Burundi
Rama Washing Station

Washed process Bourbon, Jackson, Mibirizi

Flavour: rich chocolate, green grape, soft florals

Body: Acidity:

Emmanuel Ngendakumana manages the washing station in the Rama village of Kayanza, Burundi. This washing station is particularly driven to produce quality. After harvesting, the coffee is depulped the same day and fermented underwater for 18–24 hours. Then the coffee is washed and spread out to dry on raised beds for an average of 20 days, weather conditional.

Due to the small size and yield on the average coffee farm or plot, washing stations are the primary point of purchase for us in Burundi. Unlike other coffee-growing regions in Central and South America where landholdings are slightly larger and coffee-centric resources are more available, most producers do not have space on their property or the financial means to do their wet- or dry-milling.

Instead, the majority of growers deliver cherry to a facility that does sorting, blending, and post- harvest processing of day lots to create different offerings.

Sourcing and ingredients

100% Bourbon, Jackson, and Mibirizi coffee beans, provided by Cafe Imports and roasted by us on Gadigal land / Sydney.

Country grade: Unknown ?

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: Various Smallholder Farmers
Country: Burundi
Region: Rama, Buyenzi, Kayanza
Altitude: 1580m above sea level
Varietals: Bourbon, Jackson, and Mibirizi
Process: washed
Harvested: July 2019
Body: Medium
Acidity: Bright
Tasting notes: Rich chocolate, green grape, soft florals
Roast style: Omni (filter + espresso)

Varietals

Bourbon varietal

A natural mutation of the Typica varietal, Bourbon is named after Reunion Island (then known as Il Bourbon) where the French cultivated the Typica plants which naturally mutated.

Jackson varietal

The varieties known as Jackson, Kent, Coorg, and Mysore—all originating from the same region in India—are most likely late descendant of the first coffee seeds out of Yemen brought to India by Baba Budan in 1670. Recent genetic tests have confirmed that Jackson is related to the Bourbon genetic group.

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.

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.