What coffee varieties are mainly grown in Kenya? What are the characteristics of SL28 and SL34 varieties

Kenyan coffee has always been famous all over the world for its clean and refreshing taste and thick and bright acidity, which is loved by many people in the coffee industry. Can have such a rich flavor, thanks to Kenya's rich natural resources, Kenya is located in the "coffee planting belt", has a very suitable climate environment, coffee is mainly grown in Kenya's 1600-2100 meters of volcanic mountains, affected by volcanic soil rich in phosphoric acid, so that coffee is rich in fruit acidity.

However, in addition to environmental and climatic conditions, coffee varieties are also very important. Coffee was first introduced to Kenya by French missionaries at the end of the 19th century, when coffee seeds were bourbon seeds from the island of Reunion. After that, Kenya also introduced varieties such as Kent of India and Typica of the Blue Mountains of Jamaica, but they were not ideal until the emergence of coffee varieties that made Kenyan coffee famous around the world.

SL series

Because the introduced varieties were low-yielding and susceptible to coffee diseases, Kenya commissioned the Scott Agricultural Laboratory (Scott Laborotary, now known as the Kenyan National Agricultural Laboratory NARL) to select the varieties. In the following four years, Scott Agricultural Laboratory selected 42 coffee trees from different producing areas to study the yield, quality and disease resistance. These 42 varieties are prefixed with SL (laboratory acronym), followed by a serial number. Finally, among the 42 varieties, SL14, SL28 and SL34 stand out.

Recent genetic tests have confirmed that SL28 is related to the bourbon Bourbon genome, while SL14 and SL34 are related to the iron pickup Typica genome. Among them, SL28 and SL34 have similar planting characteristics, high yield, easy to grow, suitable for planting in middle and high altitude areas, and excellent flavor. Although they are vulnerable to disease, high yield and excellent flavor are very popular with farmers, and these two varieties have become the most popular varieties in Kenya. SL14 has the characteristics of drought resistance and high yield, but it is slightly inferior to SL28 and SL34 in flavor, so only a small number of people grow it in Kenya, but SL14 is more popularized in Uganda.

Ruriu 11

Although the SL series is very popular, it is susceptible to coffee diseases and insect pests. In 1968, when coffee berry disease (CBD) destroyed more than half of Kenya's coffee production, the government began to develop more disease-resistant and climate-adapted coffee varieties, including Ruriu 11, a new variety developed by Kenyan agricultural experts in Ruiru lab, so it was named after Ruiru, and it was the first variety developed in Kenya, and it was an one-way cross, and the two 1s combined into 11.

This variety is a compound variety composed of Katim Catimor, Sultan Rumei Rume Sudan, bourbon Bourbon, K7, N39, SL28 and SL34. It has very high disease resistance and high yield, but it is still not as unique as SL28 and SL34 in flavor, and needs artificial pollination for large-scale planting, so it is difficult to produce enough seeds to meet the needs of farmers.

Batian

Later, in 2010, the Kenya Coffee Research Center released a new coffee bean variety, Batian, which is backcrossed by Ruriu 11 progeny with SL28 and SL34. It is a re-created compound variety, which also has high disease resistance and high yield, and the flavor is not bad, so it is named after Batian, the highest peak in Kenya. Although the Batian varieties perform well, most Kenyan farmers prefer the traditional SL28 and SL34 varieties, and the Batian varieties have not been planted in large quantities.

Therefore, the Kenyan coffee beans on the market are still dominated by SL28 and SL34. The Kenyan coffee in Qianjie comes from Thika. SL28 and SL34 varieties are selected and washed with K72. After brewing, the coffee has the flavor of small tomato and black plum, with bright acidity, outstanding sweetness, juicy taste and clean taste.

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