What Coffee Varieties Are Mainly Grown in Kenya? What Are the Characteristics of SL28 and SL34 Varieties?

Kenyan coffee has long been renowned worldwide for its clean, refreshing taste and rich, bright fruit acidity, beloved by many coffee industry professionals. Such abundant flavors are attributed to Kenya's rich natural resources. Kenya is located in the "coffee growing belt" with extremely suitable climatic conditions. Coffee is primarily grown in Kenya's volcanic mountainous regions at altitudes of 1,600-2,100 meters, influenced by the abundant phosphates in volcanic soil, giving coffee its rich fruity acidity.

However, besides environmental and climatic conditions, coffee varieties are also crucial. Initially in the late 19th century, French missionaries introduced coffee to Kenya for cultivation. At that time, the coffee seeds were Bourbon varieties from Réunion Island. Later, Kenya also successively introduced varieties such as Kent from India and Typica from Jamaica's Blue Mountains, but none achieved ideal results. It was not until later coffee varieties emerged that Kenyan coffee became famous worldwide.

SL Series

Due to the low yield and susceptibility to coffee diseases of introduced varieties, Kenya commissioned the Scott Agricultural Laboratory (now known as the National Agricultural Research Laboratories, NARL) to conduct variety breeding. Over the next four years, the Scott Agricultural Laboratory selected 42 different coffee tree species from various origins, researching yield, quality, and disease resistance. These 42 varieties were all named with SL (abbreviation of the laboratory name) as a prefix followed by a number. Eventually, among these 42 varieties, SL14, SL28, and SL34 stood out.

Recent genetic testing has confirmed that SL28 is related to the Bourbon genome, while SL14 and SL34 are related to the Typica genome. Among them, SL28 and SL34 have similar cultivation characteristics: high yield, easy to grow, suitable for medium to high altitude regions, and excellent flavor. Although both are susceptible to diseases, their high yield and excellent flavor are highly favored by farmers, making these two varieties the most popular in Kenya. Meanwhile, SL14 has drought-resistant and high-yield characteristics but is slightly inferior in flavor compared to SL28 and SL34. Therefore, only a small number of people grow it in Kenya, though SL14 is more widely promoted in Uganda.

Ruiru 11

Although the SL series is very popular, it is susceptible to coffee diseases and pests. In 1968, Coffee Berry Disease (CBD) destroyed more than half of Kenya's coffee production, prompting the government to begin developing other coffee varieties with more disease resistance and climate adaptability, including Ruiru 11. This variety was a new variety developed by Kenyan agricultural experts at the Ruiru Laboratory, hence named Ruiru. It was the first variety developed by Kenya and was a single-direction cross, with the two 1s combining to become 11.

This variety is a complex variety composed of multiple varieties including Catimor, Rume Sudan, Bourbon, K7, N39, SL28, and SL34. It has very high disease resistance and also high yield, but its flavor still lacks the uniqueness of SL28 and SL34. Additionally, it requires manual pollination for large-scale cultivation, making it difficult to produce sufficient quantities of seeds to meet farmer demand.

Batian

Later, in 2010, the Kenyan Coffee Research Center released a new coffee variety, Batian. It was created by backcrossing Ruiru 11 progeny with SL28 and SL34, a newly recreated complex variety. It also has high disease resistance and high yield characteristics, with good flavor, hence named after Kenya's highest peak, Batian. Although the Batian variety performs excellently, most Kenyan farmers still prefer the traditional SL28 and SL34 varieties, and Batian has not yet been widely cultivated.

Therefore, Kenyan coffee beans on the current market are still predominantly SL28 and SL34. FrontStreet Coffee's Kenyan coffee comes from the Thika region, using SL28 and SL34 varieties, processed with the K72 washed method. After brewing, it exhibits flavors of cherry tomatoes and dark plums, with bright acidity, prominent sweetness, a juicy sensation, and a clean mouthfeel.

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