Kona Coffee

Kona coffee is the grown on the hills of Hualalai and Mauna Loa Mountains in healthy volcanic soil. Growing in these distinctive surroundings, Kona coffee has a diverse advantage over coffees that are grown in other regions of the world. Coffee trees usually bloom after a dry winter and are reaped in autumn. Coffee grown in the North and South districts of Kona is the only coffee that can really be called Kona Coffee. This coffee has established a status that has made it one of the most costly and preferred coffees in the world. Kona’s weather provides complimentary coffee growing conditions due to its brilliant sunny mornings, sultry rainy afternoons and moderately warm nights.

The coffee plant was first introduced in Kona by Samuel Reverend Ruggles in the 19th Century. However it was not until sometime after that it became a constant and useful product. It was cultivated on huge plantations. Kona coffee blossoms in the months of February and March. Tiny white flowers cover the tree and are called Kona Snow. In April, green berries start appearing on the trees. Near the end of August, a red fruit, called “cherry” (due to its similar features to a cherry fruit), begin to mature for picking. Each tree will be hand-picked a number of times between the months of August and January, and supplies around twenty to thirty pounds of cherry.

Within a day of picking, the cherry is put through a pulper. This process allows beans to be divided from the pulp, and then left in a fermentation tank overnight. The time allotted for fermentation is reliant on the temperature and therefore includes about 12 hours at a low elevation or 24 hours at a higher elevation. The beans are washed and put to dry on a drying rack known as “hoshidanas”. Hoshidanas have a rolling roof to cover the beans just in case of rain. It takes up to seven through fourteen days for beans to be dried to the best moisture level of between 10 to13 percent. Afterwards, the beans are stored as parchment also known as “pergamino”. The parchment is grinded off the green bean before roasting. It acquires approximately seven to nine pounds of cherry to produce one pound of roasted coffee. Therefore one hundred pounds of cherry will produce approximately twelve pounds of roasted coffee.

Kona coffee beans are categorized in proportion to the kind of seed. Type I beans is composed of two beans per cherry, it is flat on one side and oval on the other side. Type II beans is composed of one round bean per cherry, which is also called “peaberry”. Additional processing of these two kinds of beans is dependent on size, moisture content, wholesomeness of bean type and size.

Kona Coffee is available in a variety of three roasts:

Medium/American (City Roast) – Medium brown, a bit of a spicy smell and rich body.

House/Vienna (Full City Roast) – Medium dark brown with minor oily droplets. Complex aroma with a bittersweet taste.

Dark/French – Espresso or Light French roast. Fairly dark brown with oily droplets, mild surface oil, more bittersweet caramelized flavour with some acidity.

Genuine Kona Coffee is vastly awarded throughout the world for its pleasant aroma and distinct flavour.

Tags: Hawaiian Coffee, Hualalai Coffee, Kona, Kona Coffee, Mauna Loa Coffee