Hawaiian Coffee Ka'u Region Information - Blue Bottle Coffee Partner Estate Hawaiian Coffee Varieties

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Introduction to Rusty's Hawaiian

Since many coffees are grown in distant countries thousands of miles apart, Blue Bottle is delighted to have the opportunity to cooperate with coffee growers in what can be called America's backyard—Lorie Obra of Rusty's Hawaiian Estate. Rusty's Hawaiian is a 12-acre (4.9-hectare) coffee estate located on the southern side of the Big Island. I had visited Rusty's in the past and recently decided to return to learn more about estate coffee cultivation and processing methods.

Location and Setting

Rusty's is situated on the slopes of Mauna Loa volcano in the Ka`u district of the Big Island, approximately 60 miles (97 kilometers) from the Kona coffee growing region. The estate is located at an altitude of about 2,000 feet (611 meters), which by Hawaiian local standards is considered quite high elevation.

The Story of Lorie and Rusty

Lorie is a member of the Ka`u district coffee farmers' group, who built the local reputation through their tireless efforts. She and her late husband Rusty moved from New Jersey in 1999 and established this estate from scratch. In New Jersey, they had worked as medical technologists and pharmacists. They wanted to live near Rusty's parents, who had worked for the leading local sugarcane plantation until it closed in 1996. Lorie said that at first, they considered opening a Dunkin' Donuts franchise or a B&B—until they visited a friend's newly established coffee estate, partly motivated by transforming the abandoned sugarcane fields into coffee cultivation. As she described: "We saw the estate and the bright red cherries on the fruit-laden coffee trees. At that moment, no further discussion was needed—we understood what was deep in our hearts, and this was what we had to do next."

The couple rented a large piece of land on the southern slopes of Mauna Loa, surrounded by mountains and wild sugarcane, with an expansive view of the Pacific Ocean to the south. Using seedlings gifted by longtime friends from the Kona and Ka`u regions, with volunteer labor as their main workforce, they planted as many as 7,000 coffee trees covering over 9 acres (3.6 hectares). Since the nearest coffee processing facility was located in Kona, they decided to do their own post-processing, which meant purchasing specialized equipment, including a depulper, huller, and even a small roasting machine. With their scientific backgrounds and laboratory experience, they were well aware of all variables that could affect quality and wanted to control every aspect.

Development and Achievements

Soon, Rusty began to have novice coffee farmers from other estates ask him to lead the emerging Ka`u Coffee Growers Cooperative. Coffee grower William Tabios had mentioned to Rusty that he felt from the bottom of his heart that it was impossible to achieve anything as a coffee farmer. At that time, Rusty assured him that a golden age was coming. True to his word, in 2007, the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) ranked Tabios's coffee beans as sixth in the world's best coffee that year. Since then, Tabios and other Ka`u growers, including Rusty, have received this honor year after year.

Unfortunately, Rusty did not live to see the day when the cooperative and his own estate, built from scratch, would achieve success. When he was diagnosed with cancer, he asked Lorie to give up the estate because he felt it would be too difficult for her to shoulder alone. When Rusty passed away in 2006, Lorie couldn't find anyone to take over the estate, so she had to find ways to continue its operation.

In 2008, their landlord invited several coffee experts to meet with Ka`u district coffee growers, including R. Miguel Meza, head roaster from Paradise Coffee Roasters in Ramsey, Minnesota. Miguel became Lorie's mentor. After Miguel returned to Minnesota, Lorie began sending him sample green beans representing different post-processing times, involving the number of hours of fermentation.

Soon after, Miguel moved to Hawaii to work for Hula Daddy Kona Coffee in the Kona district; he began visiting Lorie on weekends, helping her identify coffee tree varieties, conduct more experiments, and guiding her in cupping methods. Lorie's coffee demand increased, but she still handled everything from harvesting to shipping herself. Fortunately, her daughter Joan Obra and son-in-law Ralph Gaston, both journalists by background, decided to leave California to help run the estate. Miguel also transferred to Ka`u, and Pete Licata, who had won the United States Barista Championship, soon joined their team. Besides running Rusty's Estate, they are also partners in Isla Coffee Company, which collaborates with estates in Hawaii, Taiwan, and other regions to develop diverse customized coffee beans.

Rusty's Estate has repeatedly won honors, helping Lorie successfully sell more coffee. She believes these glories are sufficient to comfort her husband's spirit in heaven. "His dream was to elevate Ka`u coffee to stand on equal footing with the world's top coffees," Lorie said, showing a bracelet-like tattoo with coffee leaves and coffee cherries forming a circular wreath, with Rusty's name tattooed on the inside. "I hope to be part of this Ka`u coffee revolution, elevating Ka`u coffee. I have been working very, very hard to realize this ideal."

Quality Standards and Harvesting

Hawaiian coffee beans have always commanded high prices, mainly because labor costs are higher compared to other parts of the world. However, when you see the high-quality coffee beans from Rusty's Estate, the cost seems justifiably reasonable. Lorie instructs her harvest workers to pick only fully colored coffee cherries, just as one would select only the most beautiful strawberries at a farmers' market. She doesn't want unripe, underdeveloped, or brown-colored (indicating overripe) beans to be included.

According to Lorie's standards, a worker can harvest about 12 pounds (5.5 kg) of mature red cherries per hour, enough to produce about 2 pounds (0.9 kg) of roasted coffee. Additionally, each batch requires several hours of post-processing.

"Hawaiian coffee is by no means expensive," Miguel said: "Rather, coffee prices in other parts of the world have been suppressed too low." Rusty's Estate grows about 6,000 coffee trees (thinned since planting), producing about 1 pound (0.45 kg) of green beans per tree annually. The estate is mostly planted with four main varieties: Guatemala Typica, Yellow Caturra, Red Caturra, and Red Bourbon. These varieties are called Cloud Rest in the Ka`u region.

The harvest season in this area typically lasts from November to May of the following year. However, during the remaining months of the year, Lorie can purchase fresh red cherries from other Ka`u farmers based on different harvest times at varying altitudes. Lorie handles all coffee cherries—whether from her own estate or others—in her own way and with high-standard inspection.

Processing Methods

After being picked, the coffee cherries are immediately sent to Lorie's home in Pahala for post-processing, about a ten-minute drive from the estate down to the small town of Pahala. Post-processing often must begin immediately on the day of harvest, meaning Lorie, often accompanied by Miguel, Pete, Joan, and Ralph, works late into the night for eight to ten months of the year.

Lorie varies her processing methods based on coffee variety, climate, and customer demand. Whatever processing method she uses, her first step is always to "float" the coffee cherries—immersing all cherries in water, a common practice in this industry. Any coffee cherries floating on the water surface are completely removed because they are low-density light beans, indicating poor development that will later lack flavor and sweetness. The next step differs significantly from most competitors' methods—Lorie and her work partners carefully select the remaining coffee cherries, eliminating overripe, underdeveloped, and those not fully red or still yellow. After selection, Lorie proceeds to the next processing step.

Provided by Blue Bottle Coffee.

Washed Processing

Like most in the coffee trade, Lorie most commonly uses the washed processing method. First, she pours coffee cherries into a depulping machine, watering them through the machine with a garden hose. This machine removes the skin from the coffee cherries and ejects the green beans, which are still covered with a sticky mucilage. She then transfers the slippery green beans into buckets, fills them with cold water, and lets them ferment overnight. After multiple trials and errors, she finally determined that approximately 8-10 hours is the optimal fermentation time for her coffee beans; this also gives her some time to catch up on sleep.

The next morning, the green beans sit in a thick layer of brown viscous liquid. Lorie uses a pool pump to extract the liquid, then washes the green beans with clean water. At this stage, the skin has separated, and the green beans now have a sandpaper-like rough texture. They are spread on waist-high metal mesh racks for drying, which are set up around Lorie's home courtyard, each rack equipped with a vinyl plastic corrugated sheet that can be fully deployed to protect against rain. The green beans are dried in the sun for five to eight days.

Provided by Blue Bottle Coffee.

Natural Processing

For dry processing or the so-called natural method, Lorie directly spreads the coffee cherries on drying racks immediately after selection and lets them dry until the moisture content reaches 10-11%; this usually takes three weeks. The required time depends on the weather. During the third to fifth day period, when the skin becomes leather-like and no longer brittle, Lorie rakes the coffee cherries every hour.

Honey Processing

Regarding honey processing, after depulping, the coffee cherries are spread on racks for drying. They must be raked every twenty minutes on the first day to ensure even drying and prevent mold. Joan often places her laptop in the backyard so she can work briefly between each raking. After that, they only need to be raked twice daily, with the entire drying period taking about five to ten days, depending on the climate.

Final Processing Steps

Whether washed, natural, or honey processed, the coffee beans are packed in special bags and stacked in the warehouse after processing. Washed and honey-processed green beans are stored for three months, while naturally processed green beans are stored for four to five months. As Lorie says: "My coffee beans need their beauty sleep." Miguel explains that this additional step prevents the coffee beans from developing a grass-like sharp taste.

Under any circumstances, the goal is to roast the green beans within nine months after harvest. When green beans are ready for shipping, they first go through a huller to remove the parchment, then are sorted to remove beans that are too small or defective. After sorting, the green beans are inspected and certified by the Hawaii Department of Agriculture before being shipped or distributed to customers. Unlike coffee from other growing regions, Rusty's Estate coffee does not require customs clearance when shipped to the United States, which is a great advantage for American customers and significantly speeds up delivery.

*This article is reprinted from "Blue Bottle Coffee"

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