Shyira Washed, Rwanda

Built in 2017, Shyira Washing Station is a station situated at 2000 MASL, collecting cherry from neighbouring producers that live between 2000 - 2400 MASL. This is the highest grown coffee we know of in Rwanda, and it’s from a region where very few washing stations are located, making it somewhat unique. It also happens to be located in one of the most stunning areas in Rwanda. It has a river running through the base of the station making water access no issue. All cherry is hand-sorted before a pre-pulp float, underripe or damaged cherry is removed, along
with any foreign objects. Next, cherry is floated in pre-pulping tanks removing any floaters and then pulped. Coffee is later fermented in dedicated concrete fermentation tanks for an average of 8 hours. During this time the ferment parchment is agitated several times throughout the day by way of ceremonial foot-stomping.

All cherry is hand-sorted before a pre-pulp float, underripe or damaged cherry is removed, along with any foreign objects. Cherry is then floated in pre-pulping tanks removing any floaters and later pulped. Next, coffee is fermented in dedicated concrete fermentation tanks for an average of 12 hours. During this time, the fermented parchment is agitated several times through the day by way of ceremonial foot-stomping. This is to encourage lower density parchment to float and to clean any residual mucilage off the parchment. Once the parchment is separated into grades, it is given a final post-wash rinse. At this point, coffee is then taken to a pre-drying area where the parchment is hand-sorted removing any insect-damaged, discoloured or chipped coffee. Parchment is then laid out to dry where it is turned on a regular basis throughout the day.

After fermentation, coffee is released into a large serpentine grading channel. This process also separates parchment into different density grades. During the washing process, parchment is continuously agitated to encourage lower density parchment to float and to clean any residual mucilage off the parchment. Once the parchment is separated into grades, it is given a final post-wash rinse. At this point, coffee is taken to a pre-drying area where the parchment is hand-sorted removing any insect-damaged, discoloured or chipped coffee. The parchment is laid out to dry and turned on a regular basis throughout the day for 30 days.