Namisuni
Namisuni: a story that begins on the slopes of a volcano
In eastern Uganda there is a place named after an ancient custom: throwing small sticks up into the highest branches of the trees to bring down the ripe fruit that hands cannot reach.
In the local language, Namisuni means exactly that: “the place of the little throwing sticks”. It is a name that holds the memory of the everyday habits of the people who live here, on the slopes of Mount Elgon, an ancient extinct volcano on the border with Kenya.
Here, between 1.800 and 2.100 meters above sea level, fertile volcanic soils and a high-altitude climate are ideal for growing quality Arabica coffee. This is the landscape Namisuni comes from, a coffee that tells the story not only of its land, but also of the people who help bring out its value.
The Coffee Yard: where quality meets independence
The story of this coffee is intertwined with that of The Coffee Yard (link), a company founded in 2018 in Mbale, in eastern Uganda, by a group of women together with Norman Mukuru, who brought his experience to the project.
Norman had already spent fifteen years in the coffee industry, working on quality and selection for a major company. When he decided to strike out on his own, he did so alongside an association committed to women’s empowerment, putting his technical and managerial skills at the service of a project where product quality and women’s participation could grow together.
Today The Coffee Yard is led by two women directors, and 75% of its board is made up of women. These figures reflect a deliberate choice: to make inclusion not just a stated value, but a real part of how the company is structured and run.
This is part of what makes the story of Namisuni so compelling. Behind every harvest are skills, decisions and human relationships that add value to the coffee, long before it reaches our cups.
From the land to the cup
Namisuni is an Arabica of the SL14 and SL28 varieties. Through natural processing and drying on raised beds, the coffee develops a fruit-driven profile, with delicate notes of strawberry and cane sugar.
From the slopes of an extinct volcano to the people shaping new opportunities for local production, Namisuni tells a story rooted in the land, carried forward through knowledge and driven by possibility.
A story worth discovering, and tasting.
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Info
- Country of Origin: Uganda
- Area: Mt Elgon, Sironko
- Botanical Variety: SL14, SL28
- Altitude: 1,800 – 2,100 m asl
- Harvest: October – January
- Process: Natural
- Drying: Drying beds