The Amaha awe Uganda is a coffee in the Reviving Origin series from Nespresso. The name means ‘Hope of Uganda’ in Lhukonzo. It is issued per 2020 for both the original line machine (review here) and the Vertuo line machine. This review concerns the latter which is a gran lungo (150 ml, 5.07 oz) serving size. We start with the first impression and background but if you like you can jump straight to the taste review here.
Note that the Original Line version has a higher intensity rating which is an indication that these flavours differ per machine.
Origin
For coffee in the Reviving Origin series more attention is drawn to the source and sustainability. In this case this is Uganda, or officially: the Republic of Uganda. This central-east African country is land-locked, but it has some noticeable lakes (including lake Victoria). Uganda is separated from the Indian Sea on the east side by Kenia and Tanzania, other neighbouring countries are Congo-Kinshasa (a.k.a. DRC), South Sudan and Rwanda. Read more on Uganda on the Uganda wiki.
Coffee is one of the main export products of Uganda. For this coffee, the beans are grown on the Rwenzori Mountains in the south-west part of the country. The top regions of this mountain range, which is on the border of Uganda and Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), are permanently snow-capped. Abundant rainfall, glaciers and rivers provide for sufficient water for the coffee plants to grow on fertile mountain soil. The rivers originating here form one of the sources of the Nile, therefore some refer to these mountain range as Mountains of the Moon (wiki).
You can find a short video (3 min) by National Geographic (paid by Nespresso) about the coffee here. The video gives you an idea of the geography and the programme by Nespresso. The associated article details the logic of the programme: instead of bulk picking and payment, a more selective picking of ripe berries is rewarded, Nespresso (and customers) get a better quality and the farmers a premium price. The related pictures are also well-done, link.
Nespresso partners with Agri Evolve for the RO programme in Uganda, their Instagram page gives for even more pictures around this coffee.
Looks
For the reviving origin series, the sleeves stand out. Most Nespresso sleeves have black as dominant colour, with colour reserved only for highlights and the top opening. The capsules in these series are kept in bright coloured and decorated sleeves. The background colour of the sleeve is yellow, which is one of the colours of the flag of Uganda and might also be a hint the fruitiness and light intensity. The sleeves are decorated with a pattern that could represent suns or round braided baskets to carry the beans. It also brings up associations with geometrical patterns that are associated with the African continent.
As with some other limited editions, especially those where the origin is at the centre such as Jamaica Blue Mountain, a white box is used to print the brand and flavour name. As said earlier, this brings up associations of being part of a collection (like a museum) or curated items like exclusive parfum or pharmacy items.
The capsules within the Reviving Origin series all have the same black background, with a grey coloured scattered dot pattern. This reminds of a night sky, but could just as easily represent a fertile soil or the troubled (dark) history that the reviving origin series share. For this flavour a gold font is used, strengthening even more the associating with hope – a “golden future”. The flavour name and serving size are featured on the seal making it easy to grab these capsules from a combined holder.
Smell and Taste
We refer to the manufacturers notes, when we taste the coffee:
rich and clean espresso
Nespresso site and packaging.
wild fruity character
hard-to-find sandalwood notes and elegant florals
This Gran Lungo uses a split-roast of single-origin Arabica beans. The first, darker roasted, split is intended to enhance body, complexity and aimed to balance the wild notes from the natural (dry) process. The second split is roasted more lightly, to achieve a medium-dark degree that allows for an exploration of a tropical fruit aromatic profile.
The coffee has an intensity of 6, which would indicate a mild coffee, similar to Arondio and Melozio. This rating seems a fair fit as it is mild, but does have an extra edge that warrants a 5+ rating
When brewing, you’ll notice an intense aroma, different from a typical coffee smell. The aroma reminds of other “exotic coffees” like La Cumplida Refinada. Where most of those other fruity coffees had a more distinct berry/cherry smell, this coffee has an different aroma that is sweet and sour. It does bring up some associations with (sour – wild?) fruits. Maybe even a bit woody, but we are not sure if we would have come up with that association if Nespresso did not mention sandalwood themselves.
It’s a unique coffee without a strong coffee taste. It is mild with a moderate body. What stands out for this coffee is that it is sweet, but it is not overly sweet. The taste has a little twist, which is hard to pinpoint. It is a bit bitter, which gives for a bit of a dry mouthfeel. Further, there are some sour notes. There is this extra edge, bolstered by a bit of bitterness, that make the coffee remarkable. Some other notes we made: minor earthy notes can be found.
For special coffees it is always a dilemma. One the hand we want to enjoy these as pure as possible and drink every cup undiluted black. On the other hand, we like to try different variations so we enjoy it to the full extent.
We were persuaded to add some milk by the claim from Nespresso “In a Latte Macchiato, the biscuit and discrete fruity notes come alive in a balanced and sweet cup”.
Although it does make a decent drink, it did not match our expectations. We might have used too much milk foam as biscuit and fruity notes can be found, but do not really stand out. There is a very minor hint of sourness that brings up associations of fruit, but these are really on the background. It is a light mild drink with some cacao notes, which is in line with the earlier mentioned bitterness. As it is quite a large drink – it uses a gran lungo pour instead of an espresso – some sweetener added halfway through helps keeping this interesting.
Overall we feel Amaha awe Uganda is a decent speciality coffee that is best enjoyed black.
Read more on the Nespresso site, more info on the RO Uganda sustainable efforts.
Read the review for Amaha awe Uganda for Original Line here.