Where to Get Delicious Hawaiian Kona Coffee Beans
Posted by forestthornbarg on 15 Mar 2010 | Tagged as: Coffee, Coffee Tips, Gourmet Coffee Snob Sez
Most people who get their first sip of Kona coffee are forever hooked. It is grown in Hawaii Kona coffee beans are known for their unique balance and unbeatable taste. Grown on the slopes of Mauna Loa and Mount Hualalai in the north part of the state, as well as many Kona districts found on Oahu, this is one of the best coffees known.
Buying fresh, gourmet Kona coffee ensures the best cup of coffee possible especially if made in a french press coffee maker. Although Kona coffee is higher priced than other coffee blends, it is definitely worth the price. After all, everybody around the world purchases this specific kind of coffee. Because of the growing conditions, which include beautiful, sunny mornings and afternoons with rain and humidity, the coffee is unique and flavorful.
These high-quality Kona coffee beans grow on plants whose cuttings came from Brazil. In the 1800s, Samuel Reverend Ruggles brought the first Kona tree to Hawaii. Discovering that the weather and soil in Hawaii produced great crops, farmers begin growing the beans on large plantations. Today, it is estimated that the area on which Kona coffee beans are grown is more than 2,300 acres. Kona coffee cultivation is now so successful that about two million pounds of the beans are harvested per year.
The tiny white blossoms of the Kona tree make their appearance in February and March each year and are known locally as Kona Snow. Then small green berries pop up by early spring; However, by mid-summer they have already turned to a ruby red fruit and exhibit similar qualities to ripe cherries. This is the time when the “fruit” is ripe and should be harvested. By hand-picking every coffee bean, the freshness of gourmet Kona coffee is ensured.
The fruit is processed through equipment designed specifically to separate the pulp and bean, in less than a day from the time it is picked. When that is completed, you will have to ferment the beans for a total of 36 hours at both lower and higher elevations. Once rinsing of the beans is complete, they will need to be laid out on a rack to dry for one to two weeks. They place the dry beans are stored on parchment. Eight pounds of fruit are required to make one pound of fresh and gourmet Kona coffee.
If you pay attention to the characteristics of the Kona coffee seeds, you will be able to pick out the the fresh, gourmet Kona coffee. To cite and example, the number of beans in one cherry or fruit for the Type I is two which has one flat side and another oval. Type II beans are just one, round bean per cherry or fruit. Then based on a number of factors to include size, type, moisture content, purity, and so on would determine further grading. A better version of the Kona bean is evident when purchasing gourmet Kona coffee.
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