Epiphany Muhirwa, Ginkongoro, Rwanda
De senaste tio åren har det hänt mycket med Rwanda som kaffeproducerande land. Fram till 2000 fokuserades produktionen på stora volymer som enbart gick till den nationella marknaden. 2001 påbörjades privatiseringen av kaffeproduktionen och 2002 startade den första privatägda tvättstationen. Sedan dess har 300 nya tvättstationer startat upp runtom i landet där främst bönder med färre än 200 träd per bonde står för majoriteten av industrin. 2012 tog vi på Drop Coffee in ett kaffe från Rwanda för första gången, vilket visade oss hur piggt, rent och bärigt ett kaffe från Rwanda kan smaka. Nu har vi för andra året i rad valt att ta in Epiphany Muhirwas och hennes som Samuels kaffe från regionen Ginkongoro i södra Rwanda, känd för kaffen med stor saftighet och komplexitet.
Epiphany och Samuel äger tvättstation Nyaruzisa Coffee Washing Station (ofta under namnet BUF). I närområdet av tvättstationen skördar nära tusen bönder sitt kaffe på 1700- 2000 meter över havet och levererar sitt kaffehit. Sedan år 2000 har Epiphany och Samuel jobbat uteslutande med kvalitet och för att förbättra denna ytterligare. 2008 kom deras femma i Cup of Excellence vilket ledde till ett påbörjat samarbete med Nordic Approach. Tillsammans har dem de senaste fem åren jobbat för att bygga upp bättre system för lot-separationer och kvalitetskontroll. Vi tar in 24 säckar av kaffet från Nyaruziza, noga utvalda av samtliga skördar i “första sorterings”- kategorin och var de godaste kopparna från årets skörd samt de koppar
A lot has happened in Rwanda coffe-wise the last ten years. Up until year 2000, the coffee industry of Rwanda was focused on the national market, meaning that the big volumes were kept inside the country. Then, in 2001, the motion for privatization of coffee farms was put in motion and in 2002 the first private washing station was opened. Since then, another 300 washing stations have opened up across the country, of which mainly farmers with less than 200 trees account for the majority of the industry. Last year, we at Drop Coffee bought our first Rwandian coffee. We were dazzled by how profound and pure the flavours of a Rwandian coffee could be. This is the second years in a row we’re working with Epiphany Muhirwa and her son Samuels coffee in the region Ginkongoro, southern Rwanda. The region is famous for its juicy and complex coffees.
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In Gikongoro, Epiphany and Samuel owns the Nyaruziza Coffee Washing Station (usually go by the name BUF). In the nearby area a thousand farmers harvest their coffee at 1700-2000 meters above sea level in the vicinity of the washing station and brings their coffee here at the end of their day. Since year 2000 the two owners have been working almost solely on the quality of the farm and how to in the long run augment said quality. Their coffee processed at Nyaruziza came fifth in the 2008 Cup of Excellence, leading to start of the collaboration with our green coffee sourcer Nordic Approach. Together they have been working hard the last five years to create a better system for lot-separations and quality control. We are buying 24 bags of coffee from Nyaruzizia this year, all of which have been carefully selected from the first sorting category which were the the cups with least defects and most tasty cups from this years harvest and blended it. Expect a clean cup with notes of lingonberry and white chocolate.
Producer: Epiphany Muhirwa och Samuel |
Washing station: Nyaruziza Coffee Washing Station |
Varietal: Different kind of Bourbon |
Lot: #1. HDG (Haute de Gamme), meaning we chose the best small lots to go into this one. |
Farmers: Up to thousand smaller farmers in Nyamagabe |
Region: Gikongoro, Nyamagabe, South Province |
Production: Pulped on a 3-disc-pulper and dry fermented, graded in washing channels, soaked in water and,dried under shade with intense parchment hand-sorting before sun dried on African beds. |
Process: Cherries are separated and sorted before they go in to production. A 3 disc traditional pulper removes the skin, pulp and coffees are graded in to 3 grades A, B and C. The coffee is then fermented up to 16 hours. It’s then graded and washed in channels in to two grades based on density before soaked under clean water in tanks for 12 hours. |
Drying: Sun dried up to 21 days on African drying beds with wire mesh. Coffees are covered in plastic during midday and at night. |
Altitude:1700-2000 m.a.s.l |
Cupping notes: Fresh aroma of red current. Creamy mouthfeel with medium body. Acidic driven cup with medium sweetness. Notes of lingonberry, sweet herbs and white chocolate. |
Espresso recipe:
VST filter size: 20 g
Dose: 18 g
Beverage weight: 38 g
Extraction time: 30-32 seconds
TDS: 9,5 – 10
Extraction: 19,5%