DISCOVERY

Muraho Trading Co.

This is our second year working with renowned Rwandan producers Muraho Trading Co., where both coffees are from the Bumbogo station, owned by Neza Trading Co, but run in conjunction with Muraho. This washed lot has crisp white florals, and a soft acidity profile, reminiscent of stewed apple, while the natural is a riper and richer take, with blueberry and strawberry yoghurt character.

What is happening at La Cabra:

This month we visited our partners in Mexico for the first time. Jesús and his team at Cafeólogo impressed us with their attention to detail, and their beautiful coffee shops in Chiapas. We tasted some of the finest lots we have yet been able to find in Mexico, and trust Jesús to continue to deliver excellent quality through his focus on community building and innovative processing. A truly enlightening trip, increasing our anticipation for our upcoming Mexico releases. While this year’s was a shorter trip to Central America, we were able to spend some time in El Salvador with Aida Batlle, producer of the excellent Finca Kilimanjaro coffees we were able to share last year. We’ve also been in close contact with our partners in Guatemala and Costa Rica, and are expecting the first early harvest samples soon.

The current very high commodity market pricing for coffee, although on the surface a positive for farmers, means that the financial incentive for quality is effectively diminished, leading to a great deal of hard work from our partners on the ground. Maintaining relationships with producers, emphasising the long-term stability benefits of producing speciality coffee, and ensuring them that roasters like ourselves will still pay a healthy premium above the C-price is the focus for the moment. Many small producers that deliver to large buying centres across Central America can receive a better price for unsorted, wet coffee than they received for well processed and sorted lots last year, so the quick reactions required to maintain relationships is something we have spoken at length about with our exporting partners. On the upside, most are reporting excellent quality this year, so we are looking forward to securing lots from some of our long-term friends, like Mauricio at Altos, whatever the increase in cost may be.

Bumbogo Washed

White florals and ripe fruit

Bumbogo Natural

Soft notes of strawberries

Discovery - Rwanda

This month's coffees

Rwanda

Muraho Trading Co.

This is our second year working with renowned Rwandan producers Muraho Trading Co. Although we hadn’t purchased many Rwandan lots before last year, we’ve been aware of Muraho for several years now, having tasted their coffees roasted by many colleagues we admire, mainly in the southern hemisphere and the UK, but also closer to home.

The coffees that Muraho produce are quite simply some of the best Rwandan lots we have tasted at La Cabra, and Gaudam and Carthick Anbalagan, the brothers that run the project, are among the most innovative producers in the country. We were introduced to Muraho by our friends from Hobe Coffee, who have a long term relationship with Gaudam and Carthick, stemming back to their time living in New Zealand.

Rwanda

Bumbogo

Gaudam and Carthick were brought up in Rwanda but moved to Wellington, New Zealand as teenagers. After the devastating effect that the 1994 Genocide had on the country, the brothers felt they had to return and be part of rebuilding and recovering the land they had always called home. So they left life in New Zealand behind, moved back to Rwanda, and started work on the project that became Muraho.

Since then they have gone from strength to strength, and now own several stations throughout the coffee producing regions of Rwanda, exporting coffee to some of the world’s finest roasters. They have also innovated, having been the first to produce and export naturally processed coffees from Rwanda in 2016, after lobbying for government permission for several years.

A floral and balanced coffee

Bumbogo Washed

The Bumbogo Coffee Washing Station is owned by Neza Trading Co, but run in conjunction with Muraho. It is located in the Gakenke district, famous for high quality coffees in Rwanda; many previous winners of the Cup of Excellence have come from Gakenke. Muraho’s investment and support has meant that Bumbogo have been able to almost double their production since their first harvest in 2018. Bumbogo farmers are also provided with seedlings and agronomic education, leading to ever greater quality.

This washed lot has crisp white florals, and a softer acidity profile than many other Rwandan lots we have tasted this year, reminiscent of stewed apple.

A fruity and rich coffee

Bumbogo Natural

The natural lot is first floated in order to remove low density or defective cherry, then dried on raised beds in the sun, normally taking around 30 days. Due to the powerful African sun, the coffee has to be turned almost constantly during the day, while it is covered at night to protect from condensation during the cool and humid evenings.

This leads to a heavier take on the Bumbogo than the washed lot, with soft berry notes and a creamy body giving a strawberry yoghurt character.

DISCOVERY

Experience Rwanda

We’re proud to once again be able to share Muraho’s work with you this month. Their work has continually led to some of the best coffees we have ever tasted from Rwanda, while returning added value to thousands of producers across the coffee regions of the country. We hope to continue our relationship with the skilled team behind Muraho, and continue to share their excellent coffees with those who appreciate it most.