Kona Coffee

By Lisa VanWilliams

One of our friends just got back from Hawaii and they brought us some 100% Kona coffee. No wonder it's one of the most expensive beans in the world, because it tastes fabulously smooth. It's a medium strength coffee with a sweet aftertaste. It probably tastes so magical because the trees are growing in ancient mineral-rich volcanic soil. The sunny and mild climate is also ideal for harvesting this popular Hawaiian coffee known around the world. If you ever go to a Coffee Bar and you have the option to try this blend, you should go for it if you like a medium flavored great-tasting coffee.

There are only 800 Kona coffee farms in Hawaii covering over 2,000 acres. The coffee trees bloom in February & March and they produce a sweet-smelling fragrant blossom. The small white flowers are known as "Kona snow".  I can only imagine how marvelous it must smell on the side of this mountain in Spring. This is what they look like in bloom:

One coffee tree can produce about two pounds of roasted coffee. So, it's a rare bean given the conditions and limited production number, thus making it more expensive. You want to make sure it states "100% Kona Coffee" on the package.

So if you don't have any friends coming back from Hawaii, you can always hit up your local Trader Joe's and get 13oz for $19.99: http://www.traderjoes.com/digin/post/coffee-character-field-guide

Or you can call Anthony's Coffee Co. in Maui and they will ship it to you:
http://www.anthonyscoffee.com/coffee.html

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kona_coffee
http://www.anthonyscoffee.com/coffee.html
http://www.traderjoes.com/digin/post/coffee-character-field-guide