Mukaze Washed

Mukaze is a specialty coffee from the Kayanza region of northern Burundi, produced by smallholder farmers and processed at the Mukaze coffee washing station. The washed process removes the fruit from the coffee cherry before fermentation, washing and drying, creating a clean and balanced cup that allows the coffee's natural sweetness and acidity to shine. This lot presents dried apricot, milk chocolate and toffee, combining stone-fruit sweetness with a rich, confectionary finish.

Kayanza is one of Burundi's most important specialty coffee-growing regions, with high elevations and fertile mountain soils that favour Arabica production. The Mukaze washing station sits at approximately 1,800–2,000 metres above sea level and works with around 350 smallholder farmers, with coffee from the surrounding hills collected and processed at the station. The area is particularly known for carefully washed Bourbon coffees with bright fruit, sweetness and clarity.

Coffee was introduced to Burundi in the early 20th century, with Arabica cultivation expanding significantly during the 1930s under Belgian colonial rule. Coffee became an important cash crop, although colonial policies required farmers to grow coffee and offered limited returns to producers. After independence in 1962, production declined before the government reorganised and expanded the sector during the 1970s. Today, coffee is Burundi's most important export, with hundreds of thousands of smallholder farmers contributing to the industry and specialty coffee increasingly bringing attention to the quality of Burundian origins.