KSN | Kenya Kirinyaga, Ethiopia Sidamo and Burundi Nkanda
Fruity Profile | Light roast
Tasting Notes: Blueberry, Caramel, Milk Chocolate
IT ALL STARTS AT THE COFFEE FARM
Since starting Driftaway, each month we’ve roasted four distinct single origin coffees as each flavor profile. This month, we’re excited to share a different approach: profiles as blends!
Instead of picking a single coffee that comes as close as possible to each flavor profile, we chose coffees that come together to build the best Fruity, Classic, Balanced or Bold flavors that we can imagine. Read on below to learn about each coffee, and what each one brings to this Fruity blend:
Kenya Kirinyaga
The Kenya Gachimi comes from the Baragwi FCS (Farmer Cooperative Society), the largest cooperative in Kenya both in volume and number of members. The cooperative has a total of 12 washing stations (or factories, as they're known in Kenya), and Gachami is one of the biggest.
At Baragwi FCS, the consistency of the coffee is very important, and the factory managers actually rotate factories every two years to ensure that best practices are implemented cooperative-wide. Also, the cooperative engages agronomists to train farmers, and every year, the farmers are provided with manure and seedlings.
This coffee gives the blend its brightest top notes and lots of delicious, fresh fruit. Look for it as a single origin coffee this fall!
Ethiopia Sidamo
This delicious natural coffee was processed at the Raro Nensebo washing station in Uraga, Guji, which falls under the Oromia region of Ethiopia. The 35 farmers that deliver their coffee fruit to this washing station come from the "kebele" or village known as Teraga.
Their farms are each around 7 acres, and sit at an elevation of between 2,100 and 2,350 meters above sea level - some of the highest altitudes that coffee can grow! Raro Nensebo washing station is run by Ture Waji, also known as “The King of Guji”. While this particular lot comes from Uraga, Ture and his company, Sookoo Coffee, also have another washing station in Shakiso.
Both “washing” stations currently only produce natural coffees, but washed coffees are in the plans for upcoming harvests. This coffee adds that ripe blueberry flavor, and it rounds the blend out with some deep, syrupy sweetness.
Burundi Nkanda
Grown by farmers in the community of Kamira, and processed at the Nkanda washing station, we've roasted the Nkanda for the past two years in a row, and it keeps getting better!
Nkanda works with around 2500 farmers from the entire province of Ngozi. For this lot, they separated the coffee grown by the community of Kamira to highlight that microclimate and specific taste profile. Last year's lot was from the community of Nyarugati, which is about a 6 minute drive to Kamira, and although it was definitely complex and fruity, this year the coffee's fruit flavors are even more intense.
A perfect additoin to this Fruity blend, the Burundi Nkanda adds some really nice floral notes in the aroma, more fresh fruit, and that milk chocolate base note.
TRACEABILITY
COUNTRY
Kenya, Ethiopia, Burundi
PRODUCER
Gachimi factory; Raro Nensebo washing station; Tangara commune
REGION
Kirinyaga, Guji, Ngozi
VARIETAL
SL28, SL34, Batian, Ruiru 11; Regional Landraces; Red Bourbon
PROCESSING
Washed & Natural
ALTITUDE
1700 - 2150 meters
DID YOU KNOW
The first recorded coffee blend was the Mocha Java, dating back to the 1600s. The word "mocha" doesn't actually mean that the blend tastes like chocolate (although, it definitely can!) - it actually refers to the port of Moka in Yemen, where unroasted African coffees were loaded onto ships to eventually be brought to Europe to be roasted. On the way there, ships regularly stopped at the island of Java in Indonesia to pick up more coffee: that coffee was mixed together with the African coffees already on board, and were then sold as one coffee blend! Nowadays, though the spelling has changed, roasters still choose a fruitier African coffee to blend with a more earthy coffee from Indonesia, and name that blend Mocha Java.
PRICE TRANSPARENCY
$4.61, $5.25, $4.61
Price paid by Driftaway (per pound avg. across this months coffees)
$1.40
Fair Trade price per pound
$1.83; $1.51
Coffee C-Market price per pound
$0.05
Driftaway's World Coffee Research contribution per pound
The Kenya Kirinyaga coffee travelled 7,353 miles, the Ethiopia Guji travelled 6,962 miles, and the Burundi Ngozi travelled 7,068 miles to the Driftaway Coffee roastery in Queens.
Love the coffee? You can share your compliments & tasting observations with the farmers.
WHY DID WE SELECT THESE COFFEES FOR THE BLEND?
For this Fruity profile, we looked for fruit forward coffees that give us crisp acidity. All three of these coffees are fruity and bright, but each adds something different. Grown at extremely high elevations, this created the perfect conditions for developing mouthwatering acidity.
AVERAGE CUPPING SCORE
87.5
/100
87.5
SCAA Cupping Score
9, 23, 25 x 60 kg
Bags purchased
1, 1 and 2 years
Length of producer relationship
100% (in 2020)
Transparent coffees purchased
HOW DID WE ROAST THIS COFFEE?
This coffee is being roasted by Ian T. from 18th July to 11st August in Long Island City, Queens. We typically use the Loring Kestrel roaster for this profile. We have strict guidelines for each of the coffee profiles, and this roast has to pass the development time ratio test as measured in real-time by the roasting software, Cropster. Once it does, it is approved for production.
QUALITY CONTROL
We perform Quality Control via a process of coffee tasting called cupping on all of our production roasts once a week from home as per our Covid-19 shelter in place guidelines. Each cupping is conducted by our roasting staff Kieran D. and Ian T. using standard equipment, and is logged by our Q-certified cupper Ian T. All coffees are evaluated on a scoring scale of 0 to 3.
- 3.0 = exceptional roast - exceeds expectations
- 2.5 = on par with profile - matches expectations
- 2.0 = good roast, but 1 or 2 elements could be improved - needs improvement
- 1.5 or lower = failed - do not ship
PRODUCTION AND SHIPPING
Less than 24 hours after roasting, we bag your coffee in our production facility in Greenpoint, Brooklyn. Our production team is led by Dave and Trae, and supported by a rotating cast of local artists, musicians and independent professionals.
AT YOUR HOME
Brew this coffee with your favorite home brewer and enjoy the taste of incredible coffee! Here are a few tips on how to make the best coffee on each brewer.
View other posts about how to make better coffee at home on our blog Coffeecademy.