Rwanda Kigali Natural - Green

$ 12.60

Country: Rwanda
Region: Various
Varietal: Bourbon
Process: Natural
Altitude: 1,500 - 2,000 MASL
Cupping Notes: Black Cherry, Apricot, Plum, Honey
Recommended Roast:City to Full City
Good For:Pour Over, Auto Drip, Espresso

Description: Rwanda is often referred to as the “Land of a Thousand Hills”, known for its nutrient-rich soil and high elevations, it’s an oasis for growing coffee. For this lot, smallholders deliver cherries to washing stations in some of the best producing regions, and are grown at elevations between 1,500 and 2,000 meters above sea level. Farmers contributing to this lot benefit from a sustainability partnership that sponsors training for good agricultural practices, access to loans, and farm inputs and services like soil analysis and distributing seedlings.

After purchasing cherry from producers, washing stations send the cherry through a strict sorting process. First, washing station staff remove any lower quality cherry through flotation. Then, a specially trained staff visually inspects the remaining cherry for any visual defects.  After selection and rinsing, the cherries go straight to the raised beds. They are spread out in a very thin layer and raked frequently to ensure even drying. It takes around 3 weeks for the cherries to dry on the raised beds

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Dark Cherry Magic - Clean, Juicy, and Forgiving

This Rwanda Kigali Natural is phenomenal green coffee. What I get in the cup is dark cherry magic - not candy-sweet, not sour, but that perfectly ripe cherry note that fills your mouth and lingers. Stupidly smooth body and it’s juicy, clean, and vivid without any funky natural-process edge. Here is what worked for me, although YMMV:

• Aillio Bullet, 2 lb / ~900 g
• Goal: City → City+ (keep the fruit vivid)
• Target: 9:00–10:00 total | Development: 1:20–1:35 (≈14–16%)
• Drum: D9 throughout

Preheat/Soak
1. Preheat to IBTS 255°C
2. Heat soak 12–15 minutes
3. Ready state: F2

Charge
4. Charge at P9/F2/D9

Drying Phase
5. Hold P9 / F2 / D9 to yellow
6. Target yellow at ~4:15–4:45
7. At yellow: drop to P8 (keep F2)

Maillard
8. At ~155–160°C IBTS: raise to F3
9. At ~165–170°C IBTS: drop to P7 (hold F3)

First Crack Protection
10. At ~190–195°C IBTS: set P6 / F3 (pre-crack)
11. At first crack start: raise to F4 and hold P6
12. If RoR dips at crack: go F4 → F3 first; if needed, bump P7 for 20–30 sec, then return P6

Development & Drop
13. Develop 1:20–1:35
14. Drop at 202–205°C IBTS

Cup Notes
For me this is ripe dark cherry front and center: juicy, clean, and incredibly satisfying. It’s the kind of natural that doesn’t taste “natural” in the funky way; it tastes precise.
I just ordered five pounds more…