the Chania Estate

Boyce Harries

In January of 2022, we visited Boyce Harries at his Chania Estate for the second time. Here, late and inadequate rains had led to a big drop in production for the main crop, which had finished days before we arrived. At the slightly higher altitude Oreti Estate, just a short drive away, the later harvest had lined up much better with the rains, leading to juicy sweet cherries, with enough sugary mucilage to create incredible complexity and depth during fermentation.

Boyce’s work in converting his farming towards a more holistic, soil health based approach was inspiring, and we believe the results can be tasted. We walked through lush coffee fields, separated by an ample leguminous cover crop, grown under the shade of beautiful gravilea and macadamia trees. It was here that we witnessed the difficulty of growing traditional SL varietals. Boyce grows a mix of varietals across separate plots, and the high yield and vigour of especially the Ruiru 11 trees was clear to see. SL varietals are incredibly susceptible to fungal diseases like coffee leaf rust, and therefore require copious amounts of anti-fungal and herbicidal sprays in order to survive, alongside much higher levels of chemical fertiliser than Ruiru and Batian. The cost of production and environmental impact of growing the SL varietals is therefore far higher than we knew, and something we’ll be taking into account in our buying and pricing decisions this season. Boyce’s innovation continues in his work in traceability and micro-lot creation; small scale experimentation with varietal separation and alternative fermentations was an eye-opening experience to taste. A lot of pure Ruiru, processed as a natural, was a highlight.

Natural Bourbon

The trees that this lot was picked from are some of the oldest in Kenya. French missionaries originally brought Bourbon to Kenya in the late 1800s, well before Scott Laboratories released their famed SL varietals. The Bourbon trees at Oreti were already there when the Harries family purchased the land in 1946, so they are not sure exactly how old they are. Most Bourbon plantations were replaced during the early 1900’s, as the SL varietals became more and more popular, but the Harries have kept theirs, both at Chania and Oreti. This lot, processed using a careful natural method, showcases the deep and rich character of Bourbon, with stewed berry and dried fruit notes alongside a dark chocolate finish.