CONGO VIRUNGA NATURAL #1144

It's fantastic to find a coffee like this from Kivu region in Congo, where the farmers with the local coffee cooperatives have succeeded, against all odds, in overcoming political and environmental challenges to produce a truly stellar product. Kivu sits on the Eastern edge of Congo, bordering coffee-producing areas of Rwanda, Burundi, and Uganda, where the climate is ideal for coffee and altitudes reach up to 2,000 meters. It's also where you'll find Virunga National Park, Africa's very first national park. Virunga Park is home to over a third of the world's mountain gorillas, over 700 species of birds, and over 200 mammal species. More than 7,000 small coffee growers live within a mile of the park, many of whom contributed to this cup. Fruity, clean, and complex, a coffee like this showcases what great Congolese coffee is all about. As an extra-special touch, the beans are Blue Mountain varietal, a fun type of coffee that was introduced to East Africa from Jamaica's Blue Mountains in the early 1900s. Mainly found in Rwanda today, this type of bean is known for being sweet, light, and mild in flavor.

If you try one coffee from Congo this year, make it this one! It was a great surprise on my cupping table, and it's bound to be a hit on your breakfast table. With smooth, silky notes of purple fruit and sweet iced tea, Congo Virunga Natural is a coffee you will yourself reaching for all day long. Reserve a bag today, for yourself or someone you love (sweet tea for your sweetie?) and enjoy this organic crowd-pleaser from a hard-to-find, and deliciously unique, coffee origin.