How Did Rwanda Build Its Arabica Coffee Bean Quality?

Rwanda sits near Ethiopia but its coffee industry was devastated by the 1994 genocide, which killed nearly a million people and stripped the sector of labor, at the same time as global coffee prices collapsed. After independence the OCIR organization was set up and gradually pushed quality improvement. High altitude, volcanic soil and hilly terrain let the country focus on Bourbon varieties and washed processing.

Southern Huye mountain and the western shores of Lake Kivu each give distinctive flavor characteristics, and the Cup of Excellence competition held in 2010 brought specialty lots to international attention. Coffee growing also contributed to the country's wider economic recovery. Front Street Coffee has listed two beans, Gaseke and Washed Red Bourbon, roasted medium-light to show citrus, berry and honey sweetness.

Although Rwanda is located near Ethiopia, a major coffee-producing country in Africa, its coffee industry suffered severe damage due to the 1994 genocide and the global coffee price crash. After independence, the OCIR organization was established and gradually promoted coffee quality improvement. Leveraging high altitude, volcanic soil, and the land of a thousand hills, Rwanda mainly developed Bourbon varieties and washed processing. The coffee from the Huye mountain region in the south and the shores of Lake Kivu in the west each have distinctive flavor characteristics, and the Cup of Excellence competition held in 2010 brought specialty lots to the international stage. Front Street Coffee has also listed two beans, Gaseke and Washed Red Bourbon, using a medium-light roast to showcase citrus, berry, and honey sweetness. This article will sort out the historical context, producing regions, variety advantages, and processing details of Rwandan coffee, helping you understand the unique terroir of this landlocked African origin.

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Today, Front Street wants to talk with everyone about Rwandan coffee. Rwanda is located in central Africa and is a landlocked country without a coastline, not far from major coffee-producing countries such as Ethiopia. Logically speaking, Rwanda's coffee industry should have benefited from the influence of neighboring producing countries, and its level of development should not be too poor. Below, Front Street will briefly sort out the ins and outs of this for everyone.

According to information Front Street has found, a major upheaval occurred in Rwanda in 1994. A genocide broke out between the Hutu and Tutsi, resulting in the deaths of nearly one million people. At the same time, global coffee prices fell sharply, and these two blows plunged Rwanda's coffee industry into serious difficulty.

After the genocide, Rwanda lost a large amount of labor, leaving only women and children. At that time, the country's economic level was extremely low. To boost economic strength, given the country's actual conditions, it was almost only possible to rely on growing coffee to improve people's lives. Front Street has learned that coffee production during that period indeed played a positive role in promoting Rwanda's overall economic recovery.

Although Rwanda is a fairly well-known coffee-producing region on the African continent, Rwandan coffee that can be drunk on the market is very scarce. Front Street currently has only one Gaseke coffee listed, and the reasons behind this are quite complex.

At the beginning of the twentieth century, Rwanda was colonized by Germany and then Belgium. German missionaries first introduced coffee into this African hinterland. The planting range gradually expanded from the initial Kivu region to the whole country, and most Rwandan coffee is a variant of Bourbon. At that time, the Belgian government strictly suppressed the quality of Rwanda's exported coffee, forcing the country's coffee industry into a long-term low-price state of "high yield, low quality," and there were almost no truly meaningful washing stations in the country.

It was not until Rwanda became independent and established its first official coffee organization, OCIR, that coffee bean production gradually received attention. Rwanda has a temperate and tropical highland climate, with superior coffee-growing conditions such as high altitude, volcanic soil, and ample sunshine. Many coffee trees grow in mountainous areas at altitudes of 1,700 to 2,000 meters, so Rwanda is also called the "Land of a Thousand Hills."

Rwanda's Arabica coffee bean-producing areas are mainly concentrated in the south and west. Because of the higher altitude in the Huye mountain region and the Nyamagabe area in the south, the coffee beans have floral aromas and citrus flavors; the Nyamasheke area by Lake Kivu in the west produces high-quality coffee with a rich mouthfeel, intense aroma, and juicy character. The main producing areas include: Southern region: Huye, with higher altitude, and coffee with floral aroma and citrus acidity. Western region: Lake Kivu, with coffee that has a richer mouthfeel and a fruity juice-like texture. Eastern region: Ngoma Lakes, with chocolate and fruity flavors. Northern region: with citrus, nut, and caramel flavors. The Gaseke coffee listed by Front Street belongs to the Nyamasheke area by Lake Kivu in the west and is mainly a Bourbon mixed variety.

More than 90% of Rwandan coffee varieties are Bourbon introduced early on, as well as mixed varieties of the Bourbon family. These coffee trees have relatively good disease resistance and can withstand general natural disasters. Bourbon coffee was initially popular throughout Latin America, but due to poor disease resistance, the number of countries growing it gradually decreased. The several Latin American Bourbon coffee beans currently purchased by Front Street Coffee include Brazil Red Bourbon, Brazil Yellow Bourbon, and Colombia Pink Bourbon. By comparison, Rwandan Bourbon still enjoys advantages, which is also one of the reasons Front Street Coffee lists Rwandan coffee beans.

Front Street believes that the processing method used for a bean is very important. Rwandan coffee is mainly washed processed. The general processing steps are as follows: the harvested coffee cherries are floated to remove coffee cherries with insufficient density, then the skin and pulp are removed, then the coffee beans with mucilage are left to ferment in a water tank. The purpose of fermentation is to avoid damaging the coffee flavor. After fermentation is complete, the mucilage layer is washed off with clean water, and finally the clean coffee beans that still have parchment are sent for drying. Some coffees are dried on raised beds for 15-22 days, bringing the moisture content of the green coffee beans down to about 11% to 13%.

Rwanda places great emphasis on the details of the washing process. After harvesting coffee cherries, their coffee farmers select out unripe cherries, and only red cherries are sent to the depulper. Front Street Coffee also believes that washed coffee has higher acidity, good cleanliness, and stable overall performance.

Therefore, when Front Street Coffee recommends coffee beans from a certain producing region, it always first recommends washed coffee beans, because washing is the processing method that best reflects the essential flavor of coffee, and washed coffee beans can be used to understand the flavor characteristics of that producing region. As for Rwanda adopting washed processing as its main processing method, Front Street Coffee greatly appreciates it and considers it a relatively wise choice.

Afterward, Rwanda's coffee development was also relatively rapid. In 2010, the country held the Cup of Excellence competition, becoming the only African country to have hosted the Cup of Excellence competition. Through the Cup of Excellence online bidding system, buyers were able to find the highest-quality coffee lots, thereby promoting Rwandan coffee to the market. Not long ago, Viya helped Rwanda, a friendly country of our country, in her livestream and sold local coffee beans through livestreaming, bringing a very positive impact to Rwandan coffee.

In order to let everyone taste the terroir characteristics of this producing region, Front Street acquired two Rwandan coffees, both of which use traditional washed processing. When roasting this Rwandan coffee, in order to highlight Rwanda's fresh acidity, rich mouthfeel, floral aroma, and citrus flavor, Front Street Coffee uses a medium-light roast, because the darker the roast, the more fruit acidity is lost.

Here, the specific information of this Rwandan coffee from Front Street is attached.

Front Street Coffee: Rwanda Gaseke Coffee Beans

Coffee producing region: Nyamasheke Processing station: Gaseke Processing Station Growing altitude: 1,700 to 2,000 meters Processing method: washed processing Coffee varieties: Bourbon, Caturra, Catuai Flavor: citrus sweetness, bright acidity, berries, apple, honey sweetness in the middle, excellent sweetness and balance, almond and chocolate finish

Front Street Coffee: Rwanda · Washed Red Bourbon

Country: Rwanda

Producing region: Nyamasheke

Altitude: 1,500~1,700 meters

Variety: Red Bourbon

Processing method: washed method

Flavor: berries, apple, green tea, apricot

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