Fucking Strong Coffee from Congo

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fucking strong coffee

CONGO

€14,00

Tax included

IDJWI ISLAND
ESPRESSO / FILTER / COLD BREW
FLORAL AND FLAVORFUL

Size:

250 g 1 kg

Grind:

Whole Beans Espresso Filter

A rare find from a tiny island on Lake Kivu – bold, floral, fruity, and a bit surprising.

The coffee
the producer
The brand

These beans are from CPNCK’s Ngula micro-mill, the lot which impressed our import partner This Side Up the most on their visit to Idjwi Island in 2017. They are fully washed, wet fermented for 12 hours, washed again with mountain water, shade-dried and pre-sorted, then sun-dried on raised beds.

Idjwi’s medium-elevation (1,600m-1,800m) and different set of varietals produce cherries that exhibit less outright citrus notes than most neighboring specialty coffees in Rwanda. We find these beans to be floral with some nice cherry sweetness. We medium roast to give them a bit more body and intensity.

We debuted these beans back in the summer of 2021 as our shop cold brew at Good Beans, to rave reviews. We also enjoy them as a bright but bold espresso, and on our batch brewer.

CPNCK

CPNCK was founded in 2013 by Gilbert Makembele as an effort to provide opportunities for Idjwi's local population -- especially young men -- who were particularly vulnerable to the DRC’s endemic problems of rebel influence, endless conflict, and illicit trade. Especially after the coffee price crisis of the 1980s, coffee production on Idjwi plummeted, and the remaining producers struggled with a difficult landscape of disorganization, low investment, and illegal trade. They were often in danger of having their yields stolen by bandits along the smuggling routes to Rwanda. Even if they did reach the Rwandan market, they could only sell their crop for ridiculously low prices.

Driven by their mission of securing a more peaceful, independent future for the island's youth, Gilbert and CPNCK have made a serious name for themselves amongst specialty buyers over the last several harvests. In the process, they've basically eliminated the island's illicit coffee trade and improved the livelihoods of thousands of farmers and their families.

Fucking Strong Coffee is a specialty coffee brand from the folks behind Good Beans - a beloved bean shop tucked amongst the canals of Amsterdam. We built the brand in 2018 as a response to the monotonous, snobby tone that had infected most of the specialty coffee world. Minimalist cafes, ridiculously technical language, pretentious branding, and moralizing eye rolls… they all snarkily whispered the same thing: specialty coffee is for the few. You want to know what we think…? Fuck that.

In many ways, our beans are fancy as fuck. We traceably source coffee from small, top-notch producers who are paid far above market price for meticulously processing their cherries and sustainably maintaining their land. In Amsterdam, we specialty roast with the type of care that would make any smirking barista smile – bringing out bold, surprising flavors that we’re always jazzed to share with our friends.

Our fresh beans are packed in our signature resealable cans (which you can refill for a discount at our Amsterdam shop if you're in town) or in swanky black kilo bags. We roast weekly and ship within 2-3 business days.

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