Region: Embu County
Elevation: 1680 masl
About: The Gichugu mill was started in the 1970s and collects coffee cherry from 834 members of the Gakundu Farmer’s Cooperative Society. Situated in Embu County the mill is nestled between Mt. Kenya and the Aberdare ranges. The soil here is red volcanic and very high in phosphorus, which results in the coffee having a unique acid profile. All the coffee from Gichugu is processed via the washed method. First, the cherries are pulped to remove the skin and fruit from the inner parchment layer. The coffee is then fermented overnight in tanks of water to break down the sticky mucilage before being cleaned, soaked, and spread out on raised drying beds to be sun-dried. The result is a coffee with a bright and sparkling acidity.
