Coffee is Tanzania’s largest exported crop with nine distinct growing regions, only one of which grows Robusta: Bukoba on the northern border near Lake Victoria. Like most East African coffees, Tanzania’s coffee is bright and citrusy, similar to both Kenya and Ethiopia. However, Tanzania’s coffee hasn’t reached the renowned levels of either Kenya or Ethiopia because the crop is more inconsistent.
However, there’s one big exception: Tanzania Peaberry.
Grown on the slopes of Mount Kilimanjaro and Mount Meru at over 4,500 feet elevation, Tanzania Peaberry is like other peaberry coffees around the world, but Tanzania specifically is one of the most famous peaberry beans.
A typical coffee cherry produces two half-moon shaped beans, but peaberry coffee is the result of a natural mutation that produces one spherical bean inside the cherry. This occurs with about 5% of cherries and no one knows exactly why it happens. Peaberry is generally regarded as having a superior flavor for two reasons:
If you’ve ever wanted to try peaberry coffee, start with Tanzania.
