How to Drink Hawaii Kona Coffee - Hawaii Kona Coffee Price List 2018 Latest Edition

Hawaii Kona

Islands Can Also Produce Premium Coffee

Hawaii Kona is always present among expensive coffee beans. It is surprising that a vacation island like Hawaii can produce such impressive coffee beans. Kona coffee is classified into four grades: the highest grade Extra Fancy, followed by Fancy, Prime, and Gr. No.1. As everyone knows, Hawaii's land area is not large, making goods scarcer and more expensive. The price is comparable to Jamaica's Blue Mountain coffee, partly because of labor costs. Why is that? Most coffee farmers are in third-world countries, where farmers' profits and welfare are often squeezed, allowing coffee to circulate in the market at cheaper prices. Hawaiian labor, however, falls under American standards, which naturally drives up costs.

Proper Roasting for Smoother Taste

The recommended roast for Hawaii Kona coffee beans is not too dark, similar to Blue Mountain, keeping a light to medium roast level. The reason is that excessive roasting causes the coffee's sweet and sour flavors to diminish, and those are precisely the essence of Kona coffee. Many supermarket-packaged Kona coffee beans are lower-content blended products. Before purchasing, carefully check the Kona bean content percentage on the packaging, usually ranging from 10% to 50%. Many even add flavorings to compensate for taste, losing the chance to experience Kona's original flavor. Genuine Hawaii Kona coffee beans, like other coffee beans, will indicate the estate, batch number, weight, and processing method.

The Roasting Degree Issue

The popularity of premium single-origin coffee serves as a rallying cry. More and more coffee shops in China are beginning to focus on coffee beans and use their own roasted beans. Many people wonder why most coffee beans are medium roasted. This is likely related to the established impression of coffee as mostly bitter with a slightly astringent acidity. However, many single-origin coffees can only highlight their fruit acidity when lightly roasted. Therefore, medium roasting, which brings out some bitterness while reducing acidity, better caters to the market. However, many beans are not suitable for light roasting; uncomfortable acidity is inappropriate. Roasting and bean varieties are truly a profound science.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

A balanced, gentle, medium-roasted coffee like Kona has a close cousin in Jamaica Blue Mountain, and FrontStreet's Blue Mountain lots let you taste that classic style. Only coffee grown in a defined area of Jamaica's Blue Mountains and certified by the Jamaican government may be called Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee. The Blue Mountains rise in eastern Jamaica, one of the Caribbean's highest ranges, with a peak of 2256 meters, wrapped year-round in mist, which gives the coffee its name. High altitude brings wide day-night temperature swings and a longer ripening period, volcanic soil supplies nutrients, and steady rainfall and mild weather let the cherries slowly build sugars and flavor.

The result is a coffee valued above all for balance, with no obvious weakness: neither the fierce fruit acidity of some African coffees nor the heavy bitterness of a dark roast, but a fine harmony of acidity, sweetness, bitterness, and aroma. FrontStreet Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1 is the top grade, sourced from a historic estate and certified with full provenance documentation and original wooden barrels, medium-dark roasted to express that signature balance. Expect cream, caramel, chocolate, nuts, honey, and a light fruit note, with a smooth entry, rich mid-palate sweetness, and a clean, long finish. FrontStreet recommends a Kono dripper, 15g of coffee, 87-88°C water, a 1:15 ratio, and a grind slightly coarser than for light roasts, like granulated sugar, using a three-stage pour to 225g.