How Kenya PB Coffee Came to Be and How Kenya Coffee Bean Grades Are Classified

Pour-over Kenya: 15g of coffee grounds, medium-fine grind (Fuji ghost tooth grinder setting 3.5), V60 dripper, water temperature 91-93°C. First pour with 30g of water for a 27-second bloom, then pour to 105g and pause. Wait until the water level drops halfway, then slowly pour until reaching 225g total. Discard the tail end. Water-to-coffee ratio 1:15, extraction time 2:00.

Kenya Nyeri Gaturiri Peaberry

Country: Kenya

Grade: TOP PB

Region: Nyeri

Roast level: Light roast

Processing method: Washed

Varieties: SL 28, SL 34

Processing station: Thaguri Processing Station

Flavor notes: Black plum, green grapes, cherry tomatoes

Kenya Nyeri Thagrini Peaberry Farm Introduction

Selected and bred by French and British missionaries and researchers in Kenya in the early 20th century, these are direct descendants of Bourbon. Over a century, they have adapted to Kenya's high-concentration phosphate soil, giving rise to the unique acidic character of Kenyan coffee beans, distinct from Bourbon beans in Central and South America. This Kenyan native variety was created in 1930 by Scott Laboratories (SL for short). Agronomists sought a Bourbon variety resistant to diseases and pests with high yield, and through experiments obtained SL28. SL28 is a genetic variant with mixed lineage from French missionaries, Mocha, and Yemeni Typica. The original goal of breeding SL28 was to mass-produce coffee beans that combined high quality with disease and pest resistance. Although SL28's yield later fell short of expectations, its copper-colored leaves and bean-shaped beans offer wonderful sweetness, balance, complex and varied flavors, and distinctive citrus and black plum characteristics. This important variety introduces us to the unique Kenyan style: intense, rich fruit acidity, full body, and beautiful balance. Kenya AA is one of these.

SL28 is a delicious variety suitable for growing in medium to high altitude areas with little leaf rust disease, yielding 1.8 tons of green beans per hectare. Only when you taste the charming plum-like acidity can you truly appreciate this Kenyan national treasure.

Many people know Kenya AA as the most common symbol of Kenyan coffee in the domestic market. Actually, AA is a grade of Kenyan coffee, with lower grades including AB, and above it AA+ and AA TOP (top grade). If coffee beans are marked only AA, it generally means this coffee is unified AA grade beans without a specific farm or cooperative origin, and the flavor may not be the best - it only indicates that the bean shape meets standards and has good appearance. If the label mentions specific farms, cooperatives, or even purchasers, however, then these beans are worth trying whether they are AA or AB grade.

Located in East Africa, Kenya is one of the major coffee-producing countries, with approximately 6 million people nationwide engaged in the coffee industry, mostly as small farmers and cooperatives. Kenya's coffee trees are mostly grown at altitudes of 1,400-2,000 meters, with growing regions including Ruiri, Thika, Kirinyaga, Mt. Kenya West, Nyeri, Kiambu, and Muranga, primarily on the foothills of Mt. Kenya and Aberdare. Many coffee-producing regions in Kenya strive to preserve native forest ecosystems, protect natural gene banks, support wild coffee variety propagation, and nurture diverse coffee trees.

Region Introduction

This green bean comes from the Thaguri Processing Station in Nyeri, produced by surrounding family farms on 0.5 acres (approximately 2,023 square meters) of land with about 250 coffee trees planted. Nyeri has historically been a classic coffee-producing region in Kenya, relying on Mount Kenya and enjoying an excellent environment for coffee growing. Most Kenyan coffee comes from small-scale farmers (about 65%) and large farms (about 35%).

Flavor: classic Kenyan flavor - rich, high body, caramel, blackcurrant, apple, clean, with a long aftertaste and plenty of tropical fruit and fresh citrus aroma. The sweetness is like holding mango, plum, and other preserves in your mouth. The refreshing lime aroma that emerges at medium to low temperatures is like drinking frozen fruit tea. A very distinctive cherry tomato flavor, full of the passionate and bold character of African beans.

Now let me introduce PB - the full name is Peaberry, often called round beans. Usually a coffee fruit contains two seeds, the common coffee beans we see, with one side curved and one side flat, similar to a peanut, which we call flat beans. Round beans occur when there is only one coffee bean in a coffee fruit, and the bean shape is oval. They account for a very small proportion of the whole coffee tree's fruit. Round beans are all selected one by one by hand, ensuring overall quality, so it is not surprising that they taste good.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If Kenya's vivid, juicy acidity is what you are after, FrontStreet Coffee's Kenya Small Tomato is a standout. It is a Kenyan specialty washed bean built around cherry tomato and dried plum acidity with a full, juicy body. It comes from the Thika region at 1,550-1,750 meters, uses the classic SL28 and SL34 varieties, and is given Kenya's signature 72-hour double-wash fermentation to draw out fruit aroma while keeping the cup clean. FrontStreet Coffee roasts it light to preserve the lively acidity: the dry aroma already shows dried cherry tomato and florals, the entry brings clear cherry tomato and dried plum, the middle is sweet with pear and black plum, and it closes on brown sugar and a faint green tea note.

For comparison, FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe Gudingding shows the softer, floral end of African coffee - jasmine and bright citrus over a tea-like finish - while FrontStreet Coffee's Huakui (Flower Queen) swings the other way, with tropical strawberry, passion fruit, jackfruit, and lychee aromas and a low-bitterness, juicy body.

To get the most from these beans, brew on a Hario V60. A Tokyo glassware maker founded in 1921 reworked the design in 2004 around its 60° cone and single large hole, so water travels to the center before dropping through, extending contact with the grounds and drawing out aroma and flavor. FrontStreet Coffee favors the resin version for heat retention and precise molding. Keep the grind medium-fine and the water hot to let that Kenyan acidity sing.