Kirinyaga

Kirinyaga is one of Kenya’s great coffee counties. In south-central Kenya, smallholders in cooperatives such as Rung’eto, Baragwi and Kibirigwi grow SL28 and SL34 on more land than any county but Kiambu, and their washed lots, sold as Kirinyaga AA or AB, have scored up to 94 points with Coffee Review. Lately, though, it has lost its lead at the Nairobi auction to Kericho.

The short version

• 10,089 hectares of coffee in 2022, second only to Kiambu.
• SL28 and SL34, washed.
• Black currant, cacao nib, citrus and flowers.
• Top of the auctions in early 2024/25; fourth in 2025/26.
• Main crop from about October; fly crop from about April.

What does Kirinyaga coffee taste like?

Deep, sweet and pungent, in Coffee Review’s tastings of Kirinyaga lots:

Coffee	Score	Notes
Kenya Kirinyaga (Big Shoulders Coffee, 2018)	94	Cacao nib, lemon zest, lilac, candied ginger, frankincense; bright, juicy acidity; full, syrupy mouthfeel
Kirinyaga Karimikui AA (Gavagai, 2015)	92	Black currant, sandalwood, honey, wisteria-like flowers; quietly vibrant acidity; satiny mouthfeel
Kirinyaga Mukangu AB (Coffee Please, 2018)	92	Black currant, cacao nib, freesia-like flowers, almond, molasses; crisply bright acidity; velvety mouthfeel

Source: Coffee Review.

All three were from SL28 or SL28 and SL34 trees. Coffee Review calls the Big Shoulders lot “a complex, richly layered, juicy-sweet Kenya cup”.

How much coffee does it grow?

Measure	Figure	Source
Area under coffee, 2022	10,089 ha (second among counties)	Ministry of Agriculture, via Business Daily
Cherry, year to June 2022	8.77 million kg (second)	Ministry of Agriculture, via Business Daily
Auctioned, first seven months of 2024/25	5,487,120 kg, Sh4.9 billion (first)	Nairobi Coffee Exchange, via The Standard
Auctioned, 2025/26 to sale 29	4.61 million kg, Sh4.31 billion (fourth)	Nairobi Coffee Exchange, via The Star
Production, 2024/25	45,717 t	County figures, via Citizen Digital and The Standard
Production, 2025/26	49,100 t (+7%)	County figures, via Citizen Digital and The Standard
Payout to cooperatives, 2025/26	Sh7.4 billion, at Sh104–157.40 a kg of cherry (average about Sh139)	Citizen Digital, The Star
Land zoned for coffee	17,355 ha (12% of the county)	County Integrated Development Plan 2023–2027

The units differ: the county’s 49,100 tonnes must be cherry, since a Sh7.4 billion payout at about Sh139 a kilo implies roughly 53 million kg of cherry, by our calculation; that is more than five times the ministry’s 8.77 million kg for 2022. The county’s plan zones 17,355 hectares for coffee, against 10,089 hectares actually under coffee in the ministry’s count. Payouts are rising: Thirikwa cooperative paid the highest average, Sh157.15 a kilo, and the Nyanja factory of Baragwi the top single price, Sh157.40. In 2025/26 Kericho overtook Kirinyaga at the auctions, nearly doubling its volume, and the central Kenya belt’s share of auction volume fell from 62% to 51%, The Star reports.

Cooperatives and factories

Kirinyaga’s coffee comes from cooperative societies, each running several factories. Wikipedia lists among them Rung’eto Farmers Co-operative Society, in Ngariama ward, with the Kii, Karimikui and Kiangoi factories; Baragwi Farmers Co-operative Society, with Karumandi, Kianyaga and Gachame; and Kibirigwi Farmers Cooperative Society. Lots reach buyers under these factory names and Kenyan grades such as AA and AB, like the Karimikui AA and Mukangu AB above.

Harvest

Kenya’s main crop runs from about October to December and the smaller fly crop from about April to June, growers told Bloomberg. The trees need about a month of dry weather to prepare for flowering, and a cold, wet spell can both curb flowering and spread coffee berry disease.

Kirinyaga and other Kenyan origins

• Coffee in Kenya: the whole country, its varieties and its auction.
• Nyeri: another classic county, home of Gikanda and Othaya.
• Coffee in Ethiopia: where arabica began.