This fine Rwandan coffee from Muganza washing station is XL washed. XL stands for extra long, 4 days instead of the standard 12/24 hours. This method is in place for two main reasons: to reduce the consumption of water in drought affected areas and because this method involves multi day depulping and adding of cherries. In Rwanda, like in many other parts of East Africa, the coffee is grown by garden farmers that don’t have huge crops. They can pick their ripest cherries and can make several trips during the same week to the washing station where new cherries are added to the tank over a four day period. In addition, the coffee is covered with black tarp while in the water tanks to trap in the aromatic volatile compounds that would otherwise escape, making a more pronounced profile that already existed.