Karogoto AB

Kenya started with coffee production in the early 1900s and has for generations been known for its quality. Kenya has great altitudes, climate, and soil, and its varietals have adapted to the local growing conditions and have excellent cup quality. The coffees are truly unique and recognizable in flavor, and the coffee sector has developed a structure to maintain quality as well as traceability.

For more information on Kenya: Kenya general information

The Karogoto Factory (wetmill) is part of the Tekangu Cooperative Society in Nyeri in Central Kenya. Nyeri is known for coffees with intense, complex, and flavor-dense cup profiles. It is made up of mainly smallholder farms, each with some 100 trees. They are organized in Cooperative Societies that acts as umbrella organizations for the Factories.

Cooperative: Tekangu Cooperative Society

Wet mill: Karogoto Factory

Region: Nyeri

Altitude: 1750 – 1900 masl

Producers: About 1500 smallholders in the surrounding areas deliver cherries to the wet mill.

Varietals: Mainly SL 28 and SL 34, some K7 and other random varieties.

Grade: AB refers to the bean size. AB in Kenya is screen size 15/16.

Production: All coffees are pulped, dry fermented, washed, soaked and sundried

Process: Cherries are hand sorted for unripes and overripes by the farmers before they go in to production. A 4-disc Aagaarde pulping machine removes the skin and pulp. The coffees are graded by density in to 3 grades by the pulper. Grade 1 and 2 go separately to fermentation. Grade 3 is considered low grade.

The coffee is fermented in concrete tanks without water for 20 – 30 hours to remove the mucilage. After fermentation the coffees are washed and again graded by density in washing channels and are then soaked under clean water for 16-18 hours.

Drying: Sun dried up to 21 days on African drying beds. Coffees are covered in plastic during midday and at night.

Soil: Mainly Nitisol. Nitisols occur in highlands and on volcanic steep slopes. They are developed from volcanic rocks and have better chemical and physical properties than other tropical soils.

Notes: Karogoto is a very successful factory in Nyeri. They have in recent years been able to give more than 85% of the sales price back to the farmers, and are always able to get prices above the current market standards based on their cup quality. They have proved to be very consistent on quality over the years, and have great systems for traceability and quality control. This coffee is bought directly from the cooperative.

Cupping notes: Red berry aromas. Citric and currant-like acidity profile. Has floral notes and mature red berry and currant like sweetness. Overall it has great flavor intensity and complexity. Juicy and clean finish.

Download info: Karogoto AB fact sheet

About these ads