Solai Coffee: An Orlando Roaster Selling His Family's Kenyan Coffee, Farm to Bag

A Roaster Spotlight, first published in our newsletter, What's Brewing, on September 16, 2026.

At a glance

• Roaster: Solai Coffee, Orlando, Florida
• Founder: Peter Kuria, whose parents farm Liwani Coffee Estate in Solai, Nakuru, in Kenya's Rift Valley
• Founded: 2021
• Model: direct trade; coffee bought from growers in the Solai area, his own family among them, and roasted in Orlando
• Coffees in the documentary: Amani & Amaya Blend, Precious Bean (peaberry), The Valley Bloom

Most people who buy a bag of Kenyan coffee in Florida have no picture of what happened before the bag. Peter Kuria grew up inside that picture. His parents farm Liwani Coffee Estate in Solai, up in Kenya's Rift Valley, and he now roasts that same family's coffee in Orlando. He had written about the farms on his website for years. This year he decided writing was not enough, flew home with a camera, and filmed it.

Margaret Kuria, Peter's mother, farmer and co-owner of Liwani Coffee Estate in Solai, with a bag of Precious Bean, the peaberry that comes from these trees.

Why Solai Coffee exists

Solai Coffee started in 2021, and the reason it exists is a loss that Peter describes precisely. "The biggest gap was the loss of identity. Our coffee could travel from Kenya to the United States, but somewhere along that journey, the identity of the farmer, the family and the place would disappear."

There is a second reason, and it is personal. "I also had a strong desire to fulfill my parents' dream. They worked for many years producing coffee and hoped that one day they could represent themselves in the market instead of always being represented by someone else. Solai Coffee was created to help make that possible."

Direct trade, in the plain sense

That is what a direct trade roaster is supposed to fix, and Solai is one in the plain sense: the coffee is bought from growers in the Solai area of Nakuru, his own family among them, and roasted in Orlando. The bags say so. The website says so. Peter's view is that none of it counts for much if the customer still cannot see it.

"For us, traceability has to be more than something written on a coffee bag or website. We wanted to put boots on the ground and let our customers walk through the farms with us."

The documentary: Kenyan coffee farmers in their own words

So he went. The result is a four-part documentary on the Solai Coffee YouTube channel. As of mid-September 2026, three parts were out: Part 1, The Road Home, Part 2, The Story They Didn't Tell You About Kenyan Coffee, and Part 3.

Peter Kuria, second from left, with his mother Margaret and two of the team at Liwani. The invitation to film came from the farmers.

The invitation to film came from the farmers themselves, and Peter went in expecting to do the talking. He did not have to.

"I was surprised by the confidence the farmers had in telling their own stories. They understood their coffee, their challenges and what they wanted people to know."

Nobody was made to appear. "Some were a little shy at first, and we made it clear that nobody had to be on camera." Most wanted to, and for a specific reason: "they saw it as an opportunity to speak directly to the people drinking their coffee."

Once the cameras were running the farmers did not stay on the subject Peter had come for. "They spoke about their families, the drought, the cost of production and what they hope the future of farming can become. We did not want to control their answers. We wanted them to speak for themselves."

A roaster's origin video usually has the roaster in it. These have the farmers in them.

What the farmers want from roasters and drinkers

The bigger surprise was which direction they wanted the conversation to run. The story most roasters tell about origin is a one-way street: the farmer grows it, the roaster explains it. The farmers in Solai wanted the return trip. "They were also very open to trying new things and learning what consumers are looking for. They do not want to remain disconnected from the market. They want feedback and opportunities to improve their processes while protecting the identity of their coffee."

If you roast, read that again. The people at the far end of your supply chain would like to know what your customers think of the cup.

What Peter wants you to taste

Peter at the Solai Coffee stand in Orlando, the other end of the journey.

Ask Peter what should be different about the cup for someone in Florida who buys a bag after watching, and he does not answer with a tasting note.

"I want them to taste more than flavor notes. I want them to think about the joy, passion and pain farmers go through to produce that coffee. Every cup carries real work, real families and a real place."

The three coffees from the films

The Solai Single Origin Trio holds all three of the coffees that appear in the films, described here in Solai's own terms:

• Amani & Amaya Blend: a Kenya AA and AB blend from the family farms, bright and fruity with a wine-like finish
• Precious Bean: a Kenya peaberry with tropical berry and dark chocolate
• The Valley Bloom: the farmers blend of AA, AB, peaberry and C grades, which is the coffee the way the growers drink it at home

The three in the Trio: Precious Bean, the Amani & Amaya Blend and The Valley Bloom.

Find Solai Coffee

Solai Coffee's profile, with its coffees listed, is on Roast Local. For more roasters nearby, see our Orlando roasters guide, all Florida roasters, or the Florida coffee scene guide.

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Frequently Asked Questions

Where is Solai Coffee located? Solai Coffee roasts in Orlando, Florida, and runs a coffee stand there. It was founded in 2021 by Peter Kuria.

Where does Solai Coffee's coffee come from? From growers in the Solai area of Nakuru, in Kenya's Rift Valley, including Liwani Coffee Estate, which is farmed by Peter Kuria's parents.

Is Solai Coffee direct trade? Yes. The coffee is bought from growers in Solai, the founder's own family among them, and roasted in Orlando.

What is the Solai Coffee documentary? A four-part series on the Solai Coffee YouTube channel, filmed on the farms in Solai at the farmers' invitation, in which the farmers talk about their families, the drought, the cost of production and the future of farming. Three parts were out as of mid-September 2026.

What is a Kenya peaberry? Peaberry is one of the grades Kenyan coffee is sorted into, alongside AA, AB and C. Solai's Precious Bean is a Kenya peaberry.