What is Kenyan Coffee Grading? How to Drink Kenyan Coffee & What are its Characteristics?

Kenya: A Premier Coffee Producer

Located in East Africa, Kenya is one of the world's major coffee-producing countries, with roughly six million people working in the industry. The sector operates mainly through a combination of smallholders, washing stations, and cooperatives. Kenyan coffee is predominantly processed by the washed method, with coffee trees cultivated at elevations ranging from 1,400 to 2,000 meters in mountainous regions. The main growing regions include Ruiri, Thika, Kirinyaga, Mt. Kenya West, Nyeri, Kiambu, and Muranga, with the foothills of Mt. Kenya and the Aberdare range serving as the primary production areas.

A Model Nation for Quality Coffee Production

Kenya stands as a model nation for producing excellent beans. The country grows high-altitude washed Arabica that ranks among the finest coffees in the world. Most beans undergo unified grading and inspection by the Kenya Coffee Board before being sold at auction. The board maintains extremely strict standards for research, development, and quality management. An outstanding auction system raises bean prices and helps smallholders, while agricultural education continually updates and improves farmers' techniques, further raising the quality of the crop.

Kenyan Coffee Grading System

Kenyan coffee is graded by both bean size and flavor profile.

Bean size grading: Classified as AA, AB, and PB. AA grade consists of beans sized 17 and 18 screen, AB grade comprises 15 and 16 screen beans, and PB refers to peaberries.

Flavor grades: Ranked in sequence as TOP, PLUS, and FAQ. FAQ stands for "Fair to Average Quality" and may contain some slightly defective beans that do not affect the overall flavor.

Kenyan Coffee Varieties

The main varieties in Kenya are SL28 and SL34, cultivated and named by Scott Laboratories in 1930. According to SL laboratory botanists, both SL28 and SL34 are genetic variants. SL28 carries a mixed heritage of French Mission, Mocha, and Yemeni Typica. The original goal in developing SL28 was to mass-produce beans that combined high quality with resistance to disease and pests. Although SL28's yields were not as high as hoped, its copper-colored leaves and broad bean shape produce wonderful sweetness, balance, and complex, varied flavors, with notable citrus and dark plum character.

SL34 shares similar flavors with SL28 but, beyond its complex acidity and excellent sweet finish, has a heavier, more full-bodied, and cleaner cup. SL34 carries French Mission, Bourbon, and more Typica heritage. While similar in appearance to SL28, it adapts better to sudden heavy rainfall. These two important varieties are what introduced the world to the unique character of Kenyan coffee.

Production Methods

All beans are processed through depulping, dry fermentation, washing, and sun-drying.

Green Bean Processing

Coffee cherries are hand-selected by farmers, who remove overripe or unripe fruit before processing begins. A 3-disc Aagaarde depulper removes the skin and pulp, after which machines sort the beans by density into three grades. Grades 1 and 2 are fermented separately, while grade 3 consists of lower-quality beans. The beans ferment in a shaded area for approximately 24-36 hours. After fermentation they are washed and sorted again by density in the washing channels, then soaked in clean water overnight.

Drying Process

The beans are sun-dried for 12-20 days on African raised beds. Drying time is adjusted according to the weather, and the beans are covered with plastic sheets at noon and at night to protect against rain.

Terroir

Altitude: 900-1,800 meters (Kenya's volcanic highland terrain)

Soil: Primarily clay loam and volcanic red soil. Clay loam appears mainly in the highlands and on steep volcanic slopes, formed from volcanic rock. Compared with other tropical soils, it has superior chemical and physical properties.

Brewing Recommendations

FrontStreet Coffee suggests the following brewing parameters for Kenyan coffee:

V60 / 91°C / 1:15 ratio / time: 2 minutes 15 seconds

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

To taste what Kenyan grading and washing are all about, FrontStreet Coffee's Kenya Cherry Tomato is one of the finest examples of the style. Kenya is especially known for double-washing its green coffee: the beans are floated and soaked in water, washed to clear the residual mucilage from the surface, soaked again, then sun-dried, hulled, and stored. Through that repeated rinsing and soaking, the juice-like quality is pushed to the extreme. The cup carries a rich array of aromas, including cherry tomato, smoked plum, snow pear, black plum, and yellow sugar, with a sweet-and-sour, mouth-watering body that many coffee enthusiasts count among their favorites.

Because that vivid fruit acidity is the point, a careful brew makes all the difference. Keep the water around the suggested 91°C and use a steady, moderate grind, and the layered cherry-tomato and plum notes will come through cleanly without the bitterness that hides them.