Kenya, Nawiri- Muinami Estate

After returning to his childhood home near Eldoret in 2015, Stephen Nendela and his mother transformed their six-acre sugarcane plot into coffee. The success of that first microlot inspired Stephen to purchase a neglected 17-acre farm in the cool Cherengany Hills, reviving it as Nawiri—known locally as Muinami, his family name meaning “those who work.”

When his coffee lost money at auction in 2020, then earned a premium the next year, Stephen sought answers. Tracing the buyer, he heard simply: “Your coffee is good.”
That quiet affirmation became a turning point.

By 2022, Stephen had traveled to Boston to meet Crop to Cup, and today his experimental honeys, naturals, and extended-washed lots rank among Western Kenya’s best.

At Muinami, visitors are invited to plant a tree instead of signing a guestbook—a gesture that mirrors Stephen’s approach to coffee: patient, grounded, and generative. Bees hum in the shade of acacias, crested cranes return with the rains, and the name Nawiri—prosperity—feels less aspirational than descriptive.

Cupping Notes 

Cherry · Flan · Honey · Lime · Sticky Bun · Vanilla
A layered, confectionary sweetness balanced with bright citrus and a honeyed, lingering finish.