You can’t order summer. Unfortunately, we can’t deliver red currants picked straight from the bush, a bowl of raspberries from the garden, or an afternoon when you don’t have to do a thing. But Kenya from the HAYB roastery is the closest thing that fits into a coffee package. In your cup, you’ll find red currants, juicy raspberries, and citrus, which brightens the entire profile and keeps it fresh from the first sip to the very last. No gimmicks, no forced exoticism—just ripe fruit and a lightness that brings to mind lounging in the sun. And if you feel like this is what summer at Grandma’s tasted like, you’re not far from the truth.
The beans come from the Kirinyaga region, which lies on the slopes below Mount Kenya. It was the region’s original Kikuyu name, Kirinyaga, that gave the entire area its name. The coffee here is grown by members of a cooperative founded back in 1953; today, there are about 3 ,507 members. Each farmer cultivates roughly 1 hectare of land, where, alongside coffee trees, they also grow crops for their own families, making them truly small-scale growers. The soil is volcanic and exceptionally fertile; the plantations are located at an elevation of 1,700 to 1,900 meters above sea level, and annual rainfall ranges from 1 ,600 to 1,900 millimeters. Under these conditions, the SL28 and SL34 varieties—bred in the 1930s at Scott Laboratories—thrive and are still considered the gold standard of Kenyan coffee. The harvest is done by hand, and each bean is sorted just as carefully by hand.
After harvesting, the coffee undergoes the classic washed processing method, which is typical for Kenya and is the foundation of the region’s reputation. The cherries are first stripped of their skin and pulp; the beans are then fermented in water tanks, where the remaining sweet layer of mucilage breaks down naturally; and finally, they are thoroughly rinsed and slowly sun-dried. It is a water- and labor-intensive process, but the reward is absolute purity. In the cup, nothing is masked by fermentation or experimentation; the flavor is crystal-clear and distinct, with a lively acidity that allows the fruity notes to come through naturally and effortlessly. It is precisely this authentic classic that demonstrates why washed Kenyan coffee remains a sure bet.