Story
Kirinyaga Region and Ndimi Factory
This coffee is processed at Ndimi Factory, which is managed by the Inoi Farmer’s Cooperative Society. The factory is located within central Kenya, Kirinyaga region. There are 540 active farmer members of the cooperative. The factory was named after the place at which the washing station is located.
Perched at 1650-1800 masl, the factory sits on the foothill of Mount Kenya, just outside of the town Kerugoya. Kirinyaga County is positioned approximately 192 kilometres northeast of Nairobi, sharing borders with the Nyeri and Embu Counties.
The region offers ideal conditions for coffee cultivation, featuring mineral-rich red volcanic loam soils and the elevated altitudes characteristic of the area. This western part of Kirinyaga is known to have some of the most fertile soils in the country. Kirinyaga’s coffees are celebrated for its bright acidity, full body, and complex flavour profile, often featuring fruity and floral notes.
Processing
Once the cherries have been delivered to the washing station, they are handsorted. The underripes, insect damaged, and other defective cherries are removed. The cherries are then pulped and the parchment is fermented overnight. Once the fermentation is completed, the parchment is washed and separated into P1, P2, P3, and P light grades. Following the soaking process, the coffees are carefully laid out on hessian mesh mats for up to a day, after which they are moved to traditional drying tables. These tables are typically covered with jute cloth or shade nets, placed over wire mesh surfaces. The drying duration varies, ranging from 12 to 20 days, a timeframe influenced by the vagaries of weather and rainfall patterns.
After processing, the farmers of this cooperative take the cherry pulp home and mix it with cow manure to use as fertiliser on their farms.