Description
Rwanda Lake Kivu – Micro Lot
******* Very Limited Stock******
Region: Nyamasheke
Station: Rugali Coffee Washing Station
Process: Natural
Varietal: Bourbon
Altitude: 1550 – 1850 masl
Cup Profile
full body Black Tea notes • Dried Fruit • Cherry Jam • Cacao body delicious complex juicyness – super enjoyable highend specialty coffee
Farm Information
Originating from the ‘land of a thousand hills’, this coffee has travelled
from one of the Great African Lakes — Lake Kivu, running along the border of Rwanda and the Democratic
Republic of Congo. Coffee was introduced into the region by German missionaries in the early
1900s. Expertly prepared by the Rugali Washing Station in Nyamasheke, they are not only one of the largest
stations in the district but are also among the first to be officially sanctioned to offer Natural and Honey
processed lots out of Rwanda.
This lot, collectively produced and delivered to the station from 140 local grower families in the district, has
been selected for Natural processing. Cherries are immediately hand-sorted by Rugali’s team to remove
any visible defects before they are submerged into tanks of water to skim off any ‘floaters’ – those of a
lesser density float to the top and are discarded as inferior quality. From there, the best cherries are spread
evenly across terraced beds for 40-45 days to dry to an ideal moisture content of 11%. Special care is
taken to maintain these raised beds, including grass and weed removal from the grounds, ensuring airflow
is optimal and additional humidity rising from underneath is kept to a minimum. During peak harvest,
temperatures in the Lake Kivu region are between 28 to 30 degrees Celsius during the day and drop to
12 to 15 degrees in the evenings. With careful oversight, no mechanical dryers are required as the bright,
red coffee cherries slowly turn to a deep burgundy over the 6 weeks drying out on the plains, soaking up the
sunlight.
Once milled, this Natural processed lot is then further hand sorted for any further defects, as well as colour graded by
passing through laser sorters for consistent uniformity.
Rugali washing station exemplifies the country’s incredible potential with their uncompromising dedication to quality
processes and innovation. With pristine lots such as these, Rwanda continues to emerge as one of the
world’s leading coffee-producing nations.
