The Dark Side of the Moon

Go a little further; go beyond Kona, drive further south, and round the point where the most southern point of the United States lies. Keep going till you come across the shut down sugar town of Pahala, and turn in there.

You’re in Ka’u. Old sugar country, current Paniolo territory, and independent town of independent Hawaiians who happen to have the best Hawaiian coffee that I think there is.

Yea yea, Hawaiian coffee, you say, “the best” coffee in the world according to doctors and dentist in Iowa, but give the coffee a chance.

Last year in Long Beach at the SCAA coffee from this region came in sixth and ninth place at the SCAA cupping pavilion. Sixth and ninth place.

Well, I did, and still did really care, it was a Hawaiian coffee, who cares, I must have thought to myself, as I did absolutely nothing to find anything about that coffee.

Well, someone paid attention, and they asked me to bring in some bags of the coffee. I cupped it, and wow, it was orchid floralness to a degree that I had not cupped before in a coffee. We bought some too. I called up Michelle at Maile Coffee to ask her how “they did that.” How did they get that flavor in a coffee that I assumed was grown at about 300 meters. How did you get that fine acidity? Well, did not find out the answer to that question, but just spent four days in Hawaii looking into it, along with Ken Davids, Ka’u Farm and Ranchers, and bunch of very interested farmers.

Ken was invited by the owners of the ranch who seem to have an interest in all things Ka’u. We cupped 8 coffees, scored average about 83-84, and scored one coffee at a 90 and one at 87.5. Not shabby for an origin that can often barely break 82 with us.

Okay, is the coffee worth it? Will your customers want it? Well, it’s Christmas time, and yes, even most of you top roasters are known to buy a bit of Kona around then for that silly Dentist who wants to buy some for Christmas, and will you be able to convince them to buy Ka’u instead of Kona at Kona prices. Well, that will remain a mystery for some time, but we think that coffee from this region is da kine of Hawaiian coffee. Other side of the mountain, more rain, it actually looks like coffee country, and not the irrigated lava fields of Kona. Open up your mind, pallet, (and wallet, as comes with Hawaiian price tags-remember paying above minimum wage here, on some pricey land.)

By the way, this year in Minneapolis, the coffee came in a very solid tenth place, did you hear that? Aloha, Mr. Hand