Kagumo AB, Kenya, Washed

Nyeri County , Kenya Coffee was introduced to Kenya in 1893 by French missionaries, but it was under British colonial rule that estate production expanded – indigenous Kenyans were barred from holding coffee licences until independence in 1963, after which many former estates were subdivided among smallholders. Today hundreds of thousands of smallholder farmers are organised into Farmer Co-operative Societies, which together produce the majority of Kenya's crop, each typically running several wet mills like Kagumo. The central highlands – Nyeri, Kirinyaga, Murang'a, Kiambu and Embu – sit at 1,500–2,100 masl on nutrient-rich volcanic soil and produce Kenya's most sought-after lots. Kenya also runs a distinctive size-based grading system after milling – AA, AB, PB, C and below – meaning AA and AB grades from a single factory like Kagumo often come from the very same washed lot, simply sorted apart by bean size rather than any difference in flavour.

Kagumo is one of the wet mills run by the Aguthi Farmer's Co-operative Society in Nyeri County – the same Society behind the well-known Thageini mill. The site has an unusual history: opened in the mid-1950s as a sisal factory processing agave fibre, it was later converted to coffee processing and now serves several hundred smallholder farmer members across Nyeri's deep red volcanic soils, growing SL varieties, Ruiru 11 and older heirloom stock. The factory earned recognition for best grading and highest harvest production in the late 1990s, a reputation it has carried into its current specialty lots. Cherries are hand-sorted by colour and ripeness on delivery, with washed and natural lots processed separately to preserve each profile's character.