Origin: Kenya
Cooperative: Kiawanduma Farmers Cooperative Society
Factory: Kiawanduma Factory
Producers: 657 smallholder farmers
Region: Murang’a
Varieties: SL-28, SL-34, Batian, Ruiru 11
Process: Washed
Altitude: 1600 - 1800 m a.s.l
Harvest: 2024 - 2025

We are releasing an AB grade lot from the Kiawanduma Factory for the first time in two years.

When we last tasted Kiawanduma two years ago, it showed the vibrant fruit character typical of Kenya, yet balanced with sweetness and texture. This year’s lot carries a similar impression.

Bright citrus and stone fruit notes gradually expand on the palate, delivering a juicy impression. The mellow sweetness of brown sugar in the finish supports the cup, giving it structure and balance. A faint floral aroma, reminiscent of white blossoms, adds a delicate nuance typical of AB grade lots.

The name “Kiawanduma” comes from the Kikuyu language (spoken by the Kikuyu people in Kenya) and means “a place where arrowroot, a starchy tuber, is grown.” This factory was originally part of another cooperative called Kangima before becoming independent as the Kiawanduma Farmers Cooperative Society.

Smallholder farmers in this cooperative recycle the pulp removed during coffee processing as compost, using it as organic fertilizer for their coffee trees.

From Harvest to Processing

Kenya has two harvest seasons: the main crop, harvested from October to December, and the fly crop, harvested from May to July. We always purchase from the main crop.

In the main crop cycle, flowering occurs between February and March, and the coffee becomes available for purchase from January to April of the following year. When we visited Kenya in late February, it was the peak of the buying season, just after the main crop harvest and processing had been completed.

Farmers hand-pick only ripe cherries and bring them to the factory. Upon arrival, the cherries are spread out on a sheet in a sorting shed, where workers manually separate the perfectly ripe cherries from underripe or overripe ones, following the factory’s strict quality standards. A receiving clerk oversees this process to ensure proper sorting.

Only the ripe cherries proceed to the pulper, a machine that removes the skin and pulp, leaving the beans encased in a protective layer called parchment. The parchment coffee is then separated by density into three grades. Grades 1 and 2, the higher densities, continue to processing; the lower-density Grade 3 is considered lower quality and is used for domestic consumption.

At this stage, the parchment is still coated with mucilage — a sticky, sugary layer composed of natural sugars and alcohols — which greatly influences sweetness, acidity, and overall flavor.

The mucilage-covered parchment is placed into fermentation tanks for 16–24 hours. These tanks contain no added water; fermentation is driven by naturally occurring microorganisms from the cherries and the environment, breaking down the mucilage.

Once fermentation is complete, the parchment is washed with clean water and passed through washing channels for further density separation. It is then soaked for 16–18 hours in tanks of clean water. This soaking step is believed to enhance the quality of acidity and contribute to a cleaner cup profile.

When ready for drying, the parchment is first placed on skin-drying beds — mesh platforms where it dries for 6 hours to a full day until the moisture content drops to around 20% (down from about 50% after washing).

Finally, the coffee is transferred to raised African beds, where it dries slowly for up to 21 days until it reaches the target moisture content. During the hottest hours of the day and at night, the parchment is covered with plastic sheets for protection.