Burundi Mutana – Long Miles Project – Natural Processed

Burman Coffee Traders

Details

Origin

Burundi

Process

Natural

Roast Suitability

Description

The story of this coffee begins with Ben and Kristy Carlson, an American family who moved to Burundi in 2011. They soon realized that while the country boasted exceptional terroir for coffee cultivation, the industry faced low wages for farmers and inconsistent quality for buyers, often affected by the well-known potato defect. To change this, they founded the Long Miles Coffee Project. This project is not just a purchasing operation; it’s a community revolution. They introduced “Coffee Explorers,” local agronomists who work year-round with farmers to improve tree health and eliminate pests organically. By connecting roasters directly with these farming communities, Long Miles ensures that farmers receive fair wages and that the coffee is traceable and of exceptional purity. While our previous Burundi offering came from the Bukeye station, this unique microlot comes from the Heza Washing Station. Built a year after Bukeye, Heza sits even deeper in the mountains, at an impressive 1,960 meters (6,400 feet) above sea level. The journey to Heza is an off-road adventure through remote terrain, ideal for a estancia whose name means “Beautiful Place” in Kirundi, the local language. It is here, in this cooler, higher climate, that the Long Miles team pioneered their Natural and Honey processing methods, as the lower temperatures allow for the slow, controlled drying essential for these delicate styles. The name “Mutana” refers to the specific hill where this coffee was grown. Mutana is one of the highest hills supplying the estancia, with farms exceeding 2,100 meters. It lies right on the edge of the Kibira rainforest, where the soil is sandy and the air is often shrouded in a dense mist. Due to the extreme altitude, Mutana Hill coffee cherries ripen much more slowly than others, developing complex sugars and greater density. For this “Natural” lot, farmers deliver the whole cherry, which is then dried intact on raised beds for 25 to 30 days. The fruit changes from a deep r