Kenya Mukunga AA

• Country: Kenya
• Region: Kiambu, Central Kenya
• Variety:  SL 28, ruiri 11
• Process: Washed
• Altitude: 1850 - 1880 masl

The roaster's story:

Mukunga Estate is owned and operated by Hanner Wanjiku Mukunga, a producer farming in Kiambu county. The estate’s high altitude of 1,850 to 1,880 meters above sea level creates the ideal conditions for cultivating high quality coffee. Hanner complements these conditions with a focus on quality-oriented processing. The estate is surrounded by the scenic Aberdare forest. The forest’s slopes and highlands are well known as a specialty-coffee area. Hanner is a force in the coffee-producing community in Kiambu. She has an arabica seedling nursery to grow seedlings to renovate her farm. She also sells seedlings to her neighbours at affordable rates to make it easier for everyone to maintain youthful, productive trees.

Approximately 90% of the trees planted on Mukunga estate are SL28. The remaining trees are Ruiru 11. Most of the coffee trees on the farm were planted in the 1970s. The farm benefits from red volcanic soil and high annual rainfall that’s separated into two rainy and two dry periods each year. Hanner selectively handpicks ripe, red cherry and processes it on her estate. Cherry is pulped on a motorised 3-disk pulper and fermented. Following fermentation, parchment is washed in clean water and laid to dry on raised beds.