About This Coffee

Mondul Estate – Arusha, Tanzania

Mondul Estate is a historic coffee farm nestled on Mondul Mountain, just 25km from Burka town in the Arusha region of Northern Tanzania — the heart of Maasai land. Established in 1931 and now part of the renowned Burka Estates group (which also includes Selian and Burka Estates), Mondul spans 211 hectares of high-altitude terrain, ideal for growing exceptional coffee.

Tasting Notes

Expect a vibrant cup with juicy cherry brightness and a smooth, lingering finish of sweet vanilla. The high-altitude climate and meticulous processing bring out a clean, balanced profile with delicate complexity.

People & Practices

The estates employ around 200 permanent staff and 200 daily casual workers, with numbers rising to over 5,000 during the peak harvest season. Permanent staff are provided with housing across four estate camps and receive salaries set 20% above the government minimum. Employment includes social security, union membership, and access to an estate-run credit union offering support for education, healthcare, and homebuilding.

Conservation at Heart

Burka Estates are deeply committed to conservation. The estate board includes dedicated conservationists focused on protecting the local biome. Burka Forest — one of the last and largest indigenous forests in Arusha — is carefully preserved, along with Burka Hill and the surrounding ecosystems.

This commitment has created a thriving natural habitat, now home to over 120 bird species, as well as velvet monkeys, dik-diks, the last baboon colony in the area, and even the elusive Madagascar Squacco Heron. The estate also trains wildlife wardens to help safeguard this rich biodiversity.

Processing & Sustainability

Coffee cherries are hand-picked and delivered to the wet mill within six hours. At the mill, they are sorted, graded, and processed using a Pinhalense de-mucilage machine, then soaked in water from the estate’s natural spring. The water is recirculated and responsibly disposed of via seepage pits.

Waste cherry pulp is composted using worms to produce organic fertiliser, which is returned to the soil to enrich future crops — a sustainable, circular practice.

After fermentation, parchment coffee is washed, rinsed, and dried on raised African beds for up to seven days. Once the moisture content reaches 12% or lower, the parchment is transported to Moshi for milling, and then to Dar es Salaam for export.

Mondul’s quality is closely monitored. Each day’s lots are cupped and assessed at Burka’s on-site lab to ensure only the finest beans are selected.

Growing Altitude: 1600m – 1800m
Region: Arusha, Northern Tanzania
Flavour Notes: Cherry, Vanilla