In My Mug

The first coffee bush at Kiriga estate was planted in approximately 1954 by colonial settlers. At about the same time, less than ten kilometres away along the same Kigio road, a young boy (Aloysius Gakunga, son of the chief for the larger Murang'a county) helped his father – Senior Chief Ndungíu Kagori – plant the first coffee seedling in the area. The area was known as Gaitegi village, Muranga Location 1 (Loco One). A love affair with coffee had been born!

Several years went by and the young boy grew up. He was riding his bicycle along Kigio road and, as he rode past the vast – by now well-established – coffee estates, he promised himself that he would one day own one of them.

He realized this dream in 1976.

The boy, or Mr A. N. Gakunga, sadly passed away in July 2014. By the time of his death, Mr Gakunga had passed on the love of coffee, and the mantle of Kiriga coffee estate, to Dr Brian Ndungíu Gakunga. Brian was his second child, and his eldest son out of his six children. According to Kikuyu cultural naming systems, Brian is named after Mr Gakungaís' father, who was both his grandfather and the family's pioneer coffee farmer.

• Dr Brian Gakunga is a coffee farmer who is well known in Kenyan coffee circles. He is a founding member and a former long-serving Honorary Secretary of the Kenya Coffee Producers Association, which is a national farmers' organization that works to promote the economic and social interests of the coffee farmers through active participation in the national and international arena.

The Kiriga estate sits between 1,550 and 1,650 metres above sea level. It is approximately five kilometres from Thika town, which is an industrial town in the central province of Kenya. It's four kilometres from Blue Posts hotel, which has the famous Chania and Thika falls. Thika lies 50 kilometres northeast of Nairobi.

Administratively, Kiriga coffee estate is in the Gatanga constituency of Muranga county, and it's separated from Kiambu county by the Chania River.

Kiriga coffee is Arabica of predominantly SL28 variety (notable for its world-renowned cup quality). The farm has an estimated two hectares of Ruiru 11 variety (which has improved resistance to coffee berry disease and leaf rust); some K7 variety (similar characteristics as SL28, but with better resistance to leaf rust compared to SL28); and a field of the newest Batian variety. About 60% of the coffee that the estate produces is AA/AB.

All coffee activities at Kiriga are carried out at a factory level, from the coffee nursery to all the farm operations (pruning, weed control, nutrition, irrigation, basin digging, disease control, infilling, mulching, and planting). Wet mill operations are also carried out on the factory level. Kiriga delivers both parchment coffee and Mbuni (naturals) to the commercial dry mill for milling and grading, in preparation for sale at the coffee auction and indirect sale.

In addition to growing coffee, the estate has shoats (sheep and goats), a dairy, and the potential to keep fish. It's all about diversity, and what's more diverse than a 'shoat'?! The estate is also occasionally visited by two hippos, houses some bird life, and is the home of a family of monkeys.

Kiriga irrigated all its coffee trees – despite the crippling electricity costs involved – during the dry season that happened recently, in order to ensure the farm's high standards were maintained despite the weather.

By the end of 2015, the estate had changed the cycle of its coffee trees by removing the old heads and growing new heads, which in return gave a higher yield of bold beans with 'Kiriga coffee characteristics'. Over 40% of the 'old heads' had to go! This is way above the recommended 25%, and as a result, we expect to see decreased yield but increased quality.

At Kiriga they talk about having a 'Kiriga Family', and it's a big family that reaches up to 180 people at the busiest times of year! Thirty percent of the total workforce is made up of resident families who live on the estate, and half of those know no other home. The remaining percentage consists of smallholder farmers who commute daily and depend on the estate for survival. There are smallholder farmers who have been part of the family since 1976 and have no desire to work anywhere else. Some commute a whopping 10 KM (or more!) daily, past other estates, just to work at Kiriga.

Something really amazing I wanted to tell you about is the Kiriga Welfare Fund. In the past, the estate saw its workers get turned away from banks when they tried to acquire loans for dealing with family issues or emergencies. To help his 'Kiriga Family', Brian has encouraged the workers to set up a welfare group with him as its patron, and Brian has provided money for loaning out to staff according to their most pressing needs.

Brian has also approached a banking institution to see whether it can fund workers to acquire dairy animals on loan and repay from the milk proceeds. Under such an arrangement, 50% of the proceeds would go towards paying for the loan. A market would be readily available, and the remaining 50% would be extra income to the workers. This is ongoing and, if successful, it would have the effect of supplementing the workers' wages and greatly improving their quality of life.

Many of the estate farms around Kiriga have been sold off to make housing estates. Whilst this is a challenge for the future, in the immediate period Brian is actually finding this helpful because there are more skilled pickers available (who were working on the other farms).

During my visit to Kenya in 2015, I was fortunate enough to spend some time chatting with Brian. I even managed to record some of it, too! Make sure to have a listen. :)

Hasblog: An Interview with Brian and Peter from Kiriga (Part 1)

In the cup we're on a trip to Blackcurrant City!! There's an edge of black tea and a hint of cherry sweets on the finish, but blackcurrant screams and shouts all the way.

• Country: Kenya

Clean Cup: (1-8): 7

Total (max 100): 91

Roast Information

Kiambu county is located just outside of Nairobi city. The region has a long history of coffee production and is really rather famous for its large estates, which were originally built by British colonists in the early 20th century.

After decolonisation, the estates were sold to local Kenyans who have been managing them since. While estates such as this used to produce the majority of Kenyan coffee, the increased urban sprawl from Nairobi, as well as the increasing land value in the region has meant that estate coffee production has gradually diminished, while smallholder production elsewhere has increased. Nevertheless, estates such as Kamundu Estate continue a legacy of many generations of coffee production, supported by unparalleled local knowledge and experience.

This coffee is naturally processed on raised African beds. Natural processing is quite rare in Kenya, it's much more common to see fully washed coffees.

Ripe cherries are selectively harvested and floated to select only the ripest, highest quality cherries for processing. These cherries are placed in a single layer on raised drying beds and dried in the sun for up to 6 weeks. The cherries must be manually turned periodically every day to ensure an even drying and prevent mould formation. Once the coffee has reached its optimum moisture content it is rested before being hulled, graded further by hand, and finally bagged in GrainPro for export.

In the cup this really is blackcurrant squash. Blackcurrants are front and centre, but there's also a little hint of rhubarb in there. All that's wrapped up neatly by a super interesting blueberry aftertaste.

• Country: Kenya

Clean cup: (1–8): 7

Total: (max. 100): 88

Roast Information

"Waliki?" 

"Waliki."

Waliki is an Ayamara greeting, meaning "how's everything?" to which the correct response is... "Waliki" meaning "all good". As the word is so ingrained into the local culture, the Rodriguez family (who own this farm) naturally decided it should be named just that, and here we are!

This is the first time we've bought any coffee from this farm as it's still very young (It was first planted in 2016!) But it has a great story behind it in that it is the first farm that the Rodriguez family have tried 100% Organic production of both Typicas and Javas to establish whether this is a reliable means of coffee production in Bolivia.

Although it's grown and farmed using Organic processes, the farm is yet to have official Organic certification, but we think it tastes awesome either way! 

In the cup you'll get an up front zing which reminds me of green melon, but that doesn't last as sweet chocolate orange floods in immediately after. The texture is smooth and silky, enhancing that chocolate flavour. 

• Country: Bolivia

Green Melon, Chocolate Orange, Silky

Clean Cup: (1-8): 6.5

Roast information

Medium Dark - take it through first crack and slow it down a little to extend the development slightly, then increase the heat to reach the first pops of second just as you finish the roast.

Owned by Juan José Montoya, Finca La Isla (or The Island Farm) is thus called because the farm is isolated from the town by a river. Around 50% of Finca La Isla is made up of natural forests, which generates great biodiversity on the farm and there are also permanent water streams running through the land. Juan José considers that what makes Finca La Isla so special is its closeness to the nature, its perfect climate, its altitude, and the passion with which he produces coffee in the company of his brother.

Juan José started producing commodity coffee here back in 2012 but as the price of commodity coffee started to drop below the cost of production, he started to look into other options. Luckily, Juan José had some super tasty and high-quality coffees on his farm and with his 2018-2019 harvest he decided to sell his coffee in the specialty market for the first time.

And here we are! I was recently over in Nicaragua cupping new lots and thought I was pretty much sorted for coffees from the area until this one fell into my lap and I decided we should definitely throw it into the mix!  

In the cup this is cacao nibs with a delicious digestive biscuit kind of sweetness. Mixed in is a delicate fruity edge - a hint of lychee. The aftertaste is clean and refreshing, reminding me of pear drops.

• Country: Nicaragua

Clean cup: (1–8): 6

Total: (max. 100): 86

Roasting Information

David Vilca's farm is located in Illimani in the Los Yungas region of Bolivia, near to the city of Caranavi. The farm didn't originally actually have an actual name so was named after its producer, it's quite a common thing in Bolivia as farms are often named after an individual or the family running them rather than being given a specific name.

David migrated from La Paz to the farm seventeen years ago after a career in mining left him with damaged hearing and seeking a different course. He bought a twelve-hectare farm as security for himself and his family, to make sure that they could support themselves.

When he took over the farm he only had one acre planted with coffee and it was Criolla, after two years David was comfortable with coffee farming and started to expand what he was doing. He was becoming increasingly interested in the possibilities of what he could accomplish and decided to extend the coffee plantation area - he's now up to a whopping five acres land that produces coffee. He has very little outside help with the farm, except from his direct family and I'd like to give a very special nod to his wife who I know helps him greatly.

The varietals grown on the farm are Typica, Caturra, Catuai and a very small amount of Criolla that's still growing from when David first bought the land. The farm is under constant improvement - David removed much of the Criolla that was originally growing so he could put more focus on the Typica, Caturra and Catuai, for cup quality reasons. This lot is a mixture of all the varietals on the farm, excluding Criolla. Although maybe we'll be able to get some 1 year just for fun, I'll speak to David.

I have a really good relationship with David, and you might remember that a number of years ago we did something a little different with the coffee's price. I've visited a couple of times now but on my first visit to the farm I thought he was being rude to me by ignoring pretty much everything I was saying, or not just responding when I spoke to him. Afterwards, I found out that David's hearing had become damaged whilst he was working as a miner before he made the move into coffee and oh, he wasn't being rude, he just couldn't hear me!

In the past, the exporter had given David some money to get hearing aids to help with exactly that situation, but he spent the money on satellite TV (for his wife – who hasn’t been in that situation!). So a couple of years ago we paid for two hearing aids while we were there so that he could hear properly again and enjoy my smooth and soothing Cannock accent #yamyam ;) yamyamyam 🍠

We thought that would be the last we'd hear of it, but when I next visited, David didn’t have his hearing aids in. He told us that they were not good while he was picking what to wear, but also that he couldn’t afford the batteries. So we left him with cash for a microphone hearing-device for around his neck, and $200 for batteries. This worked out at 7p per bag for all the coffee we buy from him, and I didn't pick up the tab – you lovely people did! So a big THANK YOU from me, and also, of course, from David!

http://www.hasblog.co.uk/the-cost-of-hearing

The farm sits between 1,550 and 1,700 metres above sea level and this coffee is a mechanically washed coffee that underwent full wet fermentation for 16 hours before being dried on raised beds and in a stationary dryer.

In the cup this is a super interesting coffee. It starts out with a dark caramel sweetness with notes of blackcurrant and plum alongside a heavy, gloopy texture. At the same time, there's also a delicate effervescence which pairs with those dark flavours really well and for me, it just screams Cola.

• Country: Bolivia

Clean cup: (1–8): 6

Total (max. 100): 89

Roast Information

The Burka Coffee Estate is located on the outskirts of Arusha national park, on the leeward side of Mt. Meru, just 80 km west of Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest peak. Situated close to the Kenyan border, this north-westerly region of Tanzania is famous for the coffee it produces.

Burka Coffee Estate was founded in 1899 by German settlers just outside the town of Arusha in Northern Tanzania. The neighbouring Selian Estate was established in 1910 and acquired by Burka in 1991. The first coffee trees were planted in 1918 and now number some 1.3 million mostly shade-grown varietals. 314 acres are reserved for forests and a further 250 acres to natural grasslands. There are around 200 permanent staff at Burka, a further 200 casual daily staff and up to 5,000 temporary staff involved in the picking and sorting at the height of harvest season. All permanent staff are provided with housing on the Estates with salary set at least 20% above minimum government requirements.

Staff have social security and Labour Union membership included in their contracts, and an Estate credit union also offer loans and advice for education, health and house construction. Each estate has its own nursery which educates over 100 children, and two primary schools also cater for over 600 children, from the Estate workers and the neighbouring communities. An onsite health centre with Estate nurse and dispensary is available for all staff, and the Estate has its own ambulance, along with shops, sport facilities and churches and a mosque. Regular inter-Estate and inter-camp football & netball matches occur, along with staff BBQ’s and other holiday celebrations. Workers are supplied with free firewood from stumped coffee trees, fruit & nut trees are grown around the staff villages.

The staff at Burka have a combined wealth of agronomic experience and over the course of many decades the estates have built a reputation for consistent production of fine arabica coffees characterised by mild acidity with flavours of lemon, chocolate & caramel.

Harvesting is carried out between the months of May to October through selective handpicking of red ripe cherries, followed by further hand-sorting to remove any over or under-ripe cherries. Cherries are then dried slowly on raised African beds for 12 - 14 days. The cherries are carefully maintained through consistent turning to ensure even drying and avoid over-fermentation. They are covered at night to protect them from excess rain and moisture. Once the cherries have dried to the optimum moisture content they are sent to Moshi for hulling, grading by bean size and careful handpicking before being bagged in GrainPro for export from the port & capital city of Dar Es Salaam.

In the cup this is a big, chewy coffee with loads of liquorice and a creamy finish. As it cools, look out for prunes and a hint of tobacco leaf.

• Country: Tanzania

Clean cup: (1–8): 6

Total: (max. 100): 88

Roast Information

Aramo is in Yirgacheffe district in the ‘Southern Nations, Nationalities & Peoples’ (SNNP) region of Ethiopia. Over a number of years, the region has developed a distinguished reputation for fine coffees, producing some of the most sought-after microlots in the world. The combination of high altitude (up to 2,200 metres above sea level in some areas), fertile soil, consistent and plentiful rains, and an abundance of local knowledge are all contributing factors to the high status of Yirgacheffe coffees.

The indigenous ‘wild’ varietals which grow in Ethiopia are responsible for the unique flavour notes which make for an unusual but distinctive cup. When Ethiopian coffees are out of season and unavailable many of you come to us looking for recommendations and they can be tricky as these delicious Ethiopian coffees are so unique and hard to replace.

Ripe cherries are delivered to the wetmill for careful sorting and pulping, before fermentation for 36-48 hours, depending on the climactic conditions. After this point, the parchment coffee is thoroughly washed and graded by bean density before being dried in the sun on raised African beds for 12-15 days (until the ideal moisture level has been reached). In the daytime, the parchment needs to be raked and turned periodically to ensure a consistent drying process. The coffee is also covered between 12 pm and 3 pm to protect it from the hot sun, and at night time to protect it from rainfall and moisture. Once the coffee has dried to the right level it is transported to Addis Ababa for dry-milling, grading, intensive sorting and handpicking, before being bagged in GrainPro for export.

In the cup this is a classic, super floral washed Yirgacheffe. Expect upfront jasmine, before white sugar and lemon rind appear alongside it. The last component of that classic Yirgacheffe is the black tea, which only hits you on the aftertaste.

• Country: Ethiopia

Clean cup: (1–8): 7

Total: (max. 100): 88

Roast Information

Though coffee arrived in Peru relatively early - in the middle of the 1700s - it wasn’t cultivated for commercial export until nearly the 20th century, with increased demand from Europe and the significant decrease in coffee production in Indonesia. British presence and influence in the country, in particular, helped increase and drive exports: In the early 1900s, the British government took ownership of roughly 2 million hectares of land from the Peruvian government as payment on a defaulted loan, and much of that land became British-owned coffee plantations.

As in many Central and South American countries, as the large European-owned landholdings were sold or redistributed throughout the 20th century, the farms became smaller and more fragmented, offering independence to farmers but also limiting their access to resources and a larger commercial market. Unlike many other countries whose coffee economy is dominated by smallholders, however, Peru lacks the organization or infrastructure to provide economic or technical support to farmers—a hole that outside organizations and certifications have sought to fill. Around 30 percent of the country’s smallholders are members of democratic co-ops, which has increased the visibility of coffees from the area, but has done little to bring incredibly high-quality lots like this into the spotlight. The country has a remarkable number of certified-organic producers and this coffee from Hermes is the first we are stocking with our shiny new organic certification! It's something we've been really keen to do for a long time and, long story short, we've gone and done it. You can look forward to seeing more certified organic coffees over the coming months, you're welcome!

As of the 2010s, Peru is one of the top producers of Arabica coffee, often ranked fifth in world production and export of Arabica. The remoteness of the coffee farms and the incredibly small size of the average farm has prevented much of the single-farm differentiation that has allowed for microlot development and marketing in other growing regions, but as with everything else in specialty coffee, this is changing quickly as well. The country’s lush highlands and good heirloom varieties offer the potential for growers to beat the obstacles of limited infrastructure and market access, and as production increases, we are more likely to see those types of advancements.

Hermes Sandoval Huaman has a 6.5-hectare farm where he grows 3.5 hectares of coffee, a mix of Caturra and Pache. After being picked ripe, the coffee is depulped the same or the following day, then fermented dry for 22 hours. After the fermentation is done, the coffee is washed three times in fresh water to remove the mucilage, and dried on beds and patios for an average of 15–20 days.

In the cup I want you to think of a juicy poached pear - there's even a tiny shoulder of red wine in there. Then in swings cacao nibs on the finish and a hint of cinnamon on the aftertaste.

• Country: Peru

Clean Cup: (1-8): 6

Total: (max 100): 87

Roast Information

The Junqueira family started growing coffee on the highlands of southern Minas Gerais 150 years ago. The current owner is Tulio Junquiera. He's from the fifth generation of the family, and he's combined tradition with innovation to make Carmo Estate a sustainable farm dedicated to the production of specialty coffees. Tulio is also a former president of the Brazil Specialty Coffee Association (BSCA).

Carmo Estate’s mission is to produce exceptional coffees while providing its employees with a good quality of life and respecting the environment. The farm is located near the town of Heliodora in the southern state of Minas Gerais, which is a stunning region with mountainous terrain, mineral water springs, and ideal conditions to grow specialty coffees.

Carmo Estate has 220 hectares (545 acres) of land dedicated to the coffee varieties Mundo Novo, Catuaí, Catucaí, Bourbon, Acaiá and Icatú. The owners’ personal attention, the agronomists’ specialist supervision, and the fertile soil contribute to an average yield of 40 bags per hectare. That's more than twice the national average. Coffees from Carmo Estate are grown at altitudes ranging from 950 to 1,200 metres above sea level (3,100 to 3,900 feet).

The milling facilities at Carmo Estate were developed specially for the production of high-quality specialty Naturals and Pulped Naturals. The spacious drying patios are complemented by mechanical dryers, which are used when weather conditions are not favourable. The farm stores all of its coffee in wooden silos and has its own warehouse.

Carmo Estate is committed to the wellbeing of its employees and partners. Healthcare, on-site schooling for children, programmes to encourage workers to build their own housing, adult education projects, and the importance of environmental preservation are all hallmarks of the farm. Carmo Estate also runs an innovative profit-sharing programme, in which employees are invited to become partners in Carmo Estate and thus become entitled to a share of the profits earned from the sale of its coffee.

In the cup this reminds me of a Cadbury's Caramel. Sweet milk chocolate and caramel are front and centre. It has a silky texture, and there's a shoulder of hazelnut too.

• Country: Brazil

Clean cup: (1–8): 6

Total (max. 100): 87

Roast Information

In 1998, Fabian Lomas used to work in Quito for a company that bought and sold coffee. During his time working for this company, he was able to learn a lot about coffee as well as production and processing methods. Fast forward 10 years to 2008 and Fabian decided to take a big risk and rent a piece of land to produce his own coffee with the eventual goal of making enough money to buy his own land for himself.

From the very beginning, Fabian was familiar with speciality coffee and he wanted to start his farm off on the right foot, taking lots of care of the processes carried out on the farm to produce great tasting coffee. Currently, Fabian is trying to involve his two children, Willy and Lizeth in the operations of the farm. Every time someone visits, Fabian encourages his children to show the guests around as he wants them to take over the running of the business one day.

Willy graduated from high school in 2016 and since then, has been working with his father, learning more about coffee production, and taking care of the agricultural management of the coffee trees. For instance, Willy and Fabian are in charge of weed management, fertilization, and harvesting. Lizeth not only takes care of the drying and hand-sorting of coffee, but she also owns a garden centre.

Fabian’s family have passed through hard economic moments in their lives, which has led to lack of fertilization which in turn resulted in diseases affecting the harvest. However, now with the help of our exporting partners Caravela, they have been able to improve their economic situation, build a drying station, and their next plan is to finally buy the land to have their own farm.

In the cup this reminds me of Mirabelle plum and apricots up front, sweet and juicy, before it glides into chocolate and toffee on the finish. Give it a moment and the aftertaste changes again into biscuit.

• Country: Ecuador

Clean cup: (1–8): 6

Total (max. 100): 87

Roasting Information