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Rwanda Coffee: Bright and Clean African Rwandan Coffee Beans

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style). FrontStreet Coffee - Rwanda Coffee Introduction: Rwanda in Africa seems to be rarely heard of in the coffee world, possessing one of East Africa's most tragic coffee histories. The story goes like this: after the tragic genocidal civil war in the 1990s, this has become a high-quality coffee production area, producing premium

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For more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style)

FrontStreet Coffee - Rwanda Coffee Introduction

Rwanda in Africa seems to be less heard of in the coffee world, having one of the most tragic coffee histories in East Africa. The story goes like this: after the tragic genocidal civil war in the 1990s, this became a high-quality coffee production area, where the high-quality coffee produced is actually closely intertwined with the rise of the people. Many of these are called "Land of a Thousand Hills," as they use high-altitude coffee cultivation at elevations of 1700 to 2000 meters. Rwandan coffee can be world-class. They often have the best clean and bright flavors comparable to Central American coffees. Rwandan coffee is more balanced than Kenyan flavors, with tempting mature fruit sweetness, floral notes, and a tea-like appearance.

Coffee is grown in many regions of Rwanda, but most coffee comes from the southern and western parts of the country. Many farms are situated at altitudes of 1700-2000 MASL. From the northern region of Gisenyi to the central regions of Kibuye and Nyamasheke, and then to Cyangugu, coffee is cultivated along Lake Kivu. In the south, there is much production near Butare. Coffee cultivation in the north is more limited, with many coffee farms in the Rulindo region north of the capital Kigali. The east also produces considerable volume, but most is grown at lower altitudes of about 1300 meters.

The government encourages large-scale, unprocessed coffee production. Even with low coffee yields, coffee remains an important player in the country's economic development as it is one of the few cash crops. However, with the crash of world coffee prices in the international market, the push to export low-grade Arabica beans becomes increasingly meaningless. Historically, Rwanda was once the 9th largest Arabica coffee producer in Africa, with 500,000 small farms averaging less than 1 hectare in size.