Is Hawaiian Kona Coffee Good and Why Is It So Expensive - How to Brew Hawaiian Kona Coffee Beans

Hawaii KONA

Hawaii Kona Coffee

01 | Region Introduction

After nearly two centuries of effort in coffee cultivation, the name "Kona" in Hawaii has become almost synonymous with "quality." Look back at the history, though, and the path has been far from smooth: since coffee trees were first brought to the island in 1825, growers have faced challenge after challenge. Even today, factors beyond human control often affect the harvest in as established a region as Hawaii.

The western and southern parts of the Kona district on the Big Island are famous for producing Kona coffee. This area sits at an altitude between 800 and 1,100 meters, the most suitable growing environment for coffee trees, and so the slopes of Hualalai and Mauna Loa are blanketed with them.

Queen Farm

Kona coffee has always been cultivated through family farming. The harvest season begins in late August and continues until January of the following year, with farmers picking the ripe fruit in batches and processing it into coffee beans.

This Kona coffee comes from Queen Farm. It took second place in the Gevalia Hawaii KONA Cupping Competition in both 2009 and 2011. Seventy percent of the harvest there is considered the highest-grade premium specialty bean, making it a farm known for its quality. Even its slightly lower-grade specialty beans have aromas comparable to the premium ones, something people in the roasting industry never tire of praising.

The unique natural environment of the Kona region nurtures Arabica coffee and makes it one of the highest-yielding coffee plantations in the world. Quality is not only guaranteed; coffee grown in this particular environment and climate simply has a richer flavour. Kona beans have a beautiful appearance, a full body, and a bright colour, earning them the title of "the most beautiful coffee beans in the world."

Most coffee trees in the Kona region grow on volcanoes and can absorb a great deal of the nutrients stored in the soil. Combined with careful cultivation, every bean here has a distinctive look. Ground and brewed, Kona coffee is silky smooth and rich in aroma, with a charming nutty fragrance and moderate acidity, as moving and meaningful as the colourful scenery of the Hawaiian Islands.

Beyond the Kona district on the Big Island, common Hawaiian coffees now include estates on Maui, Kauai, and Molokai that are also making a name for themselves. Common Hawaiian varieties include Typica, Mocca, and Catuai.

02 | Processing Method

Washed Method

Kona coffee uses the washed method and natural drying. Hawaii's clean, sweet mountain spring water is ideal for washed processing, which gives Kona beans a bright, clear appearance and a pure, fresh taste. After washing, the beans are spread on large flat trays to dry naturally in the sun.

03 | Green Bean Analysis

The beans are uniform in size with few defects, olive-green in colour, with a moisture content between 11 and 13% and grassy, pungent, spicy aromas. The centre line of the green beans shows a light brown colour.

Kona coffee beans are actually divided into five grades, the first three being the most common: Extra Fancy, Fancy, No.1, Primary, and Peaberry. (Peaberry is the round bean commonly known as the male bean; because some coffee lovers prefer it, it is specially selected and sold at a higher price. About 5% of Kona beans are Peaberry). Apart from Peaberry, the other four grades are classified by bean size, weight, and defect ratio.

Before export, Kona green beans are labelled with numbers on burlap bags, indicating certification by the Hawaii Department of Agriculture and accompanied by an official identification seal, which makes them more expensive. Kona prices are second only to Blue Mountain. From sowing to harvesting, washing, sun-drying, and polishing, Kona coffee relies on manual labour, so limited production combined with American labour costs makes it both high quality and expensive. Today, 100% Kona and Blue Mountain are synonymous with premium coffee.

04 | Roasting Analysis

Like Blue Mountain, Kona has low density, and low-density beans cannot take too high an initial temperature. As it releases sweetness the colour turns light yellow and the moisture content is high, so sufficient steaming time is needed. The beans are clean and have a solid, heavy feel. Kona should not be roasted too dark; a medium-light roast (City to Full City-) is recommended.

FrontStreet Coffee suggests keeping detailed records before roasting: the bean's moisture content, density, origin, processing method, and the ambient temperature and humidity in the roasting room, and planning your roasting curve accordingly. Recording the relevant chemical and physical changes during roasting will help you better understand the final result and improve your curve.

Roasting Machine: Yangjia 800N, 550g green beans

Roasting curve:

Preheat the roaster to 200 degrees C and set the damper to 3. After one minute, adjust the heat to 150 degrees C and keep the damper unchanged. Roast to 5'35", when the temperature reaches 150 degrees C: the bean surface turns yellow, the grassy smell disappears completely, and dehydration is complete. Adjust the heat to 140 degrees C and the damper to 4.

At 9'30", ugly wrinkles and dark spots appear on the bean surface and the toasted-bread aroma clearly changes to a coffee aroma, which can be defined as the prelude to first crack. Listen carefully for the crack at this point. First crack begins at 9'30", at which point adjust the heat to 70 degrees C and open the damper fully (adjust the heat very carefully, not so low that there is no cracking sound). Turn off the heat at 182 degrees C and drop the beans at 193.4 degrees C.

Medium-roasted Kona mainly achieves a balanced, mellow nectar sweetness and an elegant, substantial but not heavy mouthfeel. The brewed coffee releases a mulberry aroma that feels like sweet happiness. The aftertaste is a smooth malt bitterness that slides down the throat and rises again when you exhale. When it cools, it is like a cup of mulberry tea.

05 | Brewing Analysis

1. Filter: V60

2. Water temperature: 92 degrees C

3. Grind size: Fuji grinder setting 3.5

4. Roast level: medium roast

5. Bloom time: 30 seconds

Flavour: malt, mulberry, and a persistent caramel sweetness in the aftertaste.

FrontStreet Coffee's suggested technique: pour slowly, steadily, and continuously. Use a thin, long stream of water circling gently to ensure even extraction. You can also very slowly use a stirring stick; usually, during the bloom stage, make one cross-stir so the water contacts the grounds fully, increasing the release of aromatic substances.

Related recommendations: Introduction to Hawaii Kona Coffee, How to Brew Hawaii Kona Coffee

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

Kona is grown from the Typica variety, and if it is that classic, impeccably balanced character you enjoy, FrontStreet Coffee's Jamaica Blue Mountain No.1 is its closest cousin. Also a Typica, and grown in the Jamaican Blue Mountains, it strikes a rare balance among acidity, sweetness, bitterness, and aroma, with creamy, caramel, chocolate, nut, and honey notes, a supple body, and a clean, lingering finish. It is the specialty coffee most people find easiest to love.

For the more aromatic, fruit-forward side of the Arabica spectrum, FrontStreet Coffee's Panama Esmeralda Red Label Geisha is the legendary expression of the variety, with elegant jasmine florals, citrus and bergamot, and a fine black-tea finish, while FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopia Huakui delivers vivid strawberry, passion fruit, and jackfruit notes with a juicy body and almost no bitterness.