Burundi Kiremaa

Kiremaa washing station follows a model similar to many – whilst some farmers can bring their coffee directly to the washing station, many rely on regional collection centres, placed to enable quick access to fresh coffee and then transport it to the washing station within a set time. Infrastructure plays a strong role in coffee quality in this set up, as does admin. Maintaining lot separation and traceability to ensure correct payment happily lends itself to microlot production and Kiremaa has excelled at that too.

In an area with a reputation for excellence, Kiremaa has placed in Cup of Excellence previously, in 2019 gaining a place in the top ten. Eight of those top 10 were from Kayanza, the region Kiremaa is found in.

Mibirizi is likely the oldest varietal to Burundi and Rwanda (according to World Coffee Research), though a lot of it’s origin story is less than clear. Recent genetic tests show it related to the Bourbon-Typica group, though naturalization and some breeding have occurred that may have led to slight variations throughout the two countries farms.