Hawaii is the only state in the US that produces coffee, and Kona coffee is its star. This article takes you to Rusty's Farm and Queen Farm to learn how hand-picking and meticulous processing create Kona coffee's unique flavor. From strict grading standards to aromas woven with chocolate, vanilla, lavender, and mandarin, plus practical brewing tips for everyday use, it offers an in-depth look at the charm of Hawaiian coffee. At the same time, Front Street Coffee also offers freshly roasted top-grade Kona beans and invites you to visit the shop for a tasting.
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Hawaiian coffee is usually expensive, not because of inflated pricing, but because local labor costs are high. But when you stand at Rusty's Farm and see those outstanding beans with your own eyes, you'll feel the money is well spent. Lori requires pickers to select only coffee cherries that have turned fully red, like choosing the best strawberries at a market. Those with green skin, semi-ripe, or already brown are all rejected.
According to Lori's picking standards, a worker can pick 5.5 kilograms of ripe fruit per hour, which can produce 0.9 kilograms of roasted beans.
In addition, each batch of beans also requires several hours of processing.
“It's not that Hawaiian coffee is overpriced,” Miguel said, “but that coffee beans elsewhere are undervalued.”
Each year, the 6,000 coffee trees at Rusty's Farm (a little sparser than when originally planted) produce only about 0.45 kilograms of green coffee beans per tree. Most farms grow four varieties: Guatemala Typica, Yellow Caturra, Red Caturra, and Red Bourbon. The harvest season in Kona, known as “cloud rest,” usually lasts from November to May of the following year. During the rest of the time, Lori buys fresh coffee cherries from other coffee farmers, depending on different altitudes.
Lori uses her own method and processes all coffee cherries herself according to high standards.
After picking, the coffee cherries are sent to Lori's house in Pahala for processing, about a 10-minute drive from the farm on the hill. Processing is generally done on the same day as picking, which means Lori, Miguel, Pete, and others have to work late for 8 to 10 months of the year.
Lori changes the processing method according to variety, weather, and customer needs. The first step in all methods is to “float” the coffee cherries, which means soaking the fruit in water, a common practice in the industry.
All fruit floating on the water is removed, because these beans have low density, are mostly poorly developed, and lack flavor and sweetness. Then, unlike many competitors in the industry, Lori and other employees carefully pick out cherries that are overripe or underripe, as well as those with uneven color, whether red or yellow.
After screening, Lori begins processing.
Hawaii is the only state in the entire United States that grows coffee beans. Coffee is mainly grown on 5 islands, with about 580 coffee farmers cultivating about 6,800 acres of coffee, with an annual output value of about $10.4 million. Experts estimate that in the next decade, Hawaii may double its current annual production of 4 million pounds of coffee beans.
Among the five islands in Hawaii, Kaua’i has the largest coffee production, with 4,000 acres of coffee land; the Big Island ranks second with 1,800 acres; Moloka’i ranks third with 550 acres; the rest comes from Maui and O’ahu.
Kona Coffee
The most famous coffee in Hawaii is Kona coffee, grown in the “Kona Coffee Belt” on the southwestern corner of the Big Island. This is also the only place in the entire United States where coffee is commercially grown, and it has a history of more than a hundred years.
Hawaiian coffee has strict grading standards. Extra Fancy 19-mesh KONA is the highest grade, and its annual production is also the smallest; the amount a single estate can have is very limited. Next is Fancy (17-18 mesh), and only after that comes KONA #1. This is exactly the opposite of Blue Mountain coffee. If someone comes and says they want to buy the best Kona No. 1 coffee, they would probably be laughed at by the locals. Hawaiian Kona coffee beans outside these grades are collectively called Hawaiian coffee and cannot be labeled as 100% pure Kona.
This Kona comes from Queen Farm. In the 2009 and 2011 Gevalia (Hawaii KONA cupping competition) Cup Grand Prix, it won the runner-up title. Seventy percent of the harvest there can be called the top-grade specialty beans, and it is a farm known for high quality. Even its specialty beans one grade lower also have an aroma in no way inferior to top-grade specialty beans, and people in the roasting industry praise it endlessly!
The coffee beans here are all harvested by hand, processed using the washed method, naturally dried, and then shipped out from the factory.
This Kona is the top grade, Extra Fancy.
It smells of chocolate and vanilla, and drinks with medium brightness and a refreshing acidity. The mouthfeel reveals lavender, mandarin, a little cinnamon, and a little nuttiness. The finish is very consistent, and at the same time, distinct aromas of lavender and mandarin can be sensed from the nasal cavity.
Blue Mountain is king, Kona is queen. But Kona's rich and delicate mouthfeel is something the balanced and smooth Blue Mountain does not have. If you are interested, you can make an appointment with us for roasting. You are also welcome to visit our small shop and drink all kinds of freshly roasted top-grade coffee beans.
Front Street Coffee also offers this Queen Farm Extra Fancy grade Kona bean, freshly roasted, and inquiries are welcome.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
