Foundry Coffee Roasters: Ruvumbu - Rwanda - Washed

In the cup, you can expect some seriously satisfying flavours. Stewed red fruits and sweet sticky toffee notes make this a most comforting and delicious coffee which is guaranteed to give you that warm feeling inside however you brew it.

Rwanda is blessed with ideal coffee growing conditions that include high altitude, regular rainfall, volcanic soils with good organic structure and an abundance of Bourbon. The vast majority of Rwandan coffee is produced by smallholders of which there are thought to be around half a million with parcels of land often not much larger than just one hectare per family.

Coffee is grown in most parts of the country, with particularly large concentrations along Lake Kivu and in the southern province. Rwandan smallholders organise themselves into cooperatives and share the services of centralised wet-mills – or washing stations as they are known locally. Flowering takes place between September and October and the harvest runs from March to July, with shipments starting in August through December.

The Ruvumbu washing station is situated in the southwest corner of the country on the mountainous shores of Lake Kivu. Like many other washing stations in Rwanda, Ruvumbu started life as a cooperatively run endeavour, which has since seen investment by private owners and management. Justin Musabyimana - a local farm owner and manager of the Mahembe washing station, also in Nyamasheke - took over in 2014.

Under Musabyimana's ownership, Ruvumbu has gone from strength to strength. In addition to increased volume, the station is producing some of the best quality coffee in Rwanda: Ruvumbu took 3rd place overall in the 2014 Rwanda Cup of Excellence Competition, and was given a Presidential Award at the event for receiving a cupping score above 90 points.

For filter or Aeropress we use a 14.5g dose. For espresso, in our cafe, we use 15g doses in a 15g VST basket. Yield was 34g and the shot was taking around 43 seconds whcih includes a 6 second pre-infusion.