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Who Makes The
BEST COFFEE
Mpemba — supplied coffee image 1
Editorial sacred-geometry artwork for Mpemba; not a documentary photograph

Editorial illustration

Editorial sacred-geometry artwork for Mpemba; not a documentary photograph

Editorial illustration

Editorial sacred-geometry artwork for Mpemba; not a documentary photograph

Editorial illustration

🇧🇮Burundi · Kayanza

Mpemba

Roasted by Counter Culture CoffeeRoaster's website
TRADITIONAL PROCESS
TagsBurundiKayanzaBourbonMbiriziJacksonWashedLight roastHoney flavorBlack TeaArabicaSingle originMpemba washing stationKazoza N’Ikawa cooperativeCounter Culture Coffee
🇧🇮BurundiWashedLight roast
Brand
Counter Culture Coffee
Roaster website
Visit website
Country
🇧🇮Burundi
Region
Kayanza
Town
Mpemba
Farm / Station
Mpemba washing station
Farmer / Producer
Kazoza N’Ikawa cooperative
Species
Arabica
Type
Single origin
Grade
Not specified
Variety
Bourbon, Mbirizi and Jackson
Process
Roast
Light
Tasting notes
clementine, honey, tea-like
Fermentation
After eco-pulping, coffee ferments in plastic barrels for 12–18 hours before washing.
Drying
Raised beds
Product page
Roaster's site
Date reviewed
—
Why some details are blank
  • gradeThe exact release page does not publish a formal green-coffee grade.
  • altitude mThe source publishes a 1,780–2,000 m range; no unsupported midpoint is stored.
  • variety idThe lot combines Bourbon, Mbirizi and Jackson, so no single structured variety is assigned.
  • drying durationRaised beds are documented, but the exact drying duration is not published.
  • public sentiment ratingNo independently authored tasting score tied unambiguously to the May–July 2025 washed release qualifies.
  • roast dateNo bag-specific roast date is documented.
  • brew recommendationNo exact-release brewing recipe is published on the cited product page.
Spotted an error? Report a correction →
The transparency chain

FROM THE BAG
BACK TO THE LAND.

Every link we could verify, traced in one place. Follow the chain as far as it goes — when the industry doesn't disclose a link, we say so instead of guessing.

  1. 01
    The name on the bag
    Mpemba
  2. 02
    The brand
    Counter Culture Coffee
  3. 03
    The roaster
    Counter Culture Coffee
  4. 04
    The variety
    Bourbon, Mbirizi and Jackson
  5. 05
    The farm
    Mpemba washing station
  6. 06
    The farmer
    Kazoza N’Ikawa cooperative
  7. 07
    The region
    Kayanza
  8. 08
    The country
    🇧🇮Burundi
From the producer

Kazoza N’Ikawa—Kirundi for “the future is coffee”—is a smallholder cooperative based in Mpemba. Member farms are typically under one hectare and deliver cherry to the cooperative’s washing station.

From the roaster

Counter Culture Coffee is a specialty roaster that focuses on transparently traded, high-quality beans. They emphasize direct relationships with producers and provide detailed sensory profiles for their offerings.

Why this coffee is noteworthy

Counter Culture first purchased this washed Mpemba lot in 2012, the station’s first washed-production year, and has bought it every year since. The 2025 lot also documents Seeds-funded community investments including solar kits for 118 families.

The honest process breakdown

WHAT DID THEY ACTUALLY
DO TO THIS COFFEE?

01
Release separation

Kept the washed May–July 2025 Mpemba lot distinct from the cooperative’s natural-sundried release, processing set and earlier seasonal Mpemba coffees.

02
Structured cultivar composition

Recorded Bourbon, Mbirizi and Jackson as disclosed components without inventing percentages or assigning a single variety.

03
Retail and stock verification

Reconfirmed the $26/12 oz retail package and current out-of-stock status; the roaster’s $4.49/lb figure remains identified as FOB green-coffee pricing.

04
Sentiment audit

Excluded zero-rating catalogs, roaster-level evidence indices, an article without Mpemba-specific tasting detail and a 2025 Reddit bag from a different crop season.

What was added?

Structured three-cultivar composition, current sold-out verification, complete profile disclosure and refreshed source methodology.

What wasn't added?

No single variety link, midpoint elevation, owner tasting score, unsupported drying duration or public sentiment rating.

Why it matters

The profile now clearly separates this washed 2025-harvest release from other Mpemba seasons and the natural version while keeping retail, FOB and evidence-index figures distinct.

What you might taste

Counter Culture lists clementine, honey and a tea-like body; these remain roaster descriptors rather than owner tasting observations.

Sources for these process claims
  • · https://counterculturecoffee.com/products/mpemba
  • · https://counterculturecoffee.com/products/processing-set
  • · https://www.coffeelist.co/b/counter-culture-coffee/mpemba
  • · https://beanwired.com/coffee/counter-culture-retail/mpemba
  • · https://cherrybookcoffee.com/coffee/counter-culture-mpemba
  • · https://www.theguardian.com/thefilter-us/2026/aug/26/counter-culture-coffee-review
Coffee profile

In the database. Not tasted. Not scored.

This coffee is in our database because we can reliably document it — but we haven't tasted and scored it yet, and we never publish a score we haven't earned.

Outside reviews and internet discussion — is kept clearly separate from our own review. When we taste it, our full review appears here.

The internet pulse

What the internet is saying about this coffee

Research complete — no qualifying reviews yet

Our research pipeline scanned public reviews, videos, forums and discussions for this coffee (last pass 2026-11-11) and found no independent review of this exact release that meets our verification standards. When qualifying sources appear, they'll be published here.

What we found

Method: required an independently authored tasting tied unambiguously to Counter Culture's washed May–July 2025 Mpemba release. Coffee List has 0 ratings. Cherrybook's 79 is explicitly an evidence-of-quality index using incomplete and largely roaster-level signals, not a cup score. The Guardian says its author tried Mpemba but gives no Mpemba-specific score or tasting note. A May 2025 Reddit bag was roasted before this harvest and was excluded as a different seasonal release. Natural-process, seller, catalog and general Counter Culture commentary were also excluded.

Until then, meet the people behind it:

Meet the farm: Mpemba washing station →Meet the farmer: Kazoza N’Ikawa cooperative →
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Same coffee, different roaster?

Other roasters, same producer.

These coffees come from the same producer or farm, offered by other roasters. We never automatically declare two offerings the exact same coffee — a match requires lot, harvest and traceability details. Even a true same-lot pair can taste different: roast approach, freshness, rest and brewing all reshape the cup.

Mpemba – Natural SundriedRELATED
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