About This Coffee
Members of Thangaini Farmers’ Cooperative Society (FCS) cultivate coffee at 1,340 to 1,900 meters above sea level. Their farms are small, approximately 200 to 300 trees on average. Conditions in Murang’a are ideal for cultivating sweet, dense cherry. The factory’s emphasis on high-quality processing preserves and develops the brown sugar sweetness and fruit and floral notes we love about this coffee.
Cultivation
Farmers delivering to Thangaini factory cultivate primarily SL28 and SL34 in small coffee gardens that are, on average, smaller than 1 hectares. ‘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 to sustainability and Good Agricultural Practices, with minimal environmental impact where possible.
Harvest & Post-Harvest
Smallholders selectively handpick only ripe cherry and deliver it to Thangaini Factory. At intake, the Cherry Clerk oversees meticulous visual sorting and floating, accepting only dense, ripe cherry.
After intake, cherry is pulped and fermented for approximately 48 hours. Following fermentation, coffee is washed clean water. Then, parchment is laid to dry on raised beds. Workers rake parchment frequently to ensure even drying. They cover drying parchment during the hottest time of day, to maintain slow, even drying and at night, to shelter parchment from moisture.
About Murang’a
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.
AB Grade
Kenyan coffees are classified by size. AB beans are those that are between screen size 15 and 18 meaning that beans are between 6 and 7 millimeters in size.
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.