Rwanda Nyaruziza Funky Kigali رواندا نياروزيزا فنكي

Net Weight 250g  الوزن ٢٥٠ جرام

Bruised fruit | violets | rum

Farm: Bufundu Nyarusiza

Varietal: 100% Red Bourbon

Processing: Funky 96 hours

Altitude: 1,700 to 1,900 meters above sea level

Owner: 145 independent smallholder farmers delivering to Nyarusiza washing station

Town / City: Kigoma Collection point; Between Butare and Cyangugu

Region: Kamegeri Sector, Nyamagabe District of Southern Province

Country: Rwanda

الإيحاءات: فواكه | زهور | تخمير

المزرعة: بوفوندو نياروزيزا

السلالة: ١٠٠٪ بربون احمر

المعالجة: فنكي ٩٦ ساعة

الارتفاع: ١,٧٠٠ - ١,٩٠٠ متر فوق سطح البحر

المزارع: ١٤٥ مزرعة صغيرة و مستقلة 

المدينة: كيجوما

المنطقة: كاميجيري, محافظة نياماجيب

The Story Behind This Coffee

Bufundu has very strong links with the local communities that supply it, providing jobs for 116 at Nyarusiza during peak harvest (May - June/July) and 9 permanent positions. A further 127 people are employed at Remera during harvest, with 10 permanent positions. (2014 figures) At the end of each season Buf will share any surplus profits with both the cooperatives that it works with and its washing station managers.

The majority of the small farmers in the area have an average of only 300 coffee trees (less than a quarter of a hectare) and use some of their land to cultivate other crops such as maize and beans to feed themselves and their families. Most of their income from the sale of coffee is used to take their children to school, pay for medical care and for investment in livestock such as a cow for milk, both for use in the home and for sale locally.

The level of care that all Buf washing stations take over their processing is impressive. Cherries are hand-picked only when fully ripe and then pulped that same evening using a mechanical pulper that divides the beans into three grades by weight. After pulping, the coffee is fermented overnight (for around 12-18 hours) and then graded again using flotation channels that sort the coffee by weight (the heaviest – or A1 – usually being the best). The wet parchment is then soaked in water for around 24 hours to stabilise moisture content.

As at most washing stations in Rwanda, women do the majority of the hand sorting. This takes place in two stages - on the covered pre-drying tables and on the drying tables. Washed beans are moved from the wet fermentation tanks onto the pre-drying tables, where they are intensively sorted under shade for around six hours. The idea is that greens (unripes) are still visible when the beans are damp, while the roofs over the tables protect the beans from the direct sunlight. Next, the beans are moved onto the washing station’s extensive drying tables for around 14 days (depending on the weather), where they are sorted again for defects, turned regularly and protected from rain and the midday sun by covers, ensuring both even drying and the removal of any damaged or ‘funny looking’ beans. After reaching 11% humidity, the coffee is then stored in parchment in Sovu’s purpose-built warehouse prior to final dry-milling and hand-sorting at the Cooperative’s brand new dry mill in Kigali. Each coffee that arrives is also cupped by the Q-graders of Maraba’s exporting partner, Rwashocco.

Lots are first separated by collection point (farmers usually hail from around 3 km distance from each collection point) and are also separated out by days. Upon delivery as cherry, the coffee receives a paper ‘ticket’ that follows the lot through all its processing. This ticket bears the date of harvest, the collection point name, and the grade (A1, A2 etc) of the coffee – for instance, if a coffee lot is called ‘Lot 1- 06/04 - A1’, this means it was the first lot processed on April 4 and the grade is A1. This simple but effective practice is a crucial tool in controlling quality and ensuring the traceability of lots.

Once in Kigali, each lot is cupped by the expert team of cuppers at Rwashocco, Mercanta’s exporting partner, many of whom have been Q graders for a decade. These coffee professionals make sure that the very best coffees make their way onto Mercanta’s cupping table!