Is Rwandan Coffee Famous? The Hardship Behind Starbucks Rwanda Sholi Coffee Bean Introduction

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to the Rwanda Shuli Story

The Story Behind It

This is a coffee bean full of human warmth, produced by a women-led cooperative. The cooperative was founded with the goal of supporting local economic development. Arthur rarely tells his own story, but it deserves to be told.

After Rwanda emerged from ten years of ethnic conflict, Arthur returned to his hometown in 1994 as an advisor to the Ministry of Commerce and Agriculture, devoting himself to social recovery. It was during that period that he worked with the government to lift Rwandan coffee out of its cycle of low yield, low quality and low profit and into the specialty coffee industry.

Arthur was the biggest behind-the-scenes contributor to the birth of the first Rwandan Reserve coffee, and he made it possible for Africa to have its first Starbucks Grower Support Center. The bean traceability system he established let Starbucks connect growers and customers closely across 25 countries.

Arthur Karuletwa comes from Rwanda, south of the African equator. What kind of country is Rwanda? When Arthur was born he did not even have a name. As a child he saw a picture book called "King Arthur" and was deeply inspired by the courage and legend of the ancient British king, so he named himself Arthur. In 1994 Rwanda suffered a shocking civil war and genocide in which approximately one million people lost their lives — about one-eighth of the country's total population. That year, Arthur was still a child.

He survived. But in that catastrophe he lost most of his family.

High altitude and fertile volcanic soil give the country excellent natural conditions for growing coffee. Years of tireless pursuit of excellence have not only made the flavor of local beans renowned, but also opened more room for regional development.

This coffee bean from the equatorial region wins over countless drinkers who prefer fruity flavors with its distinctive tropical fruit character. So what does it taste like?

A bright, grapefruit-like flavor with a pineapple-like sweetness. Starbucks has long been concerned with the fair welfare of growers. This is a bean from the African Shuli Women's Coffee Cooperative, with orange peel and blackberry flavors and a honey-like sweetness. Hand-brewed as black coffee it shows its layered taste best; paired with a Starbucks petite treat, it is as if a garden blooms on the tip of the tongue.

Knowledge Point: Rwandan coffee is processed by independent farmers themselves, so quality is unstable, and it is later mixed with coffee processed by neighboring farms.

In Brief

FrontStreet Coffee is a coffee research hall, happy to share coffee knowledge with everyone. We share without reservation only to let more friends fall in love with coffee, and every month there are 3 low-discount coffee activities. The reason is that FrontStreet Coffee wants more friends to drink the best coffee at the lowest price, which has been FrontStreet Coffee's principle for the past 6 years.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Coffee like this Rwandan Shuli, with its bright grapefruit and pineapple character, is a reminder of how much African washed coffee can offer, and FrontStreet Coffee's Gotingding Cooperative lot is a fine example of the same clean, fruit-driven style. From the Woka area at the southeast edge of Yirgacheffe, it is graded G1 and processed with the traditional washed method, removing the fruit before drying so its own aroma stays especially clear. Expect citrus, lemon and elegant white florals with a bright, delicate cup and no bitterness.

For an introduction with even broader appeal, FrontStreet Coffee's Washed Yirgacheffe delivers jasmine, bright citrus and lemon acidity with a tea-like body at an everyday price — the first specialty bean for many drinkers. And if you would like to explore the sun-dried, tropical side of African coffee, FrontStreet Coffee's Huakui adds cream strawberry, mango, jackfruit, citrus and blueberry over a sweet, low-bitterness, juice-like body.