Green coffee
01 · By species
The largest single division in what a coffee can do in a blend or a cup — and two entirely different buying conversations.
Five quite different expressions of Arabica, contracted against an approved sample.
Bought on screen and defect terms rather than on a letter grade or a cup score.
02 · By market segment
Different buying disciplines rather than different quality tiers — the same origins supply both, and the same mill often prepares both.
Defined by how tightly the coffee is separated, and bought on the cup.
Defined by a repeatable specification, and bought as a programme.
| Specialty | Commercial | |
|---|---|---|
| Bought on | Lot identity and cup | Grade, screen and defect basis |
| Separation | Station, factory, delivery period or day lot | Outturn or blended parcel |
| Approval | Sample approval before contract | Type sample against specification |
| Typical volume | Bags to part-containers | Containers, often multi-shipment |
| Traceability | Usually station level or tighter | Region or country level |
| Repeatability | Same station, different coffee each crop | Held to a specification across crops |
03 · By processing method
The largest lever available at origin, and the one a buyer can specify most directly.
The default preparation across most of East Africa, including the soak-processed styles.
Dried whole cherry — the widest quality range we handle, from Guji to commercial Djimma.
Pulped and dried with a controlled fraction of mucilage left on the parchment.
Procurement
These are the axes a green coffee contract has to fix. Send what you know — anything left open widens the offer rather than blocking it, and we will tell you what each origin realistically supports.
Availability
Availability moves with the harvest, with milling and with prior commitments. Everything here is confirmed against the current crop on enquiry.
Jasmine · Bergamot · Lemon
Plum · Tomato leaf · Black tea
Orange · Red apple · Caramel
Citrus · Dark chocolate · Black tea
Reference
What each method does to the coffee, what it demands of the mill, and where it actually matters in East Africa.
| Process | Method | Typical cup tendency | Production considerations | East African relevance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Washed | Cherry is pulped, the remaining mucilage is removed by fermentation and washing, and the parchment is dried. The cup reflects the seed and the terroir more than the fruit. | Cleaner, more transparent acidity and a lighter body than the same cherry processed dry. Origin and variety character reads more clearly; defects also read more clearly. | Requires reliable water, effluent management and disciplined fermentation control. Over-fermentation produces sour and phenolic cups; under-fermentation leaves mucilage that stains parchment and slows drying. | The default for Kenya, Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzanian Arabica; a large share of Ethiopian Yirgacheffe and Sidama; the WUGAR designation in Uganda. |
| Natural | Whole cherry is dried intact, then hulled. The fruit stays in contact with the seed throughout drying, which is what drives the characteristic sweetness and body. | Heavier body, lower perceived acidity, pronounced fruit sweetness — berry and tropical notes in Ethiopian lots, dried fruit and spice in Ugandan DRUGAR. | The highest-risk process to execute. Uneven drying produces mould, ferment and phenolic taints; the defect is invisible in the green and only shows in the cup. Requires space, labour and settled weather. | The default for Ugandan Robusta and Ethiopian Harrar and Djimma; a substantial and growing share of Ethiopian Sidama and Guji; increasing volumes in southern Tanzania. |
| Honey | Cherry is pulped but the mucilage is left on the parchment during drying, in a controlled fraction. Sits between washed and natural in both process and cup. | More sweetness and body than washed, more clarity and structure than natural. Acidity is usually rounded rather than sharp. | The sticky parchment is prone to clumping and surface mould in the first two days. Requires bed space and labour comparable to naturals with the sorting discipline of washed. | Produced in limited volumes across Rwanda, Burundi, Tanzania and Ethiopia. Availability is small and lot-specific, so it should be confirmed rather than assumed. |
| Semi-washed | Parchment is removed at an elevated moisture content partway through drying. Rare in East Africa but occasionally encountered in Rwandan "ordinary" preparations. | Heavier body, lower acidity, earthy and herbal notes. The green appearance is characteristically dull and bluish. | Hulling at high moisture bruises the seed and creates entry points for mould. Not used for specialty separations in this region. | Mainly associated with Indonesia. In East Africa it appears occasionally in lower-grade Rwandan and Burundian parcels. |
Quality
Request an offer
Origin, species, process, grade, screen, crop year, volume and destination. Send what you have — if the specification is not fixed yet, describe the role the coffee plays and we will propose one.
