We taste: tropical, passion fruit, melon

Mill: Cyesha Coffee Washing Station
Region: Karongi District, Western Province, Rwanda
Processing Method: Washed
Elevation: 1,550-1,800 msl
Varieties: Bourbon

This lot comes to us from Muraho Trading Company’s Cyesha Coffee Washing Station in Nyamasheke, Rwanda. Muraho was founded by two brothers, Karthick & Gaudam Anbalagan, who are driven to showcase to the world what Rwanda specialty coffee is all about. Cyesha is their newest washing station, acquired in December 2021.

Coffee from Cyesha is extra special because of the volcanic soil and the high altitude of the farm (up to 1800 meters above sea level). The washing station is also near one of the majestic African Great Lakes, Lake Kivu. The wind-flow from the lake through the surrounding hills is ideal for drying coffees.

Cyesha upholds the highest of standards to achieve the best quality specialty coffee possible. Only red ripe cherries are received at the station. The cherries are all checked upon arrival, then resorted on sorting tables and then passed through an intensive floating quality process. After floating is done, the cherries are pulped and dry fermented for 12 hours. After that, the coffee is washed, graded and soaked. Finally, the coffee is moved to a pre-drying area to be hand-sorted until it is moved to the drying tables.

Muraho Trading Company takes pride in testing and experimenting with different processing methods. They are proud to be the first company in Rwanda to be given authority from the governing board to produce Natural and Honey coffees back in 2016. This has since paved the way for other producers to do so. In the coming seasons, they are looking forward to processing honeys, anaerobic fully washed, and anaerobic naturals at Cyesha Washing Station.

When brewed, this washed Rwandan coffee is tropical and herbaceous with hints of passion fruit and honeydew melon.