Situated in Southeast Africa, Zimbabwe is known for its beautiful landscapes, lovely weather, natural wonders, and wildlife. Indeed, Zimbabwe has a lot to offer, but Zimbabwe coffee is a top contender. If you are a coffee lover and have plans to visit Zimbabwe, rest assured that it will be catered for your coffee needs.
Not only are the Zimbabwean locals very friendly, but so are their weather and climate! Be sure to read on if you want to find out how environment plays a massive role in coffee production in Zimbabwe. So grab a cup of coffee, sit back and enjoy this Zimbabwean coffee expedition.
Top Facts About Zimbabwe Coffee
- Zimbabwe's coffee history dates back to the mid-1800s when interest in coffee production began. Fast forward to the 2000s, when a significant decline in Zimbabwean coffee production was felt due to poor rainfall and economic instability. An exciting deal has recently come to life with Nespresso and an international non-profit organization planning to rejuvenate Zimbabwe coffee.
- Apart from the history of Zimbabwe coffee, only 3 types of coffee beans are grown in Zimbabwe: Arabica, Catimor, and Robusta. The most common coffee bean in Zimbabwe is the Arabica coffee bean. The Arabica coffee bean is known for its remarkable sweetness, nutty taste, and distinct chocolatey aroma. The acidity in the Arabica bean, combined with the wine-like taste, blends well to give an intense fruity aroma.
- The Arabica coffee bean thrives in Zimbabwe due to the climate experienced in the country's Eastern Highlands. The climate provides the perfect and ideal conditions to grow top-quality coffee. With an altitude of 4500 feet, tremendous rainfall amounts, ideal temperatures, and high soil fertility, the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe provide perfect growing conditions for Zimbabwe coffee.
- One beautiful aspect of Zimbabwe that is used as a drying method is the East African sun! The coffee beans are sun-dried and raked every 6 hours to ensure even drying. Once the beans reach a water content of about 10 percent, they become stable. A massive advantage of wet-processing coffee beans is that Zimbabwe coffee retains its unique fruity and rich flavor.
5 Coffee Brands You Must Try
When trying out various coffee brands, you could come to Zimbabwe, or Zimbabwe could come to you! 3 Zimbabwe coffee brands will blow your mind and allow you to savor every drop of goodness in your cup.
1. Buffalo Buck’s: Zimbabwe Fresh Roasted Gourmet (Amazon)
Location: Amazon
Characterized by size 5 beans and medium roast, this Arabica blend is packaged as whole beans. Produced by Buffalo Buck’s, this brand of Zimbabwe coffee is an ideal choice for those concerned about their caffeine intake as it contains a slightly lower caffeine level than others. Buffalo Buck’s Zimbabwe beans win the hearts of many with its custom roasting and blending services that cater to specific preferences for an additional payment.
Out Of The Grey Coffee has a spicy, sweet, hazelnut, orange bitters & black peppercorn flavors, brisk, juicy acidity with satiny mouthfeel & richly drying finish. The Zimbabwe Smaldeel Estate has been around for over 100 years. The estate is located on the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe. The Smaldeel estate had first started cultivating coffee in 1959. The estate cultivates approximately 200 hectares of land at an altitude of around 1,100 meters above sea level. What’s unique about the Smaldeel Estate is that they provide proper housing and a health clinic for its employees.
The Zimbabwe Dandoni Estate has a medium body with delightfully earthy character that is smooth and bright. In 1918, Herschel M. Duncan fired up the roaster for the Duncan Coffee Company's first batch of coffee. Duncan had developed special coffee blends which were initially sold exclusively to the finest restaurants, hotels and railroad dining cars. His commitment to quality and freshness soon had the attention of coffee drinkers across the nation. One of the first Texas Coffee Roasters.
For all Nespresso coffee lovers, Zimbabwe brings its Nespresso contribution to challenge your top-of-the-list contenders.
Tamuka mu Zimbabwe Nespresso (translated to Awakening of Zimbabwe) is a limited edition Nespresso coffee originating from the Mountains in the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe. A split roast makes Tamuka mu Zimbabwe Nespresso coffee. The first split is light and short, which extracts the sweetness of the coffee. The second split consists of a dark and long roast that balances the various aromas and tastes and gives the coffee its smoothness.
Tamuka mu Zimbabwe Nespresso has a unique aromatic profile that tantalizes your taste buds as it leaves traces of cranberry, grape, red berries, and blackcurrant, owing to its fruitiness and acidity. This delicious coffee is smooth and creamy and has sweet notes of toffee and caramel, the perfect combination to try in a Latte Macchiato.
So Nespresso lovers, the next time you want to try a new type of Nespresso coffee, make sure Tamuka mu Zimbabwe Nespresso is at the top of your list!
La Lucie Coffee Zimbabwe is a small boutique coffee company established in 1995. This company's pride and glory coffee bean originates from the roots of Zimbabwe in a town called Chipinge, located in the Eastern Highlands. With close to perfect weather, and most suitable for growing coffee, La Lucie Coffee offers a delicious Pure Arabica coffee.
This Zimbabwe coffee can be packaged in 500-gram bags of either ground or whole-bean coffee. Catering to personal preferences, La Lucie coffee ensures that customers can choose between medium or dark roasts, both of which are subtly characterized by notes of caramel and a fruity aroma. La Lucie coffee is excellent in a Latte, and the fruitiness and aroma of the bean owe much to the fertile soils and stable temperatures of Chipinge.
A cup of La Lucie coffee is the perfect way to begin your day and experience an authentic taste of Zimbabwe coffee!
Zimbabwe Coffee Production
Zimbabwe coffee is grown mainly in the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe, also regarded as the Coffee belt of Zimbabwe. This region has an altitude between 1200 and 1500 m.a.s.l and receives over 800 mm of annual rain. With a temperate climate, Zimbabwe is home to suitable growing conditions for the Arabica coffee bean.
Despite some dry spells, Zimbabwe is home to various streams and rivers which provide an alternative source of irrigation to the coffee industry. The nature of the soil gives a balanced and moderate flavor profile consisting of chocolatey, earthy, leathery, and fruity flavors, giving coffee from Zimbabwe a unique taste.
Despite the significant decline in coffee production, the future of coffee production in Zimbabwe is promising!
Author
A coffee lover, content writer, and poet who enjoys exercising while listening to music. Being in great company at a coffee shop is my favorite place to be!