Kainamui
The small region in Kirinyaga that the Kainamui station serves, surrounding the village of Ngariama, is mainly a tea-growing area, so most of the coffee plant stock is rather new. The region is known for very high quality of both tea and coffee; being planted somewhat later than neighbouring regions means soils haven't been tired out by years of conventional agriculture, with its sprays and chemical fertiliser. We have visited the region several times, most recently in February of this year. Here, it is clear to witness the density of both coffee and tea plantation in the lush green landscape, enabled by the rich volcanic soils, relatively undisturbed by intensive conventional agriculture. North Eastern Kirinyaga is home to some of our favourite Kenyan coffees; Kainamui is run by the New Ngariama Farmer's Cooperative Society, who also own the Kamwangi and Kiamugumo stations, where we have purchased several lots in the past.
Over the past few years we have continually chosen coffees from this micro-region on blind cupping tables. We continue to focus our work this year on the region. Also near to Ngariama are the Thirikwa cooperative, who own Gakuyuini, and the Rungeto Cooperative who own Kii, Kiangoi and Karimikui, also names very familiar to us at La Cabra. This tiny area continues to impress with its quality, much of the area was planted with coffee just before the rise of hybrid varietals in Kenya, meaning that 99% of the farmers that deliver to Kainamui grow SL28 and SL34, with only about 1% using rust-resistant varietals like Ruiru 11 or Batian. This peaberry selection is reminiscent of fresh redcurrant, rich brown sugar and black tea.
