Rwanda Sholi Natural
Regular price $18.49
WHY WE LOVE IT: This is a deeply fruity and deliciously sweet coffee from one of our favorite producing partners.
DESCRIPTION: blackberry, honeydew, brown sugar
REGION: Muhanga District, Southern Province
PROCESSING METHOD: Natural
ALTITUDE: 1,800 - 2,000 m
VARIETY: Bourbon
This naturally processed coffee from our partners at Abateraninkunga ba Sholi marks our fourth consecutive year of buying from the cooperative. In those years, perhaps no other coffee has become as anticipated or as special to us as this annual release. During our trip to Rwanda in 2019, we cupped their coffees and toured one of the processing stations, a farm, a warehouse, and the health and community centers, forming lasting relationships along the way.
The moment you sip this coffee, you will notice its rich sweetness and fruitiness. We're particularly taken by how "clean" it tastes, i.e. free of the fermented notes that can sometimes accompany the natural process. It has a lovely balance of deep, darker fruits like a blackberry mingling with the crisp, juicy florals of a honeydew melon. These notes sit atop a brown sugar sweetness that lingers in the finish. Altogether, it's just a deliciously complex and sweet coffee.
It is these kinds of excellent coffees resulting from deeper relationships that truly drive us, and we hope you enjoy the work of the Sholi Cooperative as much as we do.
More about Sholi:
The Abateraninkunga ba Sholi cooperative (meaning 'mutual assistance') was originally established in 2008 by 30 women and received official recognition in 2013. In 2014 they received funding to build their own washing station, and in 2015 received their Fair Trade certification. Today, the cooperative continues to grow, now constituting 690 members, 289 of which are women.