BEST SERVED AS

REGION:
Lufa & Okapa Villages, Eastern Highlands.

PRODUCER:
Lufa & Okapa CO--OP (Okalu)

ELEVATION:
1450 - 2000masl

VARIETALS:
Typica, Arusha

PROCESS:
Fully Washed (Sun-dried)

TASTING NOTES:
Red Grape, Maple Syrup & Sweet Milk Chocolate

ORIGIN INFORMATION:
The Eastern Highlands is a rugged, fertile region shaped by the soaring Kratke and Bismarck Ranges, rainforest valleys, and river systems like the Asaro and Lamari.

Home to an extraordinary range of plant and animal life, it offers ideal conditions for producing high-quality coffee. Since its introduction in the late 19th century, coffee has thrived here under careful farm management with little to no fertiliser inputs. Yet despite this potential, progress in specialty coffee has been limited by poor infrastructure and economic instability. In the remote villages of Okapa and Lufa, which inspired the name of our Okalu blend, coffee is a vital cash crop. 

Smallholder farmers, often with as few as 20 trees, cultivate it alongside subsistence crops. With limited access to equipment or reliable buyers, many have had to undersell their coffee to anyone able to transport it, making investment in quality difficult and limiting the true value of their harvests. Enter Maureen Ken, a local businesswoman with a mission to build confidence and long-term relationships with rural producers. She established Lass Malo Coffee (LMC) in 2015 with her husband, Ken Dumudi, to focus on accessibility and quality support in the region.

Locally led with the prosperity of remote farming communities at heart, LMC provides a bridge for producers to sell their coffee at value-added prices. These premiums have made a significant impact, both in improving farmers’ livelihoods and elevating the quality and consistency of coffee across all export grades. 

Farmers hand-pick ripe cherries, wash and float them, then pulp and ferment for 24 to 36 hours. After washing, the parchment is dried on raised beds under shade for 3-4 days. LMC trucks collect the dried parchment free of charge and transport it to their dry mill facility in Goroka. There, at LMC’s expanded dry mill facility established in 2022, the coffee undergoes further sun-drying or mechanical drying before being finished with colour sorting and gravity separation, increasing quality and returns for farming communities. Upstream has the privilege to help support LMC by sourcing and supplying green grading equipment so they can process their coffees independently. Supporting female exporters such as Maureen has been one of the pillars of our business since its inception, which is why we are corporate members of the International Women’s Coffee Alliance of Australia. Through this project, we are committed to continuing to support their efforts as they strive to improve the quality and consistency of their green coffee exports.

BREW RECIPE ESPRESSO
PRESSURE / Pre-infuse for 4s
TEMPERTURE / 94-97°
DOSE / 21g
BASKET / VST 22g
YIELD / 50-55ml
TIME / 28-32s
RATIO / 1:2.5