We’re days from having our first of two Kanzu containers afloat for fall arrival. These coffees will ship to the East Coast for maximum efficiency, with volume transfers to the West Coast on arrival.
The Kanzu profile we love is on full display—orange marmalade, bright sweet stone fruit like apricot, tart cherry, red plum, and peach candy, intense sweetness like butterscotch, caramel and, marzipan, and a creamy honeyed body.
The amount we buy from Kanzu is limited as always, and these coffees are typically sold out before they arrive.
High Productivity, High Prices, Positive Regulatory Shifts
2025 has been a great year for cherry production as well as washing station and dry mill operations. The country has seen ideal weather leading to high cherry volumes (up 15-20% from last year). Amidst the abundant supply and superb quality, the Rwandan Coffee Board set prices higher than ever.
Rwanda in general has a lot of regulation over the coffee sector, but we’re in the second year of a positive policy change. Previously, the government had placed zoning regulations on producers, limiting where they could sell their cherry. Last season, those regulations were lifted and producers could sell wherever they pleased, allowing them access to higher prices and greater flexibility. This has been beneficial to producers as well as us on the sourcing side.
A Unique Microclimate Yields Superb Quality
Kanzu is the only washing station in Rwanda we source from, and has been so for years because of the superb and consistent quality and diversity of their offerings. Kanzu’s producers are located in a unique microclimate, and that’s a huge part of what makes the coffees so special.
Unlike many other washing stations in Rwanda, Kanzu is remote and lacking road access. To get there, we drive all the way up a winding road to a town called Gatare, then hike the rest of the way. The station is nestled against a huge national forest called Nyungwe, protected for biodiversity and from deforestation. The forest collects cloud cover, generating a special misty microclimate that slows cherry maturation and protects the coffee from extremes.
It’s right above Lake Kivu and the view looks down on the watershed, all the way down to the lake itself. Kanzu is on the downslope right below this forest, at an extremely high elevation, and we see consistently how the climate plays a huge role in the flavor development of these coffees. The cherries here ripen a lot later than most of the country and are frequently one of the last harvests of the season.
The unique microclimate and meticulous harvest and processing keep us coming back every year.
Interested in sourcing coffee with us? Reach out at info@redfoxcoffeemerchants.com. To learn more about our work, check out our journal and follow us on Instagram @redfoxcoffeemerchants.