The Gihombo washing station was set up in 2006, but only became fully operational in 2011. It is managed by Joseph Mutagoma who has gradually built up the capacity of the washing station over the last few years. It is located in the village of Butare in the Gihombo sector in the northern part of the Nyamasheke district in Western Rwanda on the shores of the infamous Lake Kivu. It is widely accepted that some of the best coffees in Rwanda come from this area thanks to the fantastic altitude, rolling terrain and volcanic fertile soils.

Gihombo is a private wet mill which services 320 smallholder farmers from the surrounding area who deliver their ripe red cherry to collection points, before it is taken to the centralised wet mill. Here it is pulped by the ecological Penagos de-pulper which uses up to 80 per cent less water than other more traditional models. The pulped beans are then left to ferment in their surrounding sticky mucilage for around 12 hours before being washed clean and taken to dry on raised beds for between 15 and 22 days. All of the coffee is bourbon which contributes hugely to the complex yet balanced resulting cup.