DE MELLO - Rwanda Cyiya | Rwanda - Washed - Red Bourbon

Peach, nectarine, pomegranate. Bright, elegant, and quietly complex from the first sip.

The Nyamasheke District in Rwanda's Western Province is one of those rare places where the conditions for exceptional coffee seem almost too perfect. Volcanic soil formed by the Albertine Rift, altitudes of 1,650 to 1,900 metres above sea level, and the mist-covered hillsides that rise along the shores of Lake Kivu create a growing environment that is nearly impossible to replicate. The Red Bourbon variety, one of the oldest and most celebrated cultivars in the world, thrives here in a way that has made Rwandan Bourbon one of the most sought-after origins in specialty coffee.

Behind every bag is a community of 480 smallholder farmers, families who have cultivated these hillsides for generations. Quality control begins not at the washing station but at home, where farmers hand-sort their own harvest before delivery. That first line of care, done out of collective pride rather than obligation, sets the tone for everything that follows.

At the Cyiya Washing Station, cherries are pulped within 8 hours of harvest, dry-fermented for 15 to 18 hours, sorted twice by density, soaked for up to 20 hours, and dried on raised beds for 12 to 14 days. Every step layered with intention. The result is a cup with the transparency and clarity that only this level of care can produce.