UGANDA Norman Mukuru

Description

Terroir: Mount Elgon Based in the foothills of Mount Elgon, Norman sources coffee from the districts of Sironko, Mbale, Bulambuli and Kapchorwa; he founded The Coffee Yard, a large coffee reception and drying centre. Western Uganda is an exceptionally competitive and complex region — both in terms of purchasing cherries from farmers and buying green, naturally processed coffee (DRUGAR) from traders. This is often sold with a high moisture content, so exporters must dry the green beans further. Due to high levels of insect damage and unripe beans, the proportion of floating beans can reach 15–20 per cent. This means that the coffee is sorted in water directly on the farm before purchase, with the farmer retaining the rejected cherries. These rejected lots often end up in DRUGAR coffees, which significantly reduces their overall quality. Farm: Imbalu Fortunately, over many years Norman has built up extensive relationships with farmers in this region. Recently, he has been working with a group of larger farmers, whom he trains in better harvesting and post-harvest processing practices. These farmers harvest and process the coffee themselves at home, keeping individual batches separate so that they can be properly assessed before purchase. Farmer: Norman Mukuru Norman has extensive experience with coffee; he has been working in the industry for almost 20 years and has been producing natural coffees since 2018, frequently adjusting his processes to achieve the flavour profiles his clients are looking for. Variety: SL14, SL28, Nyasaland Processing: anaerobic natural process The coffee is delivered to the station, where it is first sorted in water and hand-sorted to remove unwanted cherries. This is followed by drip-drying of the cherries on raised beds, which removes the initial moisture. A second sorting is then carried out based on moisture content and colour to create homogeneous batches. Fermentation takes place in sealed vats. The coffee is then dried on raised beds or tarpaulins for approximately 21 days, until the moisture content falls below 12 per cent. The coffee is then left to rest and homogenise before Norman and his team hull it and prepare the green beans for export using manual sorting and a colour sorter.