We’ve compiled a list of the questions we are asked most often and provided answers. If your query is not addressed here, please don’t hesitate to contact us.
We use the Rwandan Red Bourbon Arabica coffee bean because it thrives in our rich soils, plentiful equatorial sunshine and rainfall.
This varietal grows best on the high mountain peaks of the Rwandan jungles, which are home to wild gorillas, where the air is still pure, unpolluted and free of chemicals.
Where as Single Origin can mean beans coming from a single area of a country or a specific country or even a region, Single Estate is very specific in that it denotes the actual small geographic area (estate) where the coffee is grown.
Single origin beans are smaller in size at 12+, compared to our single estate that only has size 15+ beans. These smaller beans retain the same traceability and freshness as the Single estate beans.
Our coffee is grown and harvested from the volcanic shores of Lake Kivu at a small village called Nkora (the estate).
The ripe cherries are wet washed at Nkora, the oldest and largest washing station in Rwanda. They are then carefully sorted by hand and sun-dried before being sent to Kigali for dry milling, another layer of hand sorting, and finally roasting.
Most coffee beans once harvested and processed are shipped from their country of origin in their raw green state, and kept in storage for up to two years before being roasted and sold. Coffee loses up to 80% of what makes it great well within that time.
At Kivu noir, we harvest, process and roast our coffee ourselves in our facilities and then ship the roasted coffee via air freight internationally. This all occurs, typically, within one month from harvest.
We’ve also gone to great lengths to own our entire supply chain, removing third-party delays and costs, which also ensures the fastest harvest-to-customer delivery. Kivu noir is a great example of a direct trade coffee where there are no middle men involved
• Rwanda: online on our website
• South Africa: online on our website
• USA: Amazon and website
• UK: Amazon and website
• Germany and BeNeLux countries: Amazon
At the moment, yes, but we are actively looking for trade partners in Rwanda and the USA. If you would like to know more about stocking and selling Kivu noir, please contact us.
We go beyond simply producing specialty coffees and trying to make a profit. Rwanda is a country that epitomises renewal and it has become an African symbol of regeneration and community spirit. Now, one of the cleanest, safest countries in Africa; with a parliament that is made up of a majority of women, Rwanda’s spirit of empowerment has imbued Kivu noir with the same drive to go beyond. Kivu noir proudly employs Fair Practices, supporting and empowering the many hundreds of local women and their communities who survived the 1994 Rwandan genocide against the Tutsi.
Our coffee is made with respect to people and the planet. Our Fair Practices have rigorous social, environmental, and economic standards in place to promote safe, healthy working conditions, protect the environment, enable transparency, and empower communities to build strong, thriving businesses.
