Clan Farm in Kiangwachi village, Kirinyaga County, is where culinary-inspired coffee brands are blended.
Wangui, who is striving to offer more sophisticated flavours, is not alone.
She works with her son Malvin Waweru, a professional coffee barrister and trainer.
Waweru also has a certificate in roasting from Dormans Coffee and was trained in fermentation in Jordan.
“Waweru kept conducting coffee training on other peoples’ farms. It prompted us to set aside three-quarters of an acre in 2019 for coffee growing and training,” Wangui tells the Seeds of Gold team.
The two have come up with Kombucha, a flavour trending in Kirinyaga and several other counties.
How do Wambui and her son make their Kombucha?
Once the berries have been picked, they are selected. Only the red ripe cherries are retained.
What follows soon after harvesting is removing the skin and pulp.
“One can opt for dry or wet fermentation after which the coffee is cleaned again and dried. After drying the moisture content should be 10.5 to 12 per cent,” he adds.
Roasting follows afterwards. The coffee is then packaged as whole beans or ground.
To sustain their project, Wangui and Waweru bought the needed machinery – the de-pulping kit, grinder, hulling machine, an espresso gadget and a roaster.
Wangui and her son package their coffee in 50g and 250g volumes. A 50g pack goes for Sh150 while the Sh250g one is Sh600.
Mother and son also grow sage, lemon grass, rosemary, Roselle hibiscus and celery and other herbs organically.
Wangui is a member of Kariti Self-Help Group, which is being funded by the Kirinyaga devolved government.
The pond, part of the programme, has been of help to Wangui during dry seasons as she has a steady supply of water for her coffee and herbs, ensuring continuous production.
“I started by growing hibiscus after realising that the plant does well in tropical and subtropical regions. It does not require too much water. We make hibiscus jam,” she says.
She says lemon grass has a wide range of therapeutic properties and can grow in many soils.
