Burundi Kinyovu: Sample Coffee Roasters

Burundi
Kinyovu

Our first washed coffee from Burundi on the shelves in a while! This brew is clean and citric, reminding us of ruby grapefruit and blood orange.

Body Acidity

Roasted omni for filter and espresso

Jordy, from Osito (the importing company bringing this coffee, believes “this is one of the first seasons for naming a lot from Kinyovu Hill, a mountain near the Heza Washing Station in Kayanza.” However, he notes that a small amount of cherries in this lot come from neighbouring Gishubi and Mutana Hill.

Looking down from the top of the Heza Washing Station site (where this coffee was processed). The top end is next to the road and where all cherries are delivered, sorted and weighed, as well as the warehouse for storing dried parchment until milling. Coffee is walked up and around this hill through the various stages of processing—strong legs and big lungs required! (Image by David - Osito)

The cherries in this lot were delivered to the Heza Washing Station, which processes them by pumping spring water from a nearby natural spring. Upon arrival, these were hand-sorted for ripeness, then mechanically pulped and double-fermented in open concrete tanks: the parchment spent around 12 hours dry fermenting, then underwent a 24-hour wet fermentation. This parchment is sometimes ‘footed’ after fermentation, which helps loosen any remaining mucilage clinging to it.

Then, the parchment was rinsed in fresh water, graded by density and left to soak for another 4-6 hours in the final rinse tank. Later, it was carried to covered drying tables where it spent 2 days pre-drying (during this time, it was hand-picked for under-ripeness, over-ripeness, insect damage and visual defects). Finally, it was moved to traditional African raised tables where it spent 26 slow drying until it reached the ideal 10.5% moisture level.

Sourcing and ingredients

100% Red Bourbon coffee beans, provided by Osito and roasted by us on Gadigal land / Sydney.

Country grade: AA (Burundi) ?

Packaging

Bag: ABA Certified home compostable
Label: Recyclable
Valve (on bags larger than 250g): General waste
Coffee ordered online is shipped in a recyclable cardboard box

Brewing this coffee

We recommend brewing this coffee 15–49 days post-roast. If pre-ground, brew as soon as possible. Our advice on storing coffee.

1:3
dose:yield
ratio

To brew on espresso, we recommend using 20g of beans (dose) to get 60g of espresso out (yield), during 24-28 seconds.

g dose

g yield

View the how to brew espresso (single origin) guide.

1:16.7
beans:water
ratio

To brew in infusion/fed brewers (V60, Chemex) use a ratio of 1:16.7 ratio of beans:water.

g beans

g water

View full recipes and videos in our brewguides

1:14.3
beans:water
ratio

To brew in immersion brewers (plunger, AeroPress, Kalita, batch brewer) we recommend using a 1:14.3 ratio of beans:water

g beans

g water

View full recipes and videos in our brewguides

1:12
beans:water
ratio

To brew as cold brew we recommend using a 1:12 ratio of beans:water

g beans

g water

View full recipes and videos in our brewguides

Producer: Heza Washing Station
Country: Burundi
Region: Kayanza
Altitude: 2100-2200m above sea level
Varietals: Red Bourbon
Process: Washed
Harvested: June 2023
Body
Acidity
Tasting notes: Ruby grapefruit, blood orange
Roast style: Omni

Varietals

Red Bourbon varietal

The location

Coffee from Burundi

Coffee first arrived in Burundi in the 1920s while the country was still under Belgian colonial rule. Since the civil war in 1993 Burundi has placed a great importance on growing the coffee industry and the flow on effects that will have on the country’s economy.

The Kayanza region of Burundi

Northern region near the Rwandan border

Farm processes

Washed process

Machines are used to remove the flesh from the coffee cherry before being fermented in water, washed again, and finally sun dried. This process tends to result in more distinct, cleaner flavours.