Archive for September, 2010

Most people do not associate the coffee plantations in Hawaii, he is the only state in the Union, the climate and soil, where the coffee plants thrive added. Rich, slightly acid soil, volcanic, with sunny mornings and cloudy afternoons over 60 inches of rain during the summer months provide an ideal environment for growing coffee primo.

There are many traditional Hawaiian coffee grown in Hawaii, but for this trip I am on the Big Iceland to visit Hawaii in the agricultural region where Kona coffee is grown to visit.

To explore better the true “Aloha” of Hawaii’s husband Shaun and I decided to at least two very distinct bed and breakfast in the Kona coffee belt instead of the typical resort hotel in the middle kip, where most tourists love the palm to go.

Roger Diltz, owner of Aloha Farms Bed and Breakfast once a place of refuge B & B, we gave guidance of crucial importance to his house (height 800 meters) between Kealakekua Bay and Honaunau National Park Puuhonua O (see City of Refuge). If you find everywhere in the region to try, it is advisable to go during the day because the roads are not well marked and street signs is not as easy to see the day are almost invisible at night.

Before our arrival at this eco-tourism B & B, Roger, offshore fishing left on the catch of the day, his dog Koa and a note on the door to greet us. Disarmament first of these Rottweiler / Lab mix has been our companion />
We thought that a warning be necessary. But as the day dawned, the sounds of the jungle began as a twitter unique and within 20 minutes had orchestrated the birds their calls in a flourishing crescendo of Tweets cackles and whistles.

The aroma of Kona coffee wafted through the house ready as Roger, a rib sticking breakfast with syrup on hotcakes Jabuticaba coconut. The view at breakfast from the lanai (covered patio) was just imagine how you feel, a tropical rain forest with exotic plants, could see in the main by an indigo ocean in one person.

Evenings on the farm were pretty fun Aloha. We have an invasion by hordes of nocturnal geckos, as they arrived in force to stick to walls like chewing gum on a shoe. These shy lizards Chartreuse by mosquitoes, and plants kept in pots of lemon grass. In the distance, the thud echo Lawyers for five pounds of falling branches overloaded Koa leads in general to investigate whether it could be a wild boar.

But every morning, we did not expect to go to the normal diet tourist snorkeling, kayaking or swimming with dolphins, tour. Instead, we have attempted to painful operations in this region, which is only two fifty-eight miles wide, twenty miles long and extends along the southwestern coast of Iceland hidden from Hawaii Big track. We wanted to know how Kona coffee is picked, pulped, fermented, dried, ground (hull) and roasted. (They did not know there were so many processes to get this cut, the eyes open each morning, now you have?)

Our path led us first Langenstein establishments where managers Darcee Lucas met us for a non-traditional excavation.

When we walked into the roasting chamber, Darcee Chinese had three cups placed much alone with a cup of freshly brewed coffee at a corner table, no cream or sugar in their eyes. Shaun, an instant coffee drinker frown, forehead, I had the “How will I drink coffee without milk?” Look.

As Darcee paid, she said: “Now take your cup and watch the oil floating on the coffee Notice the colors, the smell of coffee now, coffee….” We drank this classic soft, clean, fruity, floral cup Kona coffee. I could see a sigh of relief from Shaun. “I can actually drink the coffee black, no sugar and tastes almost sweet,” says Shaun.

My hidden agenda was exposed, I wanted to get my Brit now drinking coffee with a man on the way to a good copper load to enjoy. Its sweet taste seemed to have defeated.

Our journey took us from Pele Plantations, overlooking Kealakekua Bay where Captain Cook discovered the Hawaiian Islands. Owners Gus and Cynthia Brockson busy roasting and packing orders ready to ship online.

Their Kona coffee farm is certified organic, which means that the coffee is grown using methods and materials that have low environmental impact. These organic production systems to regenerate and maintain soil fertility, reduce the use of toxic and persistent pesticides and fertilizers, and build an agricultural biodiversity.

After Brocksons, it is not enough to call a certified organic coffee farm “organic Kona coffee, it must also be in a facility with equipment and procedures that are certified organic processed. We are proud to be one of the four processors Kona have received this status.

At the top of Koa road we visited the plantation KOA, located at an altitude of 2,500 feet on the slopes of the Hawaiian volcano Mauna Loa. Set in the small town of Captain Cook is the only company in which we saw Kona cherry blossom and red and green on the same plant. The sweet fragrance of the flower – nicknamed “Kona Snow” – reminded me of its sister plant, the Gardenia. In May, the flowers give way to the fruits of the green coffee cherry is a rare sight to see in low altitude this time of year.

KOA has a plantation mill prior art wet-Columbia, a dry mill in Brazil and all the parchment / green beans, the temperature and humidity controlled.

In the roasting room, we saw the beans in a frying pan roasted big commercial. The temperature and time were closely monitored in order to not burn the beans. “The most important, listen to the first crack,” said John Langenstein, guide. After about 15 minutes, the beans literally “pop” in their expansion. This first “crack” the roast first a slightly roasted coffee roasted American often referred to. The second “crack” is a much darker roasted coffee.

Tired and hungry, we headed to the highway from the Old Tobacco Road, an old farm road and hard enough that a four-wheel drive may need to be. It is buried a mile long until our next through the orchards of macadamia nuts and coffee. We arrived at the house upscale guest Aloha owned by Greg Timmermans and Johann Garriss run with Lino Laure resident artist.

The grounds were perfectly manicured Aloha Guest House for a tropical area where the vines and foliage to grow at a rapid pace! Flowers and exotic fruits that grow in volcanic rock.

We are of Lino and doggie Mango, which, as it turned out, welcomed, loved to scratch his back – every morning – on a chair in front of our entrance hall to create a stir. (It was our place to wake up.)

Aloha Guest House – temperature at 1500 feet above the Kona coast, where from the air by cool breezes from the sea – facilities including a spa, Jacuzzi seven people, HDTV, WLAN, d, a kitchenette and guest shared the 24-hour coffee Serve freshly brewed tea bar and 100% Kona Peaberry Coffee – their own label has grown and roasted coffee plantations of Kena.

Breakfast, prepared by Johann was usually a simplified version of haute cuisine was served and a large dining table with elegant table settings, including exotic flowers.

During the tables B & B presented by Lino Laure. Lino natural talent is obvious, he painted the Miracle of Hawaii, taking into account the information that the artist would consider

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Nevertheless, the day beckoned us to leave behind all this luxury to complement our eco-tour.

A trip to Greenwell Farms in Kealakekua, Hawaii, took us on a historical family in 1850 when Henry Nicholas Greenwell left England and the first steps in the fertile soil of rural Kona.

With his wife Elizabeth Caroline Henry spent the next forty years farming, animal breeding and perfecting his Kona Coffee, soon exporting to Europe and America.

Today the farm is managed by the descendants of Henry and Elizabeth and builds his own coffee on 150 hectares of fertile land located in the Kona. Greenwell Farms offers tours through the fields and coffee processing, continuous 8-4 clock Monday to Friday and Saturday from 8 to 3 clock />
Just a stone’s throw away is the Kona Historical Society Living History Farm Tour. This seven-acre farm was homesteaded in the 1900s by Japanese immigrants. The visit is an interpretation of the daily lives of coffee farmers in the early 20th Century to life through the use of historic buildings, artifacts, authentic landscapes, live animals, machinery, work and production gardens, orchards and fields.

David Bateman, owner of Heavenly Farms Hawaii pointed out that the process is much the same today: “Because not all cherries while mature, there are usually five fifty-six crops during the harvest stand manually select cherry red fruit with. the coffee beans. A good picker can be 400 pounds to pick cherries in a day. Some combine harvesters have taken much as £ 1 200 per day, all by hand, bean by bean. The standard ratio of cherries to produce one pound of roasted coffee is seven to one.

Near the farm owner Bob Nelson Lehuula prepares his equipment for a batch of cherry pulped and dried. In addition to a pulper, Bob – is a unique two devices on the islands, which dry the coffee bean through a dehumidification process that serves to speed up the drying – a transplant from Alaska. Most companies – including Lehuula – always the sun to dry their beans on the big bridge to a moisture content between 10 and 13 percent.

This coffee farm of four acres – at 1400 meters on the western slopes of Mount Hualalai – currently supports more than 4,000 coffee trees many of which 90 years or older and are capable of exceptional tasting type of coffee that are not found in young trees. “Cherry is as good as it also never be,” said Bob Kirsch took over and reminded us that there is always a path that takes many steps to enjoy coffee process. Br

Dr. Joe Alban, said that in his coffee farm, the 35 per cent more than other cherry coffee plantations produced because of its unique style coffee grove vineyards. Sold by the pound, it is the first coffee plantation grid owned and operated by Dr. Joe Alban and his wife Deepa.

Kona Coffee Joe ® trellised holds patents U.S. 6449898 B1 for “Method and apparatus for improving the coffee bean production” and was known for the fine tuning of vineyard techniques to produce coffee. “The inspiration came to the traditional practice of growing coffee wine adaptation of our family vineyard, vineyards, Alban, an award-winning vineyards and winery on the central coast of California,” said Joe.

Kona Coffee Joe will sponsor the first round in this year’s Kona Coffee Barista instead Culture Festival, a 10-day festival takes place in early November, when the Kona coffee harvest is in full swing.

I came to Kona to see how coffee is grown and what an education I received. Everyone can go on this way to see how a coffee farm, without a passport and concern about traveling in a foreign country.

Every morning I pick up my freshly brewed cup of java, I have a deep respect for the process of labor needed to produce the coffee farmers and “as tirelessly for our goods we do not seem to do without. / P>
Big Iceland bed and breakfast