Kenya

Karimikui

Our first fresh Kenya of the year

Our first Kenyan release of the year, a returning favourite from the Rungeto Cooperative’s Karimikui station

A typical washed Kenyan profile, with fresh and ripe red fruit

Producer
Rungeto FCS
Coffee expression
A fruity & acidic coffee

Regular price: $25.00
incl. vat/tax
Sale price: $25.00
incl. vat/tax
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Karimikui

The small region in Kirinyaga that the Karimkui mill serves, surrounding the village of Ngariama, is mainly a tea-growing area, so most of the coffee plant stock is rather new. The region is known for very high quality of both tea and coffee; being planted somewhat later than neighbouring regions means soils haven’t been tired out by years of conventional agriculture, with its sprays and chemical fertiliser. We visited the region in January 2022, witnessing the density of both coffee and tea plantation in the lush green landscape.

"This lot from Karimikui is tasting rather crisp and fresh, with ripe red berries emanating from the cup."

North Eastern Kirinyaga is home to some of our favourite Kenyan coffees; Karimikui is run by the Rungeto Farmer’s Cooperative Society, who also own the Kii and Kiangoi mills, where we have purchased several lots in the past. Also near to Ngariama are Gakuyuini, and the new Long Miles project. Much of the area was planted with coffee just before the rise of hybrid varietals in Kenya, which means that 99% of the farmers that deliver to Kii grow SL28 and SL34, with only about 1% using rust-resistant varietals like Ruiru 11 or Batian.

Rungeto

The Rungeto cooperative’s cherry selection, fermentation, sorting and separation is of incredibly high quality, leading to excellent coffee. The cherries are first depulped mechanically, as soon as they arrive at the factory. The cherries should arrive for depulping as soon as possible after picking, hence why cooperatives make a great effort to have factories located close to concentrations of smallholders. After depulping, the seeds are covered in a layer of sticky fruity pulp, or mucilage. The seeds are fermented in large tanks for between 12 and 24 hours, breaking the mucilage down to a point that it can be thoroughly ‘washed’ away, using long washing channels. Then, before drying, the seeds are taken to another set of fermentation tanks, and fermented again under water, normally for a shorter time, between 10 and 12 hours. This ‘double soak’ is popular in Kenya, and is useful not only for enhancing the cleanliness and intensity of the final cup, but also as a second opportunity to sort for lower density floating seeds, as these are often of lower quality, or from unripe cherries.

Each lot that is processed is kept separate throughout the process, allowing each to be cupped separately. This allows the management of the mill to assess patterns of quality and continuously improve. There is always a degree of unpredictability however, so cupping continuously is the only way to find the finest lots of the harvest, especially in recent years as hybrid varietals have increased in use, and many mills have increased capacity in an attempt to cash in on record prices for Kenyan coffee.

This lot from Karimikui is tasting rather crisp and fresh, with ripe red berries emanating from the cup.

Technical Data

Producer
Rungeto FCS
Region
Kirinyaga
Altitude
1800 masl
Varietal
SL28, Ruiru 11, Batian
Process
Washed
Harvest
December 2022

Washed Process

The washed process involves completely removing both the cherry and the mucilage from the outside of the parchment with the use of friction, fermentation and water. After being harvested, the coffee cherry is then sliced open by either a metal or a sharp plastic blade.

The two seeds (also known as beans) are pushed out of the cherry, which leaves the seed with mucilage as their outermost layer. It is essential in the washed process that all mucilage is removed from the seed which leaves only the flavour that developed in the cell structure of the seed prior to processing.