Kenya Nandi Hills – Anaerobic Natural

Pomelo, blueberry and lime cream – a natural-process Kenya that keeps the country's bright acidity and adds a lot of sweetness.

In the cup

Pomelo comes first: zesty, bright, unmistakably Kenyan. Then the natural process shows itself, with blueberries bringing juice and a deeper, jammy sweetness underneath. It finishes textured and cool, a little like a spoonful of lime cream. Brew it as filter for a clean, fruit-led cup; pull it as espresso and the berry takes over in a syrupy shot.

Where it comes from

Nandi Hills sits on the western edge of the Great Rift Valley, in a part of Kenya best known for tea. Coffee is a newcomer here: many farms were planted only in the last decade or so, on volcanic soils that used to grow sugarcane. Great Rift Coffee is a family-run farm that made exactly that switch, from cane to coffee, to show what Nandi Hills can do as a specialty region. They work under shade trees, alongside other crops and indigenous trees, and follow organic principles. That makes this lot a double surprise: most Kenyan coffee is washed and grown in the central highlands around Mount Kenya, while this one is a natural from the west.

How it's processed

1. Ripe cherries are hand-sorted and floated to remove the lighter, defective fruit.
2. The whole cherries ferment in sealed, oxygen-free containers (that's the "anaerobic" part).
3. They are then dried in the sun as whole fruit and turned regularly so they dry evenly.
4. Only once dry are the seeds hulled out of the dried cherry.

Drying inside the fruit is what gives the cup its extra sweetness and body.

How we brew it

• Filter (V60 or batch brew): 15 g coffee, 250 g water at 93–95 °C, around 3:00 total. A slightly coarser grind keeps the berries clean.
• Espresso: 18 g in, 38–42 g out in 26–30 seconds for a dense, berry-heavy shot.

Why it's on our shelf

Kenya usually means washed coffee from the central highlands. This natural from the west is a Kenya you don't see often – and a great way to taste how much process changes a cup.