Kenya AA has long been regarded as a favorite among coffee industry insiders. It covers almost all the qualities a cup of high-quality coffee should have: captivating aroma, balanced acidity, plump beans, and outstanding fruity flavor. This article will systematically explain the taste characteristics of Kenya AA fully washed coffee beans, from origin background, field management, and washed processing to cupping performance. Whether you are a beginner just getting into specialty coffee or a seasoned enthusiast looking for new beans, you can gain practical tasting reference from it. Front Street Coffee will also recommend worthwhile Kenya AA products for you in this article.
Chinese Product Name: Kenya AA
English Product Name: Kenya AA
Packaging Specification: 227 grams
Producing Country: Kenya
Grade Classification: AA
Processing Method: Fully washed processing
Roast Level: Medium-dark roast (Full City +) / first to dense second crack
In coffee circles, Kenya AA is almost universally recognized as a beloved choice. It is highly respected because, from aroma to acidity, from bean uniformity to fruit-toned character, it possesses nearly all the elements a good cup of coffee should have. That pleasant fragrance, balanced acidity, neat bean appearance, and distinct fruity flavor have won the hearts of countless coffee lovers.
Field Management
Hand Picking
Adherence to Scientific Washed Processing
Natural Drying After Washing
I remember Princess once said that people often ask us, what is good coffee? Usually we answer that coffee is good as long as it suits you. But is that really the definition of good coffee? In fact, we still have standards for good coffee. What exactly is good coffee, and how to guide the public to learn to distinguish good coffee and drink good coffee—coffee people have a long way to go!
Speaking of good coffee, of course we must mention Arabica. Speaking of Arabica, we cannot fail to mention Kenya. Kenya is internationally recognized as the best Arabica-producing origin, followed by coffee's homeland—Ethiopia. Below, let us systematically get to know Kenyan coffee. The following comes from Sweet Maria's introduction to Kenyan coffee.
This map containing Kenya and its surrounding areas reveals some of the nearby origins of coffee.
Kenya AA is produced near Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, on the 17,000-foot slopes of Mount Kenya. Kenya AA is the largest of the country's coffee beans, followed by AB, and then C. It has a full-bodied, rich taste, and its distinctive bitterness and winey flavor, with a lingering wine-like finish after drinking, are especially praised.
Recent evaluation of Kenya's coffee cultivation situation:
It is once again Kenya's annual harvest season, and I was fortunate enough to obtain beans from the following major producing regions: Kiambu, Nyeri, Thika, Meru, Kirinyaga (region or estate names, not translated, for convenience in checking English materials). From February to August, these main growing regions always suddenly produce 1-2 kinds of high-level beans, which forces me to cup about 10-20 kinds in a week. Based on so many samples, no one understands the quality of this year's beans better than I do. Kenya's auction market system has been of great help in giving me access to these beans, even when the weather is terrible, and so on: God can no longer stop me from finding above-standard beans! This is a system that tends toward the public; even when I am cooking in the kitchen, I can trade easily. So says Tom.
Kenya AA
Kenya AA Test Spider Chart
Broadly speaking, this feels like a bright-toned coffee that can make a person feel refreshed from head to toe after drinking it. Of course, it is not tailor-made for those who do not like acidity (the acidity of this coffee leaves a vivid impression in the mind because of this kind of interacting chlorogenic acid mineral water). The best Kenyan flavor is complex and has quite distinct fruity notes (such as strawberry-like and citrus-like flavors), and sometimes also evokes a impression of spice. Some Kenyan coffees taste reminiscent of cleanliness and brightness, while others are reminiscent of certain precious brewing spices.
Coffee Farm Overview: 573,426 farmers holding shares in 275 production organizations, 1,275 hectares of coffee trees
Coffee Cultivation Workers: 6,000,000
Shade-grown plants: very few
Main Coffee Production Organizations: High Plateau around Mt. Kenya, Aberdare Zone, West: Kasii, Nyanza, Bungoma, East: Nakuru, Kericho
Cultivated Varieties: SL-28, SL-34, Bourbon, Kents, Typica, Riuri 11. Bourbon is called Scottish or French variety in some areas.
Harvest Season: Main season: October-December; there is also sporadic harvest from June-August.
Grading and Processing: AA (17/18 screen) is the highest grade; M'buni represents one of the lowest local consumption levels of naturally fully ripe coffee beans and is processed by the washed method.
Organic Certification: Not certified, because the local area uses excellent cultivation practices and rarely uses chemicals. The secret is frequently using dead branches as fertilizer, pruning plants, and mowing lawns, etc.
Production Ranking: Sixth in Africa, tenth in the world
Introduction: Introduced in the 1800s by clergy pursuing sacred spirituality; in 1911, Bourbon was introduced through an ethnic fusion; Kents was introduced from India in 1920.
I am impressed by the consistently excellent quality of Kenyan coffee: trying to find a sample lot with a high defect rate would be the death of me! The process of cupping a perfect Kenyan coffee can not only correct your sense of what good coffee is, but is also a perfect experience. If we really want to chase the luck of obtaining good coffee through bidding, we have to secure all the harvest from most estates: we want to monopolize these good things! When we bid on coffee beans from farms we have worked with before, the chance of winning the bid drops greatly (for example, if we won a bid in the first half of the harvest season, bidding again often requires a bit more luck). I am sure I have tried samples of every kind and bought the best batch. I can responsibly say that these beans are the fruit of effort and hard work, and when we cup them, we begin to make the greatest possible effort to purchase these treasures for the main harvest period.
Now, as the excellent Kenyan auction system and coffee gradually spread throughout all East African countries, there are countless problems in production. Kenya, as a model of progress in African cultivation techniques, is developing in a disorderly way. At present, coffee quality is still relatively high, but if the auction system does not continue to serve small farmers, they will switch to growing other crops, or replace the better cultivars (the excellent SL-28 and SL-34) with the disease-resistant but poorer-quality Ruiri 11 line.
Front Street Coffee Suggestion: If you are looking for an African bean that combines bright fruity acidity with a full-bodied mouthfeel, the fully washed Kenya AA is absolutely worth adding to your purchasing list. The Kenya AA provided by Front Street Coffee is medium-dark roasted, which can both showcase its signature berry and citrus notes and retain enough sweetness and lingering finish. It is suitable for pour-over, AeroPress, and many other extraction methods.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
