TASTES LIKE: MIMOSA, BROWN SUGAR, COLA + GREEN GRAPE
Medium Roast. Available in 340g bags only
REGION: Nyeri
FARM: Various Smallholder
VARIETY: Batian, SL28, SL34, Ruiru 11
ALTITUDE: 1500 - 1800 m.a.s.l.
PROCESS: Washed
KENYA
More than a decade ago, before the term "microlot" became common usage in specialty coffee, Cafe Imports began direct sourcing coffees in Kenya during a time when most importers were unwilling to take the chance on bringing in small, traceable lots of coffee from individual mills and estates.
NYERI
Nyeri is situated between Mt. Kenya and the Aberadare Mountains, creating a perfect geographic and climactic area for coffee production. This area is historically the center of Kenya's coffee production due to the rich soil and fresh water moving through the area from the mountains. This region is home to the Kikuyu people, who have resided between the mountains for centuries. This area is rich with forests, wildlife, eucalyptus, bamboo, and rainforests.
WASHED PROCESS
Most of Kenya's coffee is produced by smallholders delivering to factories (central processing units) who predominantly produce Washed coffees. Estates are also best-known for their Washed lots. The Washed process in Kenya may vary slightly from place to place, but it generally contains a soaking step that is unique to this growing country. First the coffee is picked ripe and depulped the same day, then it is normally fermented in open-air tanks made of concrete or cement for 24–48 hours. It's then washed thoroughly using water channels before being soaked underwater for 12–72 hours. It is then spread on raised beds to dry.
REGIONAL SELECT
The Regional Select program was created to highlight the unique profiles we have found that are inherent to various microclimates in many of the countries from which we source green coffee. Local variables like wind patterns, soil quality, sunlight, elevation, and other environmental influencers have much to do with the common characteristics that separate, say, a Northern Colombian from a Southern Colombian coffee, just as they inform the differences between a Colombian and a Kenyan.
For our Regional Select offerings, we source based on cup quality and character, seeking a balance of “taste of place” with availability and price. These lots are built as blends from coffees that cup out between 84–87 on our 100-point cupping scale, and come with regional and often microregional traceability, but are not farm- or producer-specific.
Uteuzi Jimbo is Swahili for "county select," and is a Regional Select program designed to highlight the different coffee-growing counties of Kenya in which Cafe Imports primarily works: Nyeri, Embu, Muranga, and Kirinyaga. These coffees are traceable down to the region, and are created by blending lots from different factories in each area, basis the cup quality and profile.
