About This Coffee
Of the 1,500+ active members contributing cherry to Gakuyuini washing station, over a quarter (670+) are women. Together, they harvest around 250 tons of cherry and deliver it to the station each year.
The station is owned and managed by the Thirikwa Farmers’ Cooperative Society. The cooperative is led by 5 democratically elected board members.
Cultivation
Farmers delivering cherry to Gakuyuini typically own less than 1 hectare each. On this small plot, they cultivate both subsistence and cash crops to support their families throughout the year. Each farmer has about 250 coffee trees on average and their trees are typically intercropped with their other crops.
While low yields might mean less profit, many farmers are embracing specialty coffee cultivation as a way to increase the value of each cherry picked.
Farm labor is usually entirely provided by family members, which can often make maintaining specialty cultivation and picking practices easier. Many of the farmers also grow tea, maize and legumes to consume or sell at local markets for additional cash income.
Harvest & Post-Harvest
Farmers hand pick ripe cherry and deliver it to the Gakuyini mill for processing the same day. At the mill, cherry sorting is carried out prior to pulping and ripe cherries are separated from underripes, overripes and foreign matter.
The mill uses clean river water for its processing and recirculates the water before disposing of it in seepage pits. The coffee is then dried in the sun on raised beds before it's delivered to the dry mill for secondary processing.
Farmers selectively handpick ripe cherry and deliver it Gakuyuini Washing Station. Cherry is sorted at intake where under- and over-ripes, along with any foreign matter, are removed.
Sorted cherry is then added to the hopper and pulped. Pulped cherry is fermented for 12 to 16 hours and then washed with clean water to remove any remaining mucilage. While parchment is drying on raised beds, wet parchment is sorted and any damaged beans that remain are removed. It is turned regularly to ensure even drying and covered at the hottest part of the day and during evenings to prevent cracking and/or condensation. Drying time is usually around two weeks, depending on the weather at the time.
About Peaberries
PB stands for peaberry. Peaberry is a name given to a very specific shape of coffee bean. In Spanish, peaberries are called “caracol”, which means “snail”. The name aptly describes the shape of the peaberry bean, which appears slightly curved in on itself.
Peaberries are the result of a natural mutation in the coffee cherry. Whereas there are usually two beans nestled together in each fruit, a cherry with a peaberry mutation only forms one bean. Thus, peaberries are a single, rounder bean.
Peaberry mutations occur in approximately 5% of all coffee. The beans are known for being rounder, smaller and denser, which can contribute to a more even roast color when handled correctly. Many people find peaberries to have a sweeter flavor profile, as well.
Since peaberries are a natural mutation that is not visible from the outside of the cherry, peaberries must be sorted out during the screen grading stage of dry milling. The peaberry screens have the smallest holes, which are oblong to allow the rounder beans to fall through.
Coffee in Kenya
Though coffee growing had a relatively late start in Kenya, the industry has gained and maintained a impressive reputation. Since the start of production, Kenyan coffee has been recognized for its high-quality, meticulous preparation and exquisite flavors. Our in-country sister company, Sucafina Kenya, works with farmers across the country to ensure these exceptional coffees gain the accolades they deserve.
Today, more than 600,000 smallholders farming fewer than 5 acres compose 99% of the coffee farming population of Kenya. Their farms cover more than 75% of total coffee growing land and produce nearly 70% of the country’s coffee. These farmers are organized into hundreds of Farmer Cooperative Societies (FCS), all of which operate at least one factory. The remainder of annual production is grown and processed by small, medium and large land estates. Most of the larger estates have their own washing stations.
Most Kenyan coffees are fully washed and dried on raised beds. The country still upholds its reputation for high quality and attention to detail at its many washing stations. The best factories employ stringent sorting practices at cherry intake, and many of them have had the same management staff in place for years.