Flavour & aroma notes of vanilla fudge, toffee, dark chocolate & allspice... with the addition of apricot as the coffee cools.
 
Country: Burundi
Region: Bujumbura
Process: Natural
Varietal: Red Bourbon
Altitude: 1700-1900 metres above sea level
 
Burundi has ideal conditions for coffee production: elevations of 1500-2000 metres above sea level, Arabica Bourbon coffee trees, abundant rainfall, and approximately 800,000 families who cultivate an average of 150-200 coffee trees per farm. The Red Bourbon variety grown at high elevations is characteristically sweet with big body and spiced with wild notes.
 
In 2016 Migoti Coffee Company built a coffee washing station at Migoti Mountain, partnering with industry experts who provided technical expertise. Coffee trees are owned by the community, and Migoti purchases the coffee cherries directly from the farmers who harvest and deliver the cherries to the washing station. Over 300 tons of green coffee was produced and exported from Migoti Mountain in the 2017, 2018 and 2019 coffee seasons. These harvests have received excellent cupping scores, frequently placing it as some of the best speciality coffee coming from Burundi.
 
Migoti assists farmers through ongoing education to prune and properly care for coffee trees, intercrop, plant shade trees, utilize green fertilizers, stabilize soils and natural pest control. The expectation is that by following best farming practices the farmers can increase the yields from their coffee trees by five-tenfold.
 
The station manager, Zephyrin Banzubaze, is responsible for: managing all staff, training coffee farmers, receiving and selecting coffee cherries, processing coffee, overseeing the coffee drying process, storing and milling the dry parchment coffee and preparing the final green coffee for export. The majority of the seasonal staff are women, who work mainly on the raised drying tables, regularly turning the coffee as it dries and removing defective beans that compromise the coffee quality.
 
The name 'Migoti' comes from a local indigenous tree. 
 
Many thanks to the coffee farmers of Bujumbura, Migoti Coffee Company, and Omwani for allowing me to use their excellent images