Hawaiian Specialty Coffee Bean Characteristics: Hawaiian Kona Origin Classification and Brewing Flavor Profiles

Besides blue skies, white clouds, and beaches, what else does Hawaii have to offer? FrontStreet Coffee would certainly raise their hand and answer: Hawaiian Kona coffee beans, of course! The rich maltose aroma and mellow coffee flavor of Kona coffee have captured the hearts of FrontStreet Coffee's baristas and coffee enthusiasts alike. In this article, FrontStreet Coffee will introduce these coffee beans from the island.

Latest Important News from Kona Region

According to foreign media reports, traces of leaf rust were discovered in Hawaii in October 2020, marking the first time this disease has been found in Hawaii. The Hawaii Department of Agriculture (HDOA) reported this disturbing finding to Governor David Ige's office about two weeks ago. About a month ago, a report submitted by a coffee farm in the Haiku area of Maui showed symptoms suspected to be leaf rust.

It is currently unknown how leaf rust reached Maui, Hawaii, and its duration there remains uncertain. Two weeks later, the USDA's National Identification Service confirmed that coffee leaf rust was also present on the island of Hawaii - samples collected by a coffee farmer in the Holualoa area of southern Kailua-Kona confirmed the presence of the fungus responsible for leaf rust, officially known as "Hemileia Vastatrix." The gradual discovery of leaf rust in Hawaii poses a serious threat to the state's coffee industry, as this disease can spread rapidly and kill coffee crops in large numbers.

Coffee leaf rust is a highly contagious plant disease that can destroy coffee crops. Leaf rust symptoms mainly occur on leaves, with fruit and branches rarely being affected. After leaves are infected by rust fungus, light yellow water-soaked small spots initially appear on the back of the leaves, with light green halos surrounding the spots. When the spots expand to 5-8mm, orange-yellow powdery spore clusters grow from the stomata on the affected area. The spots gradually expand, and several spots merge into irregular large patches. Later, the centers of the spots dry out and turn brown, with brown spots visible on both sides of the leaves, eventually falling off. Coffee plants can die within several years.

Hawaii's economy mainly relies on tourism, defense industry, and agriculture. Among these, agriculture serves as the local economic pillar, primarily producing sugarcane, pineapple, bananas, and coffee. Sugarcane production reaches up to 1 million tons annually, accounting for the major portion, but coffee cannot be overlooked. According to Hawaii Department of Agriculture data, Hawaii has approximately 7,200 acres of coffee cultivation area, with an annual output of 5.7 million pounds of green beans, and coffee production value reached $54.3 million in 2019. The Kona region where leaf rust was discovered is also Hawaii's main coffee-producing area. The coffee beans used in Hawaiian Kona coffee are grown on volcanic terrain. Simultaneously, there is high-density artificial cultivation, so each bean can be said to be delicately nurtured, naturally making them quite expensive, with prices second only to Blue Mountain coffee. Hawaiian Kona beans are uniformly shaped with strong acidity and sweetness. Therefore, the emergence of leaf rust has drawn great attention from the Hawaiian government, which has begun to take measures for defense.

Pest Infestation in Hawaii's Coffee Regions

In addition to the discovery of leaf rust this year which may affect Kona coffee production, Hawaii's coffee regions actually experienced a pest outbreak several years ago. The sudden surge in Kona coffee prices was also due to the 2010 pest disaster. In 2010, Hawaii's coffee regions suffered from fruit insect invasions, with the island's premium coffee-producing areas of Kona and Ka'u being most severely affected. Coffee production on the island decreased sharply by 50%. Later through pesticide and biological beetle control, Kona coffee production had recovered by over 40% by 2015. Although the disaster was brought under control, reduced rainfall on the island in recent years has affected the Kona region. Due to the decreasing production of coffee beans and high market demand, prices have been approaching those of Blue Mountain coffee in recent years.

Kona Coffee Growing Region

The Kona area is located in the southwestern part of the Big Island, stretching 20 miles long and 2 miles wide, covering the slopes of Hualalai and Mauna Loa. With altitudes between 300-1,100 meters, it provides the most suitable growing environment for coffee trees. Therefore, the slopes of Hualalai and Mauna Loa are covered with coffee trees. Only coffee beans grown in this region and certified under the strictest standards can be sold under the Kona trademark name. Through cupping, FrontStreet Coffee consistently finds that the overall flavor profile is primarily nutty, such as walnut, combined with berry fruits like plum, cream-like sweetness, with an overall clean and richly layered taste.

FrontStreet Coffee - Hawaiian Kona Coffee Beans

Region: Kona Region
Estate: Queen's Estate
Altitude: 1,100m
Variety: Typica
Processing Method: Washed Processing

Typica Coffee Variety

Typica is the oldest native variety from Ethiopia, and almost all current Arabica coffee bean varieties are derived from Typica. Typica has an elegant flavor but weak constitution, low disease resistance, and is easily infected with leaf rust. Coffee bean production is low and cannot meet economic benefits. Kona's cultivation of Typica was introduced from Guatemala in 1892. The Typica beans grown in Kona are large in size, with cultivation altitudes between 600-1,100m. Compared to other coffee-producing countries, Kona's cultivation altitude is considered low, but on the Hawaiian islands, Kona is considered high altitude. Someone once attempted to transplant Kona's Typica to other islands, but because the other islands had too high temperatures and too low altitudes, the Typica did not grow well, thus unable to develop the unique soft acidic aroma of the Kona region.

Kona Coffee Processing Method

The Kona region mainly uses the washed processing method. The biggest difference from the natural processing method is the use of fermentation to remove the mucilage layer. After completing fermentation and removing mucilage, because fermentation bacteria and impurities remain on the coffee beans, they are washed again. To ensure thorough cleaning, this step consumes large amounts of fresh water, followed by drying the fruits and hulling. Hawaii's clean and sweet mountain spring water provides the ideal conditions for performing the washed processing method on Kona coffee beans, creating their bright, clear appearance and pure, fresh taste.

FrontStreet Coffee's Roasting Experience with Kona Coffee

FrontStreet Coffee's roaster uses the Yangjia 800N, with 550g of green beans. The roaster temperature is set to 200°C when beans are loaded, with the air damper set to 3. After 1 minute, adjust heat to 150°C, keeping the air damper unchanged. At 5 minutes 35 seconds, temperature reaches 150°C, the bean surface turns yellow, grassy smell completely disappears, dehydration is complete, adjust heat to 140°C, air damper to 4; at 9 minutes 30 seconds, the bean surface shows ugly wrinkles and black spots, the toasted bread aroma clearly transitions to coffee aroma, which can be defined as the prelude to first crack. At this point, listen carefully for the sound of first crack. At 9 minutes 30 seconds, first crack begins, adjust heat down to 70°C, fully open the air damper (be very careful when adjusting heat, not too low to stop crackling sounds), turn off heat at 182°C, and unload at 193.4°C.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Experience

Filter: Kono
Water Temperature: 89-90°C
Grind Size: Fine sugar size / 20# sieve 80% pass-through
Coffee to Water Ratio: 1:15
Coffee Amount: 15g

FrontStreet Coffee uses segmented extraction, which is three-stage pouring. 30g of water for bloom for 30 seconds, second pour with small water flow in circular motion to 125g, wait for water to drop, then slowly pour again with even speed, water level should not be too high, pour again to 225g and stop. Extraction time 2 minutes—2 minutes 10 seconds (including bloom time).

Brewing Flavor

Balanced and mellow osmanthus honey sweetness with elegant, substantial but not heavy mouthfeel. The brewed coffee emits mulberry aroma that brings sweet happiness, with a smooth malt aftertaste. When cooled, it tastes like a cup of mulberry tea.

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Important Notice :

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