What is Fresh Roasted Coffee Kenya AA?
Kenya's top grade, roasted a little darker than usual, from smallholders in the west.
Fresh Roasted describes its Kenya AA as bright, complex and exceptionally sweet, with a floral fragrance, wine-like brilliance, fragrant fruit and a silky body, and with less of an acidic bite than other African coffees. The bag prints it as medium-dark and bold bodied, with notes of peach blossom, orange zest and black tea.
It is grown in Bungoma County by smallholders who generally have fewer than 200 trees each and take their cherries to cooperative mills. Fresh Roasted says the cherries reach the wet mill the day they are picked, are sorted there, washed, and dried on raised tables before dry milling. The rest of the range is on the Fresh Roasted Coffee roaster page.
What AA means, and what it does not
AA is a size grade, not a flavour grade.
Kenya grades its coffee by bean size, and AA is the largest grade, screen sizes 17 and 18, beans of roughly 6.8 millimetres and up. Larger beans tend to come from well tended trees and roast more evenly, which is why AA commands a premium, but the grade says nothing about how the coffee tastes. Two AA lots from different cooperatives can taste very different, which is why the county and the process matter more than the letters.
Kenyan coffee is famous for a bright, blackcurrant and citrus acidity, and most specialty roasters keep it light to show that off. Fresh Roasted roasts this one medium-dark, which trades some of that brightness for body and sweetness. If you want the classic sharp Kenyan cup, it also sells a Light Kenya AA. The other medium-dark roast coffees we review sit in the same band, and Kenya's place among the growing countries is in our guide to the coffee belt.
Roasted to order, and dated on the bag
The strongest thing Fresh Roasted publishes is not a tasting note. It is when the coffee was roasted.
Fresh Roasted Coffee roasts each order after it is placed, on Loring Smart Roasters at its base in central Pennsylvania, then packs and nitrogen flushes the bag straight away. Its shipping policy says coffee leaves one to two days after roasting, and orders placed after noon on a Thursday are roasted on Sunday night and shipped on Monday.
The roast date is printed on a white sticker on the bottom of every bag. It is written as a Julian day, the number of the day in the year, so day 272 is the 29th of September. It takes a second to decode, and the roaster's FAQ has the chart, but it means you can see exactly how old the coffee is, which most supermarket bags will not tell you. A best before date on a supermarket bag says when the seller stops standing behind it, not when it was roasted.
Price, and what a cup costs
The dearest of the four at 12 oz, as Kenyan coffee usually is.
| Bag | Price | Per kilo | Per cup (15 g) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 340 g (12 oz) | $17.99 | $52.88 | $0.79 |
| 907 g (2 lb) | $39.99 | $44.08 | $0.66 |
| 2.27 kg (5 lb) | $79.99 | $35.27 | $0.53 |
Shipping is a flat $7.95 on orders under $50 and free above $50 once discounts are taken off, so two 2 lb bags or three 12 oz bags usually clear the threshold.
New to Fresh Roasted Coffee? Our link applies the code COFFEEGURU, which takes 20% off a first order of coffee or tea. It is for new customers only and does not apply to subscriptions.
Fresh Roasted Kenya AA vs Cooper's Cask Kenya AA
Both medium-dark, both washed, at almost the same price.
The Cooper's Cask Kenya AA is the other Kenya AA we review, and it is strikingly similar on paper: washed, medium-dark, $18.95 for 12 oz and $35.25 a kilo at its cheapest, against $17.99 and $35.27 here. Cooper's describes juicy, sweet baked peaches and a heavy, syrupy body, where Fresh Roasted prints peach blossom, orange zest and black tea, a lighter and more tea-like description.
The differences that are published are small: Fresh Roasted names its county and dates its bags, Cooper's does not print a roast date. If you want the syrupy version, buy Cooper's; if you want the lighter, tea-like one and a date on the bag, buy this.
Other ways to buy it
- Dark Kenya AA, $17.99 for 12 oz, for a heavier cup.
- Light Kenya AA, $17.99 for 12 oz, for the bright classic Kenyan profile.
- Espresso capsules, $7.99 for 10, for Nespresso OriginalLine machines, not Vertuo.
Is it worth it?
Yes, if you want Kenyan character with a softer edge.
It is a named, graded, washed Kenyan at a fair price, fresh and dated. It is not the brightest Kenya AA you can buy, by design, and the roaster's own light roast is the better choice if brightness is why you want Kenyan coffee.
Who should buy it (and who should not)
Buy it if
- You like fruit and a tea-like finish but find light African coffees too sharp.
- You brew drip or French press and want body as well as brightness.
- You want a fresh, dated bag at a mid price.
Skip it if
- You want the classic bright Kenyan cup; buy the Light Kenya AA.
- You want the cooperative and altitude named.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Kenya AA mean?
AA is Kenya's largest bean size grade. It describes size, not taste.
What does Fresh Roasted Kenya AA taste like?
The bag prints peach blossom, orange zest and black tea, and the page describes a sweet, wine-like, floral cup with a silky body.
Is Kenyan coffee acidic?
Usually it is bright. Fresh Roasted says this one has less of an acidic bite than most African coffees, and it is roasted medium-dark.
Where is it grown?
Bungoma County in western Kenya, by smallholders with generally fewer than 200 trees each.
Is it good for espresso?
Fresh Roasted sells it as Nespresso OriginalLine capsules and in a fine grind, and a medium-dark roast suits espresso well.
