Rwanda Kaokaka Women Producers

Here is one of many reasons to celebrate the month of March at ickle coffee. The arrival of Rwanda Kaokaka Rwemweru Women Producers. For the past 3 years we have been purchasing their coffees, not only to support the women of Rwemweru but for the consistently high quality coffee they produce.

Sweet, delicate, mandarin, rockmelon, honey

This special micro-lot was produced by 168 female farmers who grow coffee on small farms in the hills surrounding Karambi washing station, located in the Kigoma Sector of Huye District, in Rwanda’s Southern Province. The women are members of the Koakaka Cooperative, who own and manage Karambi along with two other nearby washing stations.

Recently the women of Kigarama Village banded together

and made the decision to process and market their coffee as their own. T

hey named their association Rwamweru, which is one of the six zones that Koakaka operates within.

The Rwamweru group is part of the larger “Icyerekezo Women’s Coffee Association,” which is made up of the 29 women’s farmer groups Koakaka works with. Icyerekezo translates to “Vision” in the local Kinyarwanda language – as the women formed it “with the vision to grow as strong women through coffee.” A fitting name given the amount resources and support they share with each other during the busy harvest period. To distinguish their coffee and ensure it is processed separately,

the women have organised to deliver cherry to the washing station on certain days of the week. Selling their coffee as a separate lot allows the women to directly benefit from any higher prices paid specifically for their coffees (rather than these profits being shared equally amongst all members) and results in a higher income to support their families. This creates an effective incentive for the women to work as a collective towards achieving the very best quality, and we think the results are evident in the complex and clean cup profile of these coffees!

COUNTRY : Rwanda

PROVINCE : Southern Province

DISTRICT : Huye District

ALTITUDE : 1,685–1,870m above sea level

VARIETY : Red Bourbon

PROCESSING : Fully Washed

WASHING STATION : Karambi Washing Station

FARMERS : 168 female cooperative members

AWARDS : Cup of Excellence 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2018

This coffee was processed using the washed processing method at the Karambi Washing Station, using clean, natural spring water from the surrounding mountains. The team at Karambi are meticulous in their approach to processing, to ensure the highest coffee quality possible is achieved.

Roater's note

Rwanda has such a delicate but very round and buttery mouthfeel, we love the bright, soft acidity balanced with it's cacao notes that always feature in every Rwandan coffee we have ever purchased.

This coffee is a real everyday drinking coffee. Simple delicious that will sure brighten up your day.

Brewing tips

We have been grinding all our Rwanda finer than every other origin we roast as the structure of the bean is very dense, also higher water temperature helps bring out a lot more sweetness and mouthfeel.

Our go to recipe for both our Rwanda on V60 :

Ratio : 15g : 250g

Temperature : 98 C

Time : 3:00

Pulses : 1 bloom then 3 pours

Clicks : 21 on Commandante

Natural Process Kenya

UNUSUAL NATURAL PROCESS FOR KENYAN COFFEE

In the past ten years or so we know coffees from Kenya offer remarkable clarity of flavours, clean sweetness, and a vibrant acidity. This is due to several factors – including soil content, a commitment at the individual-level to quality, and curated varietals of coffee cherry and most of us coffee people are aware that Kenya’s traditional washed process is a big factor in the unique character of Kenyan coffees.

This particular lot from Endebess Estate is processed using the natural method, very unusual for Kenya.

However, we think the clean and transparent profile produced was worth it, a great balance between the heavier and wilder characteristics of naturals, and the classic high level of acidity and syrupy sweetness we expect from great Kenyan coffee. We are tasting lots of strawberries, hibiscus, orange blossoms and honey from our filter/long espresso roast.

ABOUT THE PROCESS

The coffee cherries are picked at the peak of ripeness, when the red hue edges on purple. Right after picking, the harvest is hand-sorted for damaged or unripe cherries, and foreign matter (twigs, leaves, pebbles, etc..).

The cherries are then spread in a thin layer on raised beds, and slowly dried for 28 days.

They are moved around four times a day to promote even drying and prevent mold from setting; and covered both during the hottest time of the day to avoid damaging the cherries, and at night to prevent moisture re-absorption as the temperature cools and the air becomes more humid.

ABOUT THE PRODUCER

The Endebess Estate is located in the northern part of Kenya’s Rift Valley, near the market town of Kitale in Trans-Nzoia County. The farm measures about 758 hectares, a third of which is used to grow coffee. The varieties on the farm are predominantly SL28, SL34, Batian and Ruiru 11.

The region’s soil is mostly clay loam and sits on the eastern slopes of Mount Elgon, an extinct volcano on the border of Uganda and Kenya.

The history of the farm goes back to 1940’s when the family of Mr EW D’Ollier owned the farm. The D’Olliers used to process and mill their coffee as well as for the neighbouring small scale farmers. In 1976, they sold the farm to Gatatha Farmers Co Ltd who ran the farm until September 2011when they sold it to the current owners of the farm. The management and current owners are very keen on the welfare of employees. The farm has sponsored two high school students, and financed the renovation of over a dozen homes. It is hoped this program will be expanded in future.

Best Recipe!! said no one ever

Making coffee is very much like cooking! In cooking, there are lots of variables so following a recipe from a cookbook might not always turn out as delicious as they say it would be. Variables like the differences in tools, the quality of your fresh produce, the specific sizes of that piece of meat you're using and the type of heat from your stove will determine how long you need to cook that piece of meat to perfection.

Same with coffee, there are so many factors in one bag of roasted coffee to consider when it comes to choosing the right recipe. All coffees are roasted differently, different tools/roasting technology, different green bean quality, different roast profiles and even different preferences in taste from different roasters. Sticking to one recipe might not be a good idea if you like to explore all different coffees around the world and tasting different varieties of coffee roasters.

While coffee-making involves extracting flavor (and caffeine) from coffee grounds, choosing the right recipe for the selected coffee as your starting point really helps you minimise waste and set you one step closer to your perfect cup of coffee.

The two most important factors in brewings are grind size and contact time. Adjusting grind size finer means decreasing the grind particle size and increasing the surface area which drags out the contact time and increase extraction.

Using extremely fresh roasted coffee can also distort the extraction, freshly roasted coffee releases lots of carbon dioxide, which prevents proper contact between coffee and water. Light roasted coffee is best to be brewed after 7 days, the lighter the roast the longer time needed to rest and degas.

Choosing a recipe for different roast degrees.

Darker roasted coffee beans are more soluble and more brittle. This means the darker the coffee is roasted the less contact time you need and need to be ground at a much coarser setting as the coffee is more brittle, the particle breaks down to a much smaller sizes compared to the lighter roast coffee that are much denser. Meanwhile lighter roasted coffee needs more contact time, generally higher temperature brewing water as most compounds become more soluble at higher temperatures.

Recommended recipe for light roast :

starting point 1:16.5 coffee to water ratio

temperature : 95 -98 C

brew time : 2:30 - 3.00 Minute ( bigger batch size will need longer brewing time )

Recommended recipe for medium roast :

Starting point 1:14.5 coffee to water ratio temperature : 91 -93 C brew time : 1:45 - 2:30 Minute ( bigger batch size will need longer brewing time )

*if coffee is tasting watery, slightly dry finish try shorten the water ratio OR try using higher temperature water Or grind finer

*if coffee is tasting unpleasantly / astringent sour, bitter, intense but not as sweet try longer water ratio OR using lower water temperature OR grind courser

Brew coffee the way you can replicate each time. Log your recipes and the results so you can adjust accordingly, one variable at the time and most importantly enjoy the process!

Take care and enjoy brewing :)

Rowena of ickle