Situated in Southeast Asia, Myanmar is a country with a rich cultural history and much of its land lies within the ‘bean belt’ close to the Tropic of Cancer. Coffee was first introduced in 1885 by the British East India Company, when missionaries and traders established some small farms around the city of Pyin-Oo-Lwin. Although coffee has been grown in the country for more than two centuries, it is now starting to capture the attention of the specialty coffee community as a country with huge potential due its fertile soils and favourable climate. This coffee is named after Ywangan, a town which is located in the centre of the country in the state of Shan. More than 90% of the smallholder producers who live in the municipality of Ywangan cultivate coffee. The typical size of a family farm varies but can be up to three acres where coffee is grown amongst other cash crops such as avocado, papaya, pineapple, passion fruit, banana, tea and macadamia trees. Under the leadership Mr. U Thint Lwin, the Mandalay Coffee Group (MCG) buys selectively-picked ripe red cherries from smallholder producers during the harvest period from December to March. He and his team visit the villages to help coordinate the collection points where the cherries are transported to the MCG processing facility in-Pyin-Oo-Lwin. This naturally processed coffee is a result of an initiative launched by the group in 2015 which provides finance and training to producers in the processing of sun-dried coffee on patios and raised beds. Sourced exclusively through our friends at Xorxios Specialty, this is the first time we have had the privilege to roast a coffee from Myanmar. Roasted for filter, this delightful coffee offers up tropical aromas reminiscent of dried pineapple and is supported by notes of white chocolate fudge with a creamy body. For a naturally processed coffee, it has exceptional clarity and the aftertaste is complemented with refreshing lemongrass-like florals and citric acidity.