April’s Coffee: “Kigezi Valley Natural”

Cupping Notes: Rose, Peach, Sweet

Temp of Roast: 418 °F

Process: Natural

Varietal: SL14, SL28, Nyasaland, Bugisu

Altitude: 7000 ft

Origin: Kigezi region, Uganda

April’s Coffee is from the Kigezi Valley in south-western Uganda. This valley is nestled in between the mountains of Virunga and the hills surrounding lakes Mutanda and Bunyonyi. This beautiful landscape is sometimes referred to as the “Switzerland of Africa.”

Dotting this landscape are the farms of about 300 smallholder producers that joined the Mountain Harvest network in 2023. Later that year, Mountain Harvest sent their Processing Team to Kigezi to collaborate with Kigezi Valley Coffee (KVC). They shared lessons that they have learned from Mount Elgon to build foundations in quality and business operations. Now KVC is fully part of Mountain Harvest’s operations, proof that collaboration and shared values lead to excellence. This is what Mountain Harvest stands for: excellence that begins at the source, and a belief that Uganda itself is the benchmark.

In the past Uganda has been known for Robusta production, due to the fact that Robusta’s origins are in Uganda. In the early 20th century, Arabica varieties were introduced and today, Arabica production accounts for about 20% of Uganda's annual coffee exports. In the last year the Ugandan government has started to encourage Arabica production.