Summer has finally arrived in London, home to the Square Mile roastery, and with it comes Mwirua Mitondo from Kenya’s Kirinyaga County. Sparkling, with notes of red currant and nectarine, this juicy cup is exactly what summer moments call for. The washed processing highlights the purity and clarity for which Kenyan coffees are so famous, and the lively acidity keeps the entire profile fresh and light from the first sip through to the long, fruity aftertaste.
The Kirinyaga region lies on the southern slopes of Mount Kenya and is one of Kenya’s most respected coffee-growing areas, where fertile volcanic soil and a cooler climate give the coffee its characteristic body and juiciness. Coffee is supplied here by thousands of small-scale growers, most of whom farm small plots with a few hundred coffee trees; they are united by the Mwirua Farmers’ Cooperative Society, which has been in operation since 1954 and manages several processing stations, including Mitonda. The cooperative provides its members with shared facilities, centralized processing, and access to global markets, while also focusing on educating farmers and developing the local community. A blend of classic Kenyan varieties— SL-28, SL-34, Ruiru 11, and Batian—is grown here, and together they make Kenyan coffee so exceptional.
The coffee undergoes a washed processing method, which is typical for Kenyan stations and is responsible for its purity and clarity. Hand-harvested cherries are transported to the Mitondo station on the same day, where they are sorted and pulped. The beans are then fermented in water tanks until all remaining pulp is released, and subsequently rinsed thoroughly in channels, where they are also sorted by density. Drying takes place slowly on elevated African drying beds, where the beans are turned regularly to ensure even drying and preserve their freshness and fruity character.