Kivu Cyato

250g

For Filter Brew

Pomegranate + Grapefruit + Brown Sugar

Rwanda - Nyamasheke

Red Bourbon variety, Washed

We are very excited to share this 100% Red Bourbon lot with you from the breathtaking and promising Nyamasheke District, which is located by Lake Kivu in the Western Province of Rwanda.

This 100% Red Bourbon coffee lot was produced by 27 smallholder producers who farm coffee in the area surrounding Cyato washing station, which was established in 2017 and is one of three washing stations owned and operated by Tropic Coffee Company. Day to day operations at Cyato are overseen by the station manager, Jean Pierre Hakizimana, who ensures that the coffees are harvested and processed with meticulous care.

Cyato sits at 1,930m above sea level, overlooking the beautiful landscape of this unique coffee-growing region. The farms that supply cherry to Cyato washing station are very small – averaging just a quarter of a hectare – and situated at staggeringly high elevations up to 2,200m above sea level. Coffee is grown as a cash crop, alongside subsistence food crops like maize, beans and sorghum and some livestock like goats and chickens.

The coffees that make up this lot were grown alongside the beautiful Lake Kivu, a fresh-water lake situated at 1,460m above sea level. The lake is responsible for the nutrient-rich, silty and sandy soil of the surrounding area, and contributes to the cool and steady climate of the region, with year-round temperatures sitting between 22°C-25°C. This cool climate is ideal for the slow ripening of coffee cherries, leading to denser beans and a sweeter, more complex cup profile.
 

The region is also home to Nyungwe Forest, which is one of the oldest rainforests in Central Africa and home to a rich biodiversity of native flora and fauna. Coffee farmers in the area avoid using synthetic fertilisers or pesticides, instead allowing native honeybees from Nyungwe to pollinate the coffee trees. This interaction between bees and coffee is very beneficial for the propagation of the plant and results in an increased yield (by up to 60%), more uniformity between cherries and a unique, distinctive character in the cup profile.