Chamarel · Mauritius

Café de Chamarel

Café de Chamarel roasts in Chamarel, Rivière Noire District.

Since 1967

Overview

Café de Chamarel is the only locally-grown, locally-roasted coffee in Mauritius, planted in 1967 in the Chamarel highlands of southwestern Mauritius after low sugarcane yields prompted operators to revive the country's 18th-century coffee history. The 12-to-16-hectare plantation produces around 35,000 kg of cherries annually from Arabica K7 trees grown at 280 metres on volcanic soil, and is operated by Agrïa (formerly Rogers Hospitality) under the Chamarel 7 Coloured Earth Geopark.

Known for

The only commercial coffee plantation, processor and roaster in Mauritius
Arabica K7 grown at unusually low altitude (280m) on mineral-rich volcanic soil with constant Indian Ocean humidity
Diversified agroforestry plantation interplanted with banana, cocoa, and endemic species
Coffee Tour Experience inside the Chamarel 7 Coloured Earth Geopark (waterfall, tortoise park, coloured earth dunes)
Connects to the wider Bourbon Pointu lineage — Coffea arabica was originally shipped from Mokha to Île Bourbon (Réunion) in 1715, then to Île de France (Mauritius) in 1721

Why it matters

Mauritius's place in coffee history is mainly genealogical — it sits next to Réunion, the cradle of the Bourbon variety. Café de Chamarel is the only operation actually keeping Mauritian coffee alive as a working agroforestry product, and in doing so it preserves a 250-year coffee story that nearly ended with sugarcane and rust.

Production

cupping frequency: Cupping sessions offered as part of the public Coffee Tour Experience
roastery location: Case Noyale, Chamarel, Mauritius

Café

Chamarel 7 Coloured Earth Geopark, Chamarel, Mauritius

Sources

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