Description

In 2015, Stephen Nendela moved back into his childhood home to live with his mother on a 6 acre plot near Eldoret. He converted their sugar cane production to coffee—selling their small production through direct export channels as a microlot.

On the heels of this success, Stephen bought a second farm—17 acres at 1900 MASL closer to the town of Kitale—which had been a coffee farm in the 1970s, but had gone mostly fallow until Stephen took over care of the land. The area where the farm is located is called Cherengany Hills—part of the Mt. Elgon mountain range, but with a particularly cold micro-climate. Stephen and his wife Lilian named the farm Nawiri, which means prosperity, but everyone calls it ‘Muinami’ which is Stephen’s last name, and which means ‘Bent’ or ‘those who work’ in Kikuyu.

The farm is separated into 7 terraced blocks, each with a different varietal and year of planting. There is 1 acre of agroforestry; it’s the first place they bring visitors, each of whom is asked to plant a tree instead of sign a guestbook. Visiting crested cranes take up seasonal home here, as do hives of bees which are cultivated in the shade of Acacia trees.

Flavor notes: Crisp apple, fig, and molasses

Roast level: Light-Medium

Processing: Washed

Altitude: 1900 masl