Iyego Murang’a PB

Iyego Main was the first factory established by the Iyego Farmers’ Cooperative Society (FCS). Founded in 1959, the cooperative now supports more than 1,600 registered smallholder farmers, with over 900 active members. The factory is located in Kangema, Murang’a County on the slopes of the Aberdare Range. It is situated within a well‑preserved natural ecological zone, home to a wide variety of indigenous plant species.  

Cultivated and processed with a dedication to quality at every stage, for this Fully washed PB lot, expect a bright acidity and complex fruit-forward notes. This coffee is graded as Peaberry (PB), which is well-known for its distinctive shapes and often-sweet cupping profile.  

Farmers delivering to Iyego Factory cultivate primarily SL28, Ruiru 11, Batian and K7 in small coffee gardens that are, on average, smaller than 1 hectare. ‘SL’ varieties are cultivars originally released by Scott Agricultural Laboratories (SAL) in the 1930s and 1940s. They soon became the go-to trees for many growers in Kenya due to their deep root structure, which allows them to maximize scarce water resources and flourish even without irrigation. They are cultivated with a serious eye towards sustainability and Good Agricultural Practices, with minimal environmental impact where possible.  

Batian is a relatively new variety introduced by the Kenya Coffee Research Institute (CRI) in 2010. Batian is named after the highest peak on Mt. Kenya and is resistant to both CBD and CLR. The variety has the added benefit of early maturity, cropping after only two years. Similar to Batian, Ruiru 11 is a new variety known for its disease resistance and high yields. It also starts yielding fruit after just 2 years. 

K7 is an established coffee variety developed by the Kenya Coffee Research Institute. Known for its resistance to Coffee Berry Disease (CBD) and adaptability to varying altitudes, K7 is prized for its robust yield and high-quality cup profile. This variety is also valued for its resilience in diverse growing conditions, making it popular among Kenyan coffee farmers. 

Cherries are selectively handpicked by smallholder farmers and delivered to Iyego Factory. At the factory, cherries are thoroughly sorted to ensure uniform quality and pulped immediately using an eco-pulper. After pulping, coffee is fermented in 12 to 24 hours, depending on the weather. After fermentation, it is soaked for 24 hours in clean water to enhance the coffee's natural sweetness and complexity.  

This soaking stage is traditionally a way to structure post-harvest processing during peak season, when there will be limited space available on drying beds. However, it has been posited that additional benefits derive from the soaking process, such as clarity in the cup and overall longevity of green coffee.  

After soaking, the parchment is laid to dry on raised beds or in a solar drier (covered greenhouses). During the drying process, workers rake parchment frequently to ensure even drying. Defective parchment is sorted and manually removed to ensure uniform quality. If on beds, workers cover drying parchment during the hottest time of day to maintain slow, even drying and at night, to shelter parchment from moisture. Typically, it takes 7 to 21 days for parchment to dry, depending on weather conditions. Once the drying is completed, the parchment is bagged, milled and ready to export.   

SL28 and SL34 were two of the cultivars released by Scott Agricultural Laboratories (SAL) during the height of SAL’s research in Kenya in the 1930s and 1940s. They soon became the cultivars of choice for most growers thanks to their deep root structure that allows them to maximize scarce water resources and flourish even without irrigation. SL varieties also had higher yields than the French Bourbon rootstock that they replaced and were known to be somewhat more disease resistant. 

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. 

Ruiru 11, a hybrid of Catimor and SL cultivars, is both Coffee Berry Disease (CBD) and Coffee Leaf Rust (CLR) resistant. Plus, it can be planted at a much higher density than the SL varieties, making optimal use of small plots of land.

Ruiru 11 has slowly ‘taken root’ across most of Kenya’s coffee growing landscape. The only issues were that with a shallower root structure, many farmers found the plant less hardy in drought conditions, and the trees required a more intense feeding program. Over time, farmers have found that by grafting Ruiru-11 to SL varieties they could take advantage of SL trees’ expansive root system and still reap the increased yields and higher immunity to disease of Ruiru-11.

Due to the grafted Ruiru-11’s growing popularity, most farms in Kenya today, both big and small, have a mixture of Ruiru-11 and SL varieties. As SL trees age, many farmers are opting to turn more towards Ruiru-11 (or the grafting solution) thanks to its ease of use and higher resistance to diseases.

Source: https://varieties.worldcoffeeresearch.org/varieties/ruiru-11 & https://sucafina.com/na/news/think-you-know-kenya-coffee-varieties-think-again

Developed by Kenya's Coffee Research Institute in 2010, Batian is named after the highest peak on Mt. Kenya and is resistant to both coffee berry disease (CBD) and coffee leaf rust (CLR). The variety has the added benefit of early maturity – cropping after only two years. Some challenges (such as vegetative structure) have prevented it from becoming widespread so far, but its popularity is certainly growing.

Murang’a lies just south of Nyeri and backs onto the temperate slopes of the Aberdare Mountain range on its western borders. Fertile red volcanic soil provides plenty of nutrients for growing trees while warm daytime and cooler nighttime temperatures create the best environment for beans to develop slowly and amass as much sugar as possible.

Farms in the county tend to be small, and farmers cultivate coffee on small plots alongside other food crops.

K7 is found mostly in Kenya and Tanzania and is known for its resistance to Coffee Leaf Rust (CLR) and Coffee Berry Disease (CBD). The variety also has high yields and good cup potential at high altitudes. The plant is recognizable by its branch’s widespread.

K7 was selected from seedlings on Legetet Estate in Muhorohi, an estate owned by a man named R.H. Walker. In Kenya, K7 is less common in high-altitude areas, but it remains a popular choice in some lower-altitude regions due to its slight resistance to CLR.