Before this trip to Tanzania, I was looking forward to visiting farms in Ngorongoro, which is popular among my customers at Coffee Market, and visiting Kongoni farm, from which I buy from, and going on safari.

In Kenya, meanwhile, I wanted to experience its delicious coffee. I wanted to taste a coffee that embodies the Kenyan specialty coffee, an overwhelmingly fruity coffee produced by Peter. As a roaster, I was full of anticipation.

Apparently, Kenya is more a country of tea drinkers than of coffee drinkers. In fact, smallholders at the Karani factory were sipping tea during a break. It was surprising to hear that they had never drunk coffee. I imagine it must be difficult to sell a product for a good price without knowing about the product. If farmers know how delicious coffee is and understand the value of coffee, I think they will be able to produce an even more appealing product.

If farmers rely solely on the soil conditions, it’s risky because of climate change and so on.  I can’t help but feel a sense of concern for the future of Kenyan coffee.

Karani farm in Kirinyaga is known as the biggest coffee origin in Kenya. After we experienced harvest firsthand, we cupped coffees from Kirinyaga and Nyeri and AA and AB grades to taste the differences between the regions and grades.

Even in the same area, different areas have different processes, such as water, climate, wind direction, etc., which results in different characteristics, such as berries and oranges. The main crop is harvested during the rainy season (March to May), and the early crop is harvested during the light rainy season in September and October.

This time we cupped an early crop. My honest impression was that it lacked fruitiness, body, and sweetness. During the post-cupping discussion, Peter mentioned several times that the reason for the weak flavor was the early crop. Still, he was confident that the crop from late November and December would perform better.

The Kenyan coffee trade is strongly influenced by law, which is an auction system.

Big companies are amassing a big profit by purposefully diminishing supply-chain transparency. So Peter is building direct relationships with small farmers and creating a connection between roasters and producers in order to revolutionize the system.

Peter, a Kenyan coffee producer, shared his strong belief. His words were powerful, and I would like to look forward to his next offer.

Thanks to the young roasters who shared this trip with me, I was able to spend 10 very exciting days. It was a great experience to recharge my passion for coffee, which had been diminishing over a long career. I would like to thank everyone who supported this trip

It took a three-hour drive on a rough road from Kilimanjaro Airport to a coffee farm, our first destination.

The journey was really tough on an old body already exhausted from an over 20-hour flight.

But it was all worth it.

Tanzanian people are very energetic and cheerful. 

I wonder if it’s because of Africa’s temperate climate. They talk a lot, laugh a lot.

Children are friendly even to strangers like us, waving at our car.

My heart was beating with excitement, my body rejuvenated, by the time we got to the farm.

Looking back, much of the fun of this trip was in Tanzania.

Then eight hours from Doha.

It’s been a full day of flight, including stopover.

I’ve come all the way to the “motherland.”

The slightly smoky, herb-scented wind blows away all my exhaustion from the long flight.

It feels refreshing.

This is the continent of Africa I’ve dreamed of visiting.

After a quick greeting with Leon, who manages Tanzanian coffee

we headed on to his farm on Acacia Hills.

Leon’s gentle personality and warm atmosphere makes me feel like I can meet high-quality coffee.

After arriving at the farm, we cupped Tanzanian coffee, one of the purposes of this trip.

On the table were 10 kinds of super fresh coffee that had been harvested this month and dried just two weeks ago.

All of them were from Leon’s farm on Acacia Hills.

The varieties were Geisha, Kent, which is said to be native to Tanzania, and some hybrid varieties called Salchimo, Castillo, and SL28.

There were two processing types, washed and honey.

The floral flavor and elegant sweetness stood out so much that the coffees had no negative aspects that are often associated with fresh harvests. Every cup had a greater potential than I expected, so much so that I would like to buy them all if I could.

Tanzania is a popular origin at The Coffee Market, my shop. I’m confident that I can impress Tanzania fans with these coffees from Acacia Hills.

Now I’m in the twilight of my coffee life, and TYPICA has offered me a big chance to visit a coffee origin. And the cherry on top was that the destinations are Kenya and Tanzania, the places I’ve wanted to visit the most.

I want to breathe in the air of Africa, and absorb the coffee landscapes and allures of Kenya and Tanzania.

As a coffee professional, and as a man, I’m feeling irresistible exhilaration.

I would like to thank all my staff members for letting me go on this trip despite the fact that they are extremely busy managing our newly opened shop. I’m looking forward to meeting other roasters who lead Japan’s coffee industry. And today, I am going to fly to Tanzania, Africa.