Burundi Gakenke

This coffee comes from the Gakenke washing station, which was established in 1991 in the Kayanza province, one of the most famous coffee regions in Burundi. Thanks to its high altitude, rich soil and mild climate, the coffee plant thrives here.

More than 2 600 small farmers supply the station with cherries. Each of them farms a small plot of about 0.1 hectare, where they grow approximately 250 coffee trees. As well as coffee, they grow bananas, beans, cassava and taro - both for household subsistence and for sale.

After the cherries are received at the washing station, they are first mechanically stripped of their flesh and skin using a depulper. This is followed by fermentation in water tanks for 12 to 24 hours, during which natural micro-organisms break down the remaining sticky layer (mucilage) adhering to the bean. Once fermentation is complete, the beans are thoroughly washed with clean water and finally spread out on 'African beds' - raised mesh drying tables where the coffee matures for several days in the sun. During the drying process, the beans are turned and checked regularly to ensure that they dry evenly and retain their quality and flavour profile.