Tanzania Umalila Natural

Heads up: we’re updating our label for this coffee, so your bag may arrive with a temporary label that looks a little different from the photos. Rest assured, what’s inside is exactly the same.

Tanzania’s southern highlands are home to some of the country’s most exciting coffee, and Umalila is a name that keeps cropping up. In just a few years this cooperative has gone from village-level processing to a well-run, carefully managed system, and the quality in the cup has followed.

This natural lot is sweet and fruit-leaning, with ripe red fruit up front, a gentle hint of soft spice and a smooth, easy-drinking finish. It’s a coffee that rewards a little attention, and it’s just as happy in a mug on a slow morning as it is in a V60. Best enjoyed as a filter or Aeropress brew, though it also works well in a cafetière.

The Umalila Agricultural Marketing Cooperative Society (AMCOS) brings together around 250 members from the villages of Shinsota, Idiwili, Ilindi, Isuto, Shetete and Shinzingo. Coffee here was once produced separately, with each village processing its own parchment. Pooling their efforts has paid off, and the cooperative now produces around 1,600 bags a year. Natural lots like this one are a newer venture for Umalila, and they suggest this is only the beginning.