Where Are Kenyan Coffee Beans Grown? The Lingering Acidity of Kenyan Coffee

FrontStreet Coffee - Kenya Coffee Introduction

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Kenya is an important force in the East African coffee growing region. Whether in terms of coffee quality or business strategy, Kenya stands out as a leader. The excellent coffee produced here features clear, bright, and elevated flavors that resonate across the entire palate. The flavor profile is complex and rich, with intriguing fruit notes (berries, citrus) and even emerging spice flavors. Clean, bright, and with rare wine-like (grapefruit) characteristics.

Most of Kenya's coffee crops grow in the fertile, loose, acidic volcanic red soil of the highlands north and east of Nairobi. This area enjoys abundant sunlight and good drainage, with elevations ranging from 1400 to 2000 meters. Due to the greater temperature difference between day and night at higher altitudes, Kenyan coffee has a longer maturation period than lower altitude growing regions, resulting in higher density and more intense flavors. Kenyan coffee, cultivated under such conditions and known as the "Connoisseurs' Cup," is renowned for its rich aroma, vibrant acidity, full body, and elegant wine-like flavors.

Double Fermentation

In addition to unique varieties, Kenya's processing method is exceptional. This method differs from other washed processing methods in Central and South America. The washing tanks have two levels: upper and lower. In the evening, harvested coffee cherries are first sorted to remove defects, then after pulping, the sticky parchment coffee is poured into the upper fermentation tank. After fermenting overnight (some use dry fermentation without water), the parchment coffee is washed once in the morning to remove most mucilage, then transferred to the lower clean water tank for secondary fermentation, with circulating water replaced every few hours to prevent spoilage. Finally, it's moved to water channels to remove remaining mucilage.

The secondary fermentation plus washing takes thirty-six hours, and this isn't all—the cleaned parchment coffee is then soaked in clean water tanks for more than twelve hours. Kenya's washing process takes at least forty-eight hours and sometimes up to seventy-two hours, several times more labor-intensive than the typical twenty hours in Central and South America, requiring more labor and wastewater, with relatively higher costs.

Kenyan Coffee Growing Regions

Kenya's coffee is famous for seven major growing regions: Thika, Kirinyaga, Mt. Kenya West, Nyeri, Kiambu, Ruiri, and Muranga.

The foothills of Mt. Kenya and Aberdare are the main growing areas.

Knowledge Point: Kenya's coffee growing regions are mainly distributed in the Central Province, Eastern Province, Rift Valley Province, Western Province, and Nyanza Province.

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