Kenya / Ndaroini / Washed Peaberry

Ndaroni Factory was built 1984 by a group of producers in Karatina who were tired of traveling long distances to deliver their cherry. For this reason, they named the factory, “ndaroini,” meaning “place of rest” in Swahili, one of Kenya’s national languages. Today, Ndaroni is one of 3 factories operated by Gikanda Farmers Cooperative Society (FCS). Gikanda FCS has developed a reputation for producing lots of the highest quality by continuing to invest in infrastructure, training and supporting their member farmers.

Smallholders selectively handpick only ripe cherry and deliver it to Ndaroini Factory. At intake, the Cherry Clerk oversees meticulous visual sorting and floating, accepting only dense, ripe cherry. After intake, cherry is pulped and fermented for approximately 12 to 16 hours. Following fermentation, coffee is washed clean water and graded in grading channels. Then, parchment is laid to dry on raised beds. Workers rake parchment frequently to ensure even drying. They cover drying parchment during the hottest time of day, to maintain slow, even drying and at night, to shelter parchment from moisture.

Peaberries are the result of a natural mutation in the coffee cherry. Whereas there are usually two beans nestled together in each fruit, a cherry with a peaberry mutation only forms one bean. Thus, peaberries are a single, rounder bean. Many people find peaberries to have a sweeter flavor profile.

In your cup, expect a high quality classic Kenyan. Imagine yourself walking thru a tomato farm and smelling the umami aroma while picking the grape tomatoes fresh from the tree accompanied by the sweetness of red currant and blackberry. The coffee has a medium body, medium sweetness like red fruits, high and complex acidity and pleasant long aftertaste.