• The Mondul Estate is located in the Arusha region of Tanzania, less than 100 miles from Mt. Kilimanjaro.
• This estate was originally started by an Italian Count in 1931, but was just recently purchased Burka Estates, one of the largest coffee-producers in Tanzania.
• The high altitude, plentiful direct sunlight, proper drainage and volcanic soil produce a higher concentration of peaberries.
• The Mondul Estate has won several local awards for coffee quality, as well as continent-wide recognition at the African Fine Coffee Association Cupping Competition in 2002.
• Peaberry coffee beans are rounder and smaller than normal beans and are often separated out from regular beans because their round shape causes them to roast differently.
About our Tanzania:
Peaberry coffee beans are rounder and smaller than normal beans because they occur when only half of the coffee cherry is fertilized. Without the other bean growing in the same cherry, there is nothing to flatten the bean. The round beans roast differently than normal beans, and are therefore often separated out so that they can be roasted appropriately. Peaberry coffee is often deemed higher quality because it has necessarily been hand-selected, which weeds out imperfect and lower-quality beans.
Established by the Italian Count Vittorio Davico in 1931, the Mondul Coffee Estate continued to thrive under the direction of the Davico family for over seventy-five years. Coveted for its high elevation in the mountains above Monduli Town, in the greater Arusha region of northeastern Tanzania, the estate was recently purchased by the owner of Burka Estates, the largest coffee operation in Tanzania. The farm and mill are managed by Kenyan Hugh Johansen, who is making great strides to expand cultivation.
The Mondul Estate’s high elevation lends itself to small, dense peaberry growth, consistent sun exposure, and proper drainage of its volcanic soil. Cooler weather at high elevation slows coffee growth, and the estate’s proximity to the Monduli Forest Reserve promises clean water. Only five-percent of their annual yield is classified as peaberry.
The estate won local awards for coffee quality in 1998 through 2001, and received continent-wide recognition at the African Fine Coffee Association Cupping Competition in 2002.