SEPTEMBER - Kamogo Espresso | Uganda - Washed - SL14, SL28

SEPTEMBER Coffee Roasters is located in Ottawa, Canada

From SEPTEMBER

This is our first time featuring a coffee from Uganda, and as such it's the first time featuring Kamogo. This is a newer coffee project as of 2024 from producer Benjamin Jenkin of Cahoots coffee. This coffee is complex with a deep sweetness and soft acidity that makes for a comfortable, complex and balanced cup. Profiled for light espresso but clean and balanced for all brew methods.

In the cup

We taste juicy figs and dates, with a clean yet soft citric acidity and an almond sweetness. This coffee has a silky body and a long sweet finish.

About The Producer

The mind behind Cahoots has spent the past decade living in Africa and working in coffee. While Benjamin Jenkin is the founder and driving force behind Cahoots, he’s quick to emphasize that neither the company nor its coffees are about him. His focus is on elevating Ugandan coffees—and, by extension, the cherry farmers and staff who make Cahoots possible. Last year's inaugural harvest, which Benjamin often refers to as “the first pancake,” went extremely well but wasn’t without challenges. A surging C-Market drove cherry prices to record highs in Uganda, creating two major hurdles: increased capital requirements and inconsistent quality delivered. These challenges exist even in “normal” years, but skyrocketing cherry prices intensified them. Other obstacles included limited drying space and unpredictable weather—common struggles for coffee producers everywhere. Instead of accepting these setbacks, Benjamin and his team hustled, transporting coffee between drying sites while maintaining a relentless focus on quality. The result: remarkably well-processed, well-dried coffee that is both exceptionally clean and delicious.

Processing

Pranoy refers to this processing method as “Culture Washed.” The process for this lot actually began before the cherries were even picked, with the creation of a starter culture. By submerging coffee cherries in water, a fermentation starter was cultivated— much like a sourdough starter—resulting in a highly active collection of native bacteria and yeasts. Once the starter was ready, the cherries were removed, leaving only the liquid. After fresh cherry was pulped, this starter liquid was added to the fermentation tank, allowing the concentrated microbes to begin working more quickly than in a standard fermentation. After roughly 18 hours, the cherries were washed in grading channels, placed on drip tables, and then dried in a parabolic (solar) dryer for about three weeks.

Variety

SL28 is among the most well-known and well-regarded varieties of Africa. It has consequently spread from Kenya, where it was originally selected in the 1930s, to other parts of Africa (it is important in Arabica-growing regions of Uganda, in particular) and now to Latin America. The variety is suited for medium to high altitudes and shows resistance to drought, but is susceptible to the major diseases of coffee. SL28 is notable for its rusticity—a quality meaning that it can be left untended for years or even decades at a time, and then return to successful production. There are SL28 trees in many parts of Kenya that are 60-80 years old and still productive.