This particular lot is 100% Bourbon variety and comes from a group of 105 Pygmy people who live and farm in the villages of Mishebere and Ruhunde in the Kahele territory. Historically, Pygmy people have faced terrible discrimination and disenfranchisement, including being forced into slavery or very low-paying work. SOPACDI began separating coffee from this group of growers in order to provide them a better income from specialty coffee as well more financial independence and autonomy. The producers each own an average of 0.5 hectares, and deliver coffee in cherry form to the washing station. At the washing station the coffee is depulped and fermented twice, first for 12 hours dry in tanks, and then for 12 hours underwater after it is washed and sorted in water channels. Last, the coffee is dried for 16–25 days on raised beds under a shade cover of netting before being bagged for export. This lot is everything we’ve come to expect from the SOPACDI co-op and is some of the very best coffee coming out of the DRC. If you love coffees from Rwanda, Burundi, or Kenya, give this one a try!