Kenya Tatu Estate Natural - Filter Roast

COUNTRY - Kenya
REGION - Kiambu County
ALTITUDE - 1570 M.A.S.L
VARIETAL - SL 28, SL34
PROCESSING METHOD - Natural Process

Tatu Coffee Estate spans 907 hectares in a region 10 kilometers west of Ruiru Town in Kiambu County. Nearly 460 hectares are dedicated to coffee production with the majority of it being SL-28 coffee variety trees, Ruiru-11 trees, and small percentages of K7 and Batian. Around 377 hectares form the mulch crop area, 17 hectares are preserved forests, and the remaining 53 hectares are made up of water bodies and infrastructure. The estate employs 80 permanent workers and from 200-1,200 non-permanent workers per day, depending on the season.
Tatu’s rolling and undulating hills span 1,570 to 1,700masl, with a mix of deep red volcanic soil and loamy, sandy soils, contributing to the varied flavour profiles from coffee grown on the slopes.

NATURAL PROCESS
The ripe coffee cherries are hand picked and allowed to dry completely around the seed before being husked or hulled off. While historically this hulling was done by hand with a kind of mortar-and-pestle setup, today it’s done by machinery that can be finely calibrated.
While the coffee is drying the sugars are continually fermenting inside the cherry while there is enough moisture to feed the microorganisms. This can take up to 30 days on average.
Due to the long fermentations, natural processed coffees often display fruity or “pulpy” flavours, often described as “boozy” or “winey”; can also have strong nutty and/or chocolate characteristics, and typically has a heavier or syrupy body