Water & Soil

Nairobi sits at nearly 1,800 meters above sea level on the edge of the East African Rift, which shapes the city's climate. Days are warm, nights cool, without the heat of the coast. For a brewery, this is an advantage, since cooling requires less energy in the highlands than in the lowlands by the sea.

The ground around the city is volcanic. The rock dates back to when the rift opened up, and it differs from the limestone or sandstone that underlies European brewing cities. How hard the water is depends on the rock it filters through. Exact hardness figures for individual wells are trade secrets for the breweries and are not disclosed here.

Why hardness matters at all is easy to explain. Soft water with few dissolved minerals lets a pale lager's delicate aroma shine, while hard water emphasizes bitterness and can make it taste harsh. Large brewers therefore treat their water before it goes into the kettle, ensuring a consistent base everywhere.

Nairobi draws its drinking water mainly from reservoirs and rivers in the highlands north of the city, where rainfall from the mountains collects. Clean water is not something taken for granted in East Africa. The same holds true for traditional home brewers, who prepare their maize beer Busaa with whatever water is available to them.

A beer cellar in the European sense barely exists here. Beer, whether from Tusker or from Big Five Breweries, is stored after conditioning in chilled tanks and rooms, later in the refrigerators of shops and bars. Anyone sitting in a bar in Nairobi usually drinks their lager ice-cold, since the cold chain takes the place of the cellar.