Among African coffee-producing countries, Ethiopia and Kenya are often mentioned first, but Tanzania also produces quality coffee worth noting. This article takes a Tanzania Kilimanjaro AA once offered by FrontStreet Coffee as an example to review its origin information, variety characteristics, and cupping performance, and further introduces Tanzania's two major growing regions in the north and south, Bourbon variety characteristics, washed processing flow, and AA grading standards. The article also includes the roasting curve and V60 brewing parameters designed by Front Street for this bean, suitable for enthusiasts who want to systematically understand Tanzanian coffee.

Have you ever visited Front Street's physical store? Have you looked through Front Street's coffee bean menu?

A quick glance shows origins and varieties packed densely, with roughly fifty items at a casual count, covering almost all global coffee origins (slightly exaggerated). However, even Front Street, known as the "coffee bean encyclopedia," has corners it does not cover. A hint: Africa. When it comes to African coffee flavors, it is easy to think first of Ethiopia and Kenya. Yet there are still many good beans worth trying on the African continent, such as the Tanzanian coffee that FrontStreet Coffee is discussing today.

When it comes to Tanzania, most people in the coffee circle first think of Kilimanjaro coffee. Indeed, that unique "Kilimanjaro taste"—full body, moderate acidity, rich aroma—has earned it the nickname "coffee gentleman." Long ago, Front Street also listed a Kilimanjaro coffee, and below is its green bean profile:

FrontStreet Coffee: Tanzania Kilimanjaro Coffee Origin: Northern Highlands, Mount Kilimanjaro volcanic region

Variety: Bourbon

Processing method: Washed

Grade: AA

Altitude: 1300-2000m

This bean shows a very typical African profile: citrus and berry notes, honey-like sweetness, and a faint tea-like finish. Is it special? It does have character; is it not special enough? That would not be unfair to say either. FrontStreet Coffee compared it with coffee from neighboring Kenya. Compared with high-quality Kenyan beans, Tanzanian coffee's acidity is less bright, the overall profile is softer and gentler, and the sweet aroma is more prominent. Although a strong red wine character is a label of Tanzania, when placed alongside beans with similar attributes, this coffee lacks a memorable highlight. So now when you go to Front Street for coffee, you no longer see this bean.

That said, many regulars still fondly remember that Kilimanjaro taste and try to understand Tanzanian coffee from the perspective of its origins. Tanzania is a typical East African country, bordering Kenya and Uganda to the north, Malawi, Mozambique, and Zambia to the south, and Rwanda and Burundi to the west. Although less famous than other African beans, its annual output is actually similar to Kenya's, about 50,000 tons. The earliest Arabica seeds were introduced from Réunion, then planted in the Bayamoyo and Mogoro producing regions.

Today Tanzania's coffee is mainly distributed in Kilimanjaro and the southern region:

Southern coffee-growing region

The southern region covers RUVUMA and MBEYA. The altitude is about 1200-2000 meters. This area is considered to have potential for producing high-quality coffee. In the past, development was limited by a lack of funds. In recent years, it has attracted attention from many certification bodies and non-governmental organizations, and efforts are underway to improve the current situation in which southern coffee is not highly regarded. The harvest period in the southern producing region is from June to October each year, and Bourbon, Typica, and Kent are mainly grown.

Kilimanjaro Coffee Growing region

Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest peak on the African continent, with an altitude of 1050-2500 meters. Sufficient elevation, volcanic soil, and pure snowmelt water create the most suitable conditions for cultivating coffee, and some coffee trees planted here are over a hundred years old. Coffee was first introduced by Christians from Kenya. Coffee trees require careful care, including weeding, fertilizing, and pruning old branches to encourage new growth, thereby maintaining coffee bean quality.

The harvest period for coffee in the Kilimanjaro producing region is from July to December each year, and the main varieties grown are Bourbon, Typica, and Kent. Kilimanjaro is Tanzania's largest coffee-producing region, and Kilimanjaro coffee is also an important pillar of the country's economy. Kilimanjaro coffee comes from Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa in northeastern Tanzania. Local smallholder coffee farmers grow it at altitudes between 1300-2000 meters. Nourished by volcanic ash and combined with the high-altitude environment, the coffee beans produced are generally of excellent quality.

With a bit of personal bias, because this coffee from Front Street is of the Bourbon variety, only Bourbon coffee will be introduced here: Bourbon is also a natural mutation originally from Yemen. Its name comes from the original planting place, Bourbon Island, which is now Réunion. Bourbon coffee cherries are short and round, and the pulp and seeds are very dense. Bourbon coffee usually has high sweetness, bright acidity, and red-wine-like flavors. Bourbon's yield is 20-30% higher than Typica's, but it is still regarded as a low-yield bean variety and is likewise susceptible to leaf rust.

From the green bean information Front Street provided earlier, it can be seen that this coffee uses the most basic washed processing method. In fact, most Tanzanian coffee is processed by the washed method. After harvesting, coffee farmers send the cherries to the nearest processing station for processing.

Steps of the washed processing method: 1. Screen and remove impurities mixed into the coffee cherries, 2. Remove the coffee pulp and outer skin, 3. Send them into fermentation tanks, where fermentation removes the mucilage layer adhering to the parchment, 4. After washing clean, proceed with drying.

Of course, choosing washed coffee beans is also a little "trick" of Front Street. Coffee enthusiasts who have already gotten started should know that washed processing does not destroy the coffee bean's original flavor and can preserve the most classic regional flavor. Besides washed processing exciting connoisseurs, AA makes connoisseurs' eyes light up even more. In their eyes, AA represents excellent quality. In fact, Tanzania's coffee grading method is the same as Kenya's: both grade by coffee size. Interested friends can keep reading:

Because these lovely coffee beans are all large beans of uniform size, Front Street also specially designed a roasting plan for them:

Charge at a drum temperature of 175°C, heat power 120, damper opened to 3; turning point at 1'33"; when the drum temperature is 115°C, open the damper to 4 and keep the heat power unchanged; when the drum temperature is 151.6°C, the bean surface turns yellow, the grassy smell completely disappears, and the dehydration stage begins; at 9'30", the bean surface shows ugly wrinkles and dark streaks, and the toast aroma clearly turns into coffee aroma, which can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this time, listen clearly for the sound of the first crack point. First crack begins at 10'16", open the damper to 5, develop for 1'48" after first crack, and drop at 192°C.

The purpose of light roasting is to emphasize this coffee's sweetness and light acidity. Front Street amplified this coffee's strengths, making it taste with stronger acidity and a sweet aroma, with the best flavor.

So how should this coffee be brewed? Don't worry, Front Street also has a set of brewing standards suitable for it:

Dripper: V60 dripper

Water temperature: 90°C

Dose: 15 grams

Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:15

Grind size: medium-fine grind (78% passing a No. 20 standard sieve)

Pulse pouring: Bloom with 30 grams of water for 30 seconds, then pour in a small stream in circles until 125 grams for the first pulse. When the water level is about to expose the coffee bed, continue pouring until 225 grams and stop pouring. When the water level is about to expose the coffee bed again, remove the dripper. (Start timing from the beginning of blooming.) The extraction time is 2'00".

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.