Lunji Coffee

At Lunji coffee farm I meet an overlanding couple from Switzerland. Aye, how refreshing to talk to them! I realise that they are my first tourist encounter after a whole month of travelling 😃! During the past 15 months they drove down from Europe via Western Africa and arrived here from Mozambique and Malawi.

Lunji I visited in January 2022 already but have not stayed here. This is one of my favourite places in Tanzania and I could come back every time! Now, the weather is great and the coffee even greater! Luckily I am able to talk to Paul who is running the coffee and roasting business. He studied in Germany and lives with his wife and kid here. Through his mother-in-law they also distribute their coffee in Germany (though being roasted here). Paul just send 800 kg over to her to be able to cope with all the Christmas orders 😁.

The farm tells a vibrant history throughout the past century. The oldest coffee bushes are 70-80 years old! Unfortunately, they are affected by a fungus disease which has been introduced in the 20th century, leading to huge losses in crop yield. Paul's plan is to replace them in future with new promising varieties, step by step. Anyway, they have different lots with different varieties already, which I very much sympathise with because this kind of diversity offers a great chance for customers to taste different coffee types. Also, they process their coffee either "natural" or "honey" which both result in intense fruity aromas which I very much appreciate 🤤. There is also a 5-days anaerobicly fermented coffee with promising taste. Had to buy a full kilogram of that, too 😅.

There are great hiking opportunities to Mount Mbeya and it is interesting to learn about the environmental challenges the farm faces nowadays. Next year they will also be producing avocado oil!Read more