Uganda’s Rwenzori mountains are an iconic coffee growing region. These ‘mountains on the moon’ provide the altitude, fertile soil and rainfall for coffee cultivation and the crop is a major source of income for the Bakonzo.

Bugoye, one of two washing stations in Rwenzori operated by Kyagalanyi Coffee and Agri Evolve, was purpose built in response to growing demand from smallholder farmers in the area. Most farmers here have around 1 hectare of land where they harvest ripe cherries and then deliver to one of Agri Evolve’s Buying Stations that help navigate the challenges of transporting coffee around the steep slopes of the highlands. Here, lots are kept separate and then sent to the central station at Bugoye for processing.

This fully washed lot underwent a 24 hour fermentation period and was dried for between 12 and 15 days. These coffee beans roasted by Exemplar are quite different to a lot of the rich and boozy Ugandan coffees we’ve tried in the past. It still holds plenty of chocolatey body, but washed processing means it also offers clean apricot and Assam tea flavour making for a really balanced cup.