BURUNDI — LONG MILES COFFEE PROJECT
raspberry jam
∙ rosehips ∙ raisins
Long Miles is a project started in 2012 with the aim of finding and registering the best microlot coffees in Burundi. Their lot from the hills surrounding Munyinya is the best Burundian we’ve ever tasted. It’s a combination of Bourbon and Jackson varieties harvested in June, 2015.
M
unyinya is near the border of county of Bukeye in the northwest region of Burundi, about two and a half miles from the processing station of Long Miles Bukeye. One can reach Munyinya through a steep gravel road etched into the mountains. On the way up you’ll get a breathtaking view of the valley bellow. You can see all of Munyinya in just a few minutes, as it is only a tiny village consisting of a few mud huts surrounded by corn fields and coffee plantations. Long Miles is a project started in 2012 with the aim of finding and registering the best micro-lot coffees in Burundi. The philosophy of the project is to unite all quality-oriented local coffee growers. Long Miles is a family enterprise that really stresses the importance of “purchasing right from the growers”. The project connects coffee growers, processing stations and roasters to improve the quality of the coffee. Compared to prominent coffee exporter countries like Kenya or Ethiopia, Burundi is just a small fish in a pond, albeit an ever growing one. Burundi’s share in the world coffee market is only 0.5 percent, but thanks to the local initiatives and reforms more and more high quality coffee is exported from this east-African country. The Belgians started large-scale coffee growing in Burundi during the 1960s, but despite the favourable geographical features of
the country, the coffee produced in Burundi all ended up on the bottom selves of supermarkets as cheap brand coffees. Burundi has a predominantly tropical climate, but the mountainous coffee growing areas have a moderate sub-climate, with temperatures ranging from 17-23 Celsius. There are only two seasons: a dry alternating with a wet season The stable and predictable weather makes it an ideal place to grow coffee. There are two harvests a year: the first is from February to March, the second is from April to May. The beans are wet processed in special tanks characteristic of Burundi. Thanks to the country’s geographical features almost every hill, or colline in the local language, has its own micro-climate. Each such mini-region consists of 40–60 local coffee farms and the varieties of coffee are chosen to suit the micro-climate of the colline. Coffee is one of the most important export products of Burundi, and approximately 600 000 families (about 40% of the country’s population) make their livelihood from coffee growing. There are several farmers around Munyinya who have more than 2–3 hundred thousand coffee trees, much more than an average farmer has in Burundi. The dream of Muninya farmers is to able to be involved in the production
of coffee beyond just delivering it to the washing station. Setting up savings groups that can provide small loans for farmers is a high priority for Muninya in the coming years. They would also like to buy their own truck to transport their coffee to the washing station and in the future they hope to see a washing station on their own hill. Although coffee growing helps local families to get by, prices had been quite low before 2012, when Long Miles Bukeye processing station started its operation. Munyinya is a coffee with hints of raspberry jam, rosehips and dried raisins with a creamy, velvety body. The Bourbon Heirloom and Jackson hybrid varieties were wet-processed. We were blown away on tasting it the first time, enjoying a unique flavour from Burundi we had never experienced before.
... To achieve the best taste experience possible use soft water and freshly ground coffee. Let it rest for a week after roasting but consume it within one month. Enjoy! the Casino Mocca team
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photo by the Long Miles Coffee Project
Munyinya Hill