Unlike many of our other partnered roasters, Bean There typically offers the same selection of African single-origin beans year round. The Johannesburg-based roastery’s business model involves buying entire lots from the same handful of producers all year, which has led to meaningful, long-term relationships with partners and ensures fair compensation for producers and farm workers. This also means that Bean There coffee sales have a truly meaningful impact on the lives of the people who grow them. This makes it all the more exciting that Bean There has now added a new origin to its roster, for the first time in a decade: Uganda. 

We’ve only had a handful of Ugandan coffees on our shelves in the past, and none particularly recently. It’s fair to say that Uganda isn’t the first place to come to mind when one thinks of African single-origin coffee, but the East-African country actually offers near-perfect coffee growing conditions for specialty-grade Arabica. This particular coffee comes from a small community of farmers located in the mountainous Kapchorwa region. Interestingly, these farmers don’t send their harvest to any local washing station or mill, but instead process their coffee cherry themselves at home. In doing so, farmers have more exacting control over processing, ensuring a higher quality end-product for each of their individual harvests.

We hope you'll join us in trying this coffee, supporting our friends at Bean There, and, perhaps most importantly, supporting the Ugandan farmers who grew this coffee.

Phaedon's tasting notes

This new Ugandan release from our friends at Bean There has been such a surprise, in all the most pleasant ways. I haven't had the pleasure of trying a brand new regular offering from Bean There in many years, only the limited release Olga's Reserve, but this coffee felt like it was worth waiting for. My sample bag had more surprises in store for me once it arrived, particularly in terms of its flavour profile.

This Ugandan coffee doesn't taste anything like Bean There's other coffees (all of which I love); in fact, it doesn't really taste like what you might expect of an African single origin. It actually tastes more like a high-quality coffee from the Americas, and I think that this is a great thing, as Bean There is really providing us with something very different to try here.

Rather than a cup profile dominated by fruit, florals or bright acidity, Bean There's new Ugandan is sweet, malty and honey-like with a luxurious syrupy body and a lingering finish. It's beautifully balanced, soft and easy to drink. You may find a touch of orange or stone fruit acidity in some cups, but this is not a fruit-forward drinking experience.

Because of this cup character, I think this Ugandan coffee is going to appeal to a different drinking audience than Bean There's other delicious and decidedly more fruit-forward coffees. That's a great thing, because more people should enjoy Bean There's coffees and support what they do. Now there's something even for those coffee-drinkers who may typically veer towards coffees from other continents, but this one's still grown and produced in Africa.

Bean There’s notes

“Nestled in the captivating foothills of Mount Elgon in the Kapchorwa region, we met the farmers of the Munarya community. Operating as a close-knit community of farmers cultivating coffee amidst volcanic soils, they are committed to the future of sustainable agriculture. We source our coffee from the Munarya community and pay them directly, ensuring a fair trade that keeps their business sustainable and ours meaningful.

“This single origin coffee has a malty chocolate aroma and gentle acidity, revealing a creamy shortbread flavour. This specialty coffee is optimally roasted in South Africa to deliver a taste as rich as the continent it comes from.”

• Country: Uganda
• Region: Kapchorwa
• Town: Mbale
• Washing Stations: Munarya community
• Altitude: 1700-1800masl
• Harvest: October to January
• Variety: SL14 Arabica
• Process: Fully washed