Origin: Democratic Republic of Conga
Region: Isale, North Kivu
Altitude: 1500 - 1900 masl
Varietal: Bourbon
Process: Washed
Recommended For Filter or Espresso? We think this coffee tastes best as Filter
In The Cup Expect: Jammy, Rhubarb and Cranberry
Description:
Kahondo Coffee Washing Station (CWS) is one of 7 washing stations belonging to Virunga Coffee Company, setup by Schluter (now Olam Specialty Europe) in 2012 to produce high quality coffees for the specialty market and increase premiums for the thousands of smallholder farmers in the region. The strategy for Virunga has been three-fold: 1) To increase production through good agronomic practice 2) to improve quality through education and strict guidelines for production and processing 3) to obtain internationally recognised certification in order to generate better revenue for farmers.
Virunga now have now trained over 2,300 famers in GAP (Good agricultural practices) and obtained organic certification for these farmers in the Isale region. They have 7 full time field officers (trained agronomists) working in the region and have planted over 400,000 seedlings to be distributed amongst the smallholders in Isale.
Ripe cherries are delivered to the station for careful sorting and floatation. Once the highest quality cherries are selected they are pulped to remove the skin and most of the fruit. The coffee is then placed straight onto raised African beds, retaining some of its sugary mucilage. This parchment coffee is then dried in the sun for an average of 14 days, until the optimum moisture content has been reached. At this point the coffee is rested in a cool, dry environment for 1-2 months, before being milled, sorted and graded by bean size.