Kenya Nyeri Igutha Peaberry

This is the Peaberry grade selection from the Igutha wet mill in Nyeri. The wet mill (called a "Factory" in Kenya) operates under the Rugi Farmer's Cooperative Society, an umbrella organization that oversees operations of their associated wet mills, and helps with things like agronomical support to farmers, pre-financing during the harvest season, and marketing the coffees. It's my understanding that Rugi is an older coop, started back in the late 1960's. Igutha currently has around 600 members delivering their coffee cherry to the mill, and farms are typically 1 hectare or less, and at an altitude range of 1700 - 1900 meters. After depulping the coffee, they employ up to 48 hour fermentation time to beak down the sticky fruit mucilage surrounding the seeds. The coffee is then moved to raised drying beds where it will dry for 2-3 weeks. The preferred cultivars are SL-28, and SL-34 bourbon selections, known for good cup quality, especially when growing conditions are favorable. But you also see Batain, Ruiru 11, quite common in Kenya. We noticed some flat beans mixed in with the Peaberries, though they far from outnumber them. They separate them using screens, which sometimes allow flat beans through too.