When faced with challenges in exporting coffee, relying on trusted local organisations at origin becomes crucial. Often comprising producers or community bodies, these groups play a pivotal role in facilitating the export process, especially in cases where direct purchase from producers is not feasible. In these cases, we must always choose wisely, supporting companies that share our core values by investing back into the community where the coffee has grown.
In the selection process, requesting sample materials during harvest time allows us to get an idea of the coffee's quality and what we think our customers will enjoy. It is best practice (and our strict protocol) to implement blind cupping, comparing multiple coffees side by side from the same region, or country, and of a similar quality standard. This method of evaluation, involving detailed notes and group discussions, aids in selecting the finest coffees from various regions and quality standards, sourced from trusted producers or export partners.
This year, when it came time to select something delicious from Rwanda, we discovered this lot from the Mushonyi Washing Station, standing out with it's softly spiced flavours, notes of rich cooked fruit and snappy citric acid.
We were pleasantly surprised when the coffee selected as the sweetest, cleanest, most delicious coffee on the cupping table also represented a local tree rejuvenation initiative created by our Rwandan export partner RwaCof. You can read more about it here!
For us, it was a no brainer - The most delicious coffee, that gives back to the producers is always a win win.