Rwanda Gasharu Ireme Extreme One Roast
Rwanda Gasharu Ireme Extreme
You might be happy to know that we committed to this coffee last Summer, before the coffee world changed. It has taken until the end of April to reach us, a mere 8 months. The coffee is tasting fantastic. I have taken it home and brewed it for a few days, with 2 different profiles and just found a happy place where it brews really well.
I cannot tell you how excited I am to bring you this coffee, for the fifth year running. We even got a certificate as a token for our business. I love this coffee for its depth of sweetness and complexity.
Previously, I have said to friends who are producers that the only problem with producing borderline-perfect coffee is the pressure that you put on yourselves for future crops! Over the last few years, the Ireme Extreme (as it’s often known) coffee from Gasharu has improved, and this year, it is fantastic, once again.
We view this as a wild coffee for filter and is extractable in espresso with some level of skill and good equipment.
Top Trumps:
Name: Gasharu Coffee Washing Station
Location: Macuba Sector, Nyamasheke District, Western Province
Foundation year: 2014
Manager: Valentin Kimenyi
Number of farmers: 1650
Varietal: Bourbon
Processing method: Ireme Anaerobic/experimental fermentation 72 hours/ dried on raised beds.
The altitude of the farms: 1600 – 2100 masl
The altitude of the CWS: is 1670 masl
Average yearly rainfall: 1300-1400 mm
Soil: Acidic Soil
Projects: Support farmers in organising as cooperatives and train them in governance and finances so that they can have savings for the future.
Roast: One Roast
Cup Potential: 🥣
|Aromatics: Deep sweetness, white fruit sugars| Body: medium-creamy | Acidity: Soft and sweet.
On opening, I am welcomed by sweet, subtle, fruit sugars and simultaneously has a gentle citrus. The citrus fades into the background, with the cup being dominated by deep white and soft orange fruit sugars. Think lychee and tangerine. In the next phase, there is a touch of boozy fruit, a little dark chocolate, and a subtle hint of background citrus. Right down to cold, this is changing with alternating jammy ripe fruits, with quite low acidity and a nod to the anaerobic fermentation. This coffee is so fruity, it must be at least two of my 5 a day. On the finish, the boozy fruit and the darkest chocolate you can imagine.
Espresso:
Temp: 94 is doable, but 95c+ is easier.
Time: 28-35 seconds
Recipe for milk-based drinks. 18g into 34-36g
Recipe for Espresso: 16-18g of coffee into either 45g or 60g. I recommend exploring your shot length for espresso. See below.
Working from the biggest drink we do to the smallest.
This is delicious in a 9oz milk-based drink. The flavour is subtle but distinct in a great way. Malty ripe fruit and creamy dark chocolate.
As you brew this into a shorter 6 or 5oz, you just get more pronounced dark chocolate, cacao, and creaminess.
Due to the lightness of the roast, we recommend extracting this coffee for a little longer than standard espresso, if you can. The espresso is juicy, and the flavour massively depends on your recipe. I prefer a longer shot as I find the fruit sweeter. The process stands out here more too.
About Gasharu Coffee.
In 1976, when he was 17 years old, Celestin Rumenerangabo, my father, planted his first coffee trees in Nyamasheke. As a farmer and buyer of cherries, he grew the business to what it is today. We now have 2 washing stations, Gasharu and Muhororo, and can export beans from nearly 1650 smallholder farmers directly. Over the last 43 years, we’ve maintained an unwavering dedication to making the highest-quality coffee we can. Coffee has been critical to rebuilding our community after the 1994 Tutsi Genocide. It remains an important part of our culture. With local businesses being taken over by large multinational companies, we are aware that we have to make Gasharu Coffee more resilient. We have improved our sourcing and processing methods, encouraging curiosity about innovative ideas to take coffee to the next level, producing natural, honey, and experimental processes like this one.
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