Mugano, Burundi

In the heart of Burundi, the Gitega, Rutana and Bururi provinces join together at the peaks of an impressive mountain range. Here, the Cup of Excellence award-winning Mahonda washing station sources coffee cherries from local high-elevation smallholder farmers of the region, processing the fruit into some of the best Burundian coffee we’ve yet to taste.

This particular lot, Mugano, was selected from the top harvests of about 40 local farmers. They utilize many of the specialty coffee industry’s best practices, in part because these farmers have been receiving competitive premium prices for their high-quality coffee cherries. This is one of the last washing stations to open in the area, because at this elevation, while flowering happens at the same time as other trees in the central region, cherries take longer to mature.

That extra time generates more complex sugars, bringing a natural sweetness to the coffee. Cooler weather also means a longer fermentation period of 16 to 18 hours rather than the standard 12 to 14 hours of others.