Which Coffee Beans Offer Balanced Flavor: Introduction to Hawaii Kona Coffee with Wine-like Color and Rich Aroma

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FrontStreet Coffee - Introduction to Hawaii Kona Coffee

In Hawaii, the Kona growing region differs from many other growing areas. A more diverse industry exists here, with over 630 farms producing coffee. Typically operated by individual families, these farms are usually smaller than 2 hectares (equivalent to 5 acres). The yields here may be among the highest in the world. Additionally, coffee farms in this region are much smaller compared to other areas in Hawaii, making manual harvesting commonly visible.

Kona Hawaii coffee beans belong to high-quality Arabica beans and have become one of the most popular and expensive coffee beans on the market. Kona coffee trees are grown in Hawaii's nutrient-rich volcanic soil and lava geology, giving the coffee beans an enchanting unique aroma and rich texture. Kona coffee beans are round, full, and delicate, and the coffee they produce has a color reminiscent of red wine, which is one of the characteristics of Kona coffee.

"Hawaiian coffee is absolutely not expensive," Migai said: "It should be said that coffee prices in other parts of the world have been pushed too low." Lusty Estate grows about six thousand coffee trees (thinning has been carried out in the coffee tree orchard since planting), producing about 1 pound (0.45 kg) of green beans from each tree annually. The vast majority of the estate is planted with four main varieties: Guatemala Typica, Yellow Caturra, Red Caturra, and Red Bourbon. The Ka'u region where these varieties are located is called Cloud Rest.

The harvest season in this area typically lasts from November to May of the following year. However, during the remaining months of the year, Lori can still purchase seasonal fresh red cherries from other coffee farmers in the Ka'u region based on different harvest periods at different altitudes. Lori processes all coffee cherries herself—whether from her own estate or other estates—using her own methods and high standards of inspection.

After being picked, the coffee cherries are immediately sent to Lori's home in Pahala for post-harvest 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, which means that Lori, often accompanied by Migai, Peter, Joan, and Ralph, work overtime late into the night for eight to ten months each year.

Lori varies processing methods based on coffee variety, climate, and customer needs. Regardless of the processing method used, her first step is to "float" the coffee cherries, which involves soaking all coffee cherries in water—a common practice in this industry. Any coffee cherries floating on the water surface must be completely removed because they are low-density light beans, indicating congenital underdevelopment that will also lead to lack of flavor and sweetness. The next steps differ significantly from most competitors' approaches—Lori and her work partners carefully select the remaining coffee cherries, eliminating overripe, underdeveloped ones, and those that haven't fully ripened or still have yellow coloring are also discarded. After selection, Lori begins the next step of processing.

Altitude: 150-900m

Harvest: August ~ January

Variety: Typica

Knowledge Expansion

Hawaii's Kona coffee is a rare variety that can only be grown on volcanic slopes. It has a rich, mellow taste with a mixed aroma of wine, fruit, and spices, giving it an extremely special flavor.

In Brief

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