TASTE NOTES

Turaco, Burundi coffee tasting notes: blackberry, rose, maple, lime, dark chocolate

SOURCING INFO FOR TURACO, BURUNDI

The coffee-producing region Ngozi lies in north-central Burundi. With high elevation and mild, warm year-round weather, the environment in Ngozi provides excellent conditions for growing delicious specialty coffees.

Coffee farmers in Burundi typically own only a fraction of a hectare of land with a few hundred coffee trees; the contributing producers to this lot have an average farm of just 0.3 hectares. These smallholders, therefore, produce very small microlots of coffee cherries.

After harvesting the cherries, the farmers deliver their microlots to centralized private or government-owned washing stations. At the washing station, workers sort and depulp coffee on the same day it’s harvested and delivered. Then they ferment the coffee underwater for 12-24 hours before washing it for about 2 hours. Finally, they spread the coffee seeds out to dry for about 20 days on raised beds or drying tables.

Because each farmer’s individual deliveries are so small, microlots from Burundi almost always comprise coffees from multiple producers. For this reason, washing stations play an important role in quality and consistency, employing meticulous sorting, fermenting, and washing practices.

This coffee was brought to us by Cafe Imports — one of the earliest champions of the special qualities of these sweet, bright, “sparkling” microlots from Burundi. Turaco is a microlot named for the brightly colored bird commonly seen enlivening the Burundi skies. We taste blackberry, rose, maple, lime, and dark chocolate in this complex and delicious cup.