This Kenya AA lot was processed at Kiamabara Coffee Factory, a wet mill operated by the Mugaga Farmers Cooperative Society in Nyeri County near Karatina and the slopes of Mt. Kenya. Mugaga FCS was formed following a split from Mathira Farmers Cooperative Society in the 1990s and today supports thousands of smallholder farmers through agronomy training, access to inputs, and centralized processing and marketing.
Coffee for this lot was grown at elevations ranging from approximately 1,600–1,900 masl in the highlands of Nyeri, a region known for its red volcanic soils, cool temperatures, and consistent rainfall patterns. These conditions contribute to the dense seed structure and pronounced acidity commonly associated with Kenya AA coffees.
The lot consists primarily of SL28, SL34, Ruiru 11, and Batian varieties. SL28 and SL34 are traditional Kenyan cultivars prized for cup quality, while Ruiru 11 and Batian were developed for improved disease resistance and productivity.
Approximately 900–3,000 smallholder farmers contribute cherry to Kiamabara Factory. Farms are typically small, averaging around 0.25–0.5 hectares, with coffee often intercropped alongside bananas, corn, and macadamia. During harvest, ripe cherries are handpicked and delivered daily to the factory for processing.
At the factory, cherries are depulped, fermented for 24–48 hours, fully washed, and dried on raised beds. Cooperative-managed quality control and traditional Kenya-style washed processing contribute to the clean cup profile, bright acidity, and structured body characteristic of coffees from Nyeri.
