed completely, which is what gives Kenya its signature clarity. Bright acidity, defined flavors, and no muddy fermentation notes hiding the cup.
Cupping notes: A very clean, brighter cup with a silky-smooth mouthfeel. The first sip is a vibrant burst of lemon and orange citric comingling with a slight red fruit, balanced by a creamy cocoa undertone and a gentle black-tea like spice in the aftertaste. Roasted nuts and cocoa anchor the profile. As the cup cools the acidity softens and a deeper chocolate note swells, yet the honey aromatics persist all the way down.
Resting: Best after 4 weeks of rest off roast. Washed Kenyans need time for the brightness to settle into the body; the citrus rounds, the honey opens, and the cup hits its stride about a month out.
8 oz. / 227 g WHOLE BEAN
Country: Kenya
Region: Kirinyaga County
Varietal: Batian, Ruiru 11, SL28, SL34
Process: Washed
Roast Level: Light
Elevation: 1,500-2,000 masl
Tasting Notes: Lemon, Cocoa, Black Tea, Honey
Body: Silky
(Coffee is roasted on the 2nd and 4th Wednesdays of each month. Orders placed by 5:00 PM EST on the preceding Tuesday are included in that week's roast and ship Friday. Orders placed after the cutoff will be roasted in the next cycle.)
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