Kamwangi is a stellar example of Kenyan coffee at its best: sweet, bursting with fruit, good depth and vibrancy. We sourced this coffee through the Collaborative Coffee Source, our Oslo-based partner for sourcing throughout East Africa.

Kamwangi is the name of the washing station this coffee comes from, located just outside Mount Kenya National Park. It's one of several washing stations operated by the New Ngariama Farmers Cooperative Society. Thousands of local landholders in the area grow coffee in the foothills around Mount Kenya, then deliver the harvested cherry to Kamwangi to be processed and graded. This organizational network of farmers, mills and cooperatives is typical of Kenyan coffee production. In Kirinyaga, almost three-quarters of coffee producers are smallholders; for these farmers, membership in a cooperative provides access to resources – like technical advisory services and state-of-the-art processing infrastructure – that would otherwise be out of reach. While cooperatives can sometimes present quality challenges due to the large number of farmers involved, Kenya has a multitude of cooperatives that operate with very high standards. Established in 1997, New Ngariama Farmers Cooperative Society is one of the most renowned in the country, producing pristine coffees with the sweetness & acidity characteristic of Kenya.

We sourced this coffee from the Collaborative Coffee Source (CCS), an Oslo-based green coffee supply company that specializes in sourcing exceptional coffees from the world over. With many years of experience in and countless trips to Kenya, the CCS team has worked to cultivate close relationships with quality-focused farmers, cooperatives, and mills throughout the country. These years of experience allow them to zero in on the best lots available while navigating Kenya’s centralized auction system. A deeper dive into the details of CCS’ work in Kenya can be found here.