For my latest coffee review, I am checking out Big Island Coffee Roasters “Hawaiian Harmony”, their 100% Hawaiian Espresso Blend.
First, for those who are not familiar with Big Island Coffee Roasters…
When it comes to Hawaiian coffee, Brandon von Damitz and Kelleigh Stewart, the co-founders of Big Island Coffee have been recognized of producing great coffee.
In 2010, the two found a small coffee farm in a wild, disadvantaged region of Hawai’i in Puna and was posted on Craigslist. Originally, they were thinking about buying a farm in Portland, where they both lived. But finding a bank to lend them the money for one proved to be difficult. But after seeing the Craigslist posting of three acres in Puna, full of coffee trees and a house which was being sold less for a price of a home in Portland? They had to go to Hawaii and met the owner, who is from Oklahoma and bought the farm. No need to go through the bank, Bob carries the entire loan and the two have been paying the man, known as Bob, with the profits from their coffee business.
But in the beginning, von Damitz and Stewart then met with the community of farmers and sampled coffee from around Hawai’i and they learned about the local diversity and then learned about how there were people making great coffee with artificially flavored, blended coffee and to make things worse, Kona coffee was taking a hit due to many companies saying they were selling Kona coffee.
Kona coffee farmers have said that the Kona district can only grow approximately 2.7 million pounds of green Kona coffee each year, representing only .01 percent of the world’s green coffee production, but over 20 million pounds of coffee labeled as “Kona” are sold at retail annually. Many coffee companies were using Kona and their advertising and labeling were misleading.
For any person who wants true Hawaiian coffee, its safer to buy it directly from the farms and roasters. Pure and simple!
Kona is known for Typica Arabica variety but it didn’t do well in Puna.
I’ve written about Kona and Ka’u coffee which benefits from the rich volcanic soil of Mauna Loa.
But where is Puna?
Puna is the district on the Big Island’s south east shore. The district is known for its freshwater springs and volcanically heated tide pools. The whole coastline is made up of lava rock and the eastern flank of the Kilauea volcano is located in the Puna district.
Kilauea is the most active volcano in the world and on the map above, it’s on the right side labeled as “volcano”. Sure, it’s not as big as Mauna Loa or Manua Kea but it’s quite active having eruptions continuously from 1983 to 2018. Big Island Roasters is located in Mountain View and the Kilauea volcano is 10 miles from their farm and roastery.
And as you learn about Hawai’i’s volcanoes, the volcanic soil is quite rich and provides a great place for coffee trees to be cultivated.
And for Big Island Roasters, their research led to methods which produced great coffee and began working with neighboring farmers and sourcing their coffees as well.
But all the hardwork paid off for Big Island Roasters. In 2013, their Puna coffee earned the top score as Grand Champion for the state of Hawaii, which is quite impressive because a) They haven’t been around that long b) they are a small c) With so much attention on Kona and Ka’u coffee, Big Island Roasters is in Puna.
And even if they won, the company were unable to make it because the airline tickets cost as much as the lawnmower they need to replace.
But this couple who moved from Portland to Hawai’i after seeing an ad on CraigsList, have now produced coffee which has become the Grand Champion in the state and literally made Big Island Coffee Roasters the rockstars they are today. But they were still small and not enough coffee to sell at a wholesale rate but retail rate.
These are the stories that I find exciting to read about. The hard work, the amount of research, feeding, testing, roasting and cupping coffee, the important people they had to work with in producing great coffee. It’s a challenge and also expensive.
I have mentioned this many times before, the cost for hired help, the high cost of living, the cost to maintain the trees and equipment, coffee made in Hawai’i is a labor of love but Hawaiian coffee is also known as one of the most expensive coffee in the world for a reason. Farmers/roasters have to charge a bit more. They can’t produce bulk like other countries, there are only so many coffee trees planted on rich volcanic soil.
That’s why I believe in working directly with the farmers and roasters, knowing that you are getting true coffee from Hawai’i, from a district and it’s not blended with other beans.
So, now here we are to my review of Big Island Coffee Roasters “Hawaiian Harmony”:
Big Island Coffee Roaster’s “Hawaiian Harmony” was recently offered at special pricing by the company if you purchase coffee and I had to give it a try.
It’s a medium-dark espresso roast and is made of 100% Hawaiian coffees from the Big Island and Maui.
According to Big Island Coffee Roasters:
This 100% Hawaiian coffee is a harmonized blend for those who like their coffees with a medium-full creamy mouthfeel and low acidity. It’s balanced enough to enjoy as espresso, filter, or press pot.
As an espresso, you’ll notice ample crema, but no matter how you brew it you’ll get a 100% Hawaiian coffee with balanced sweetness and notes of butterscotch, cocoa, nutmeg, and dried fruit.
While drinking the Hawaiian Harmony, one thing that came to mind is the sweetness of this coffee.
I agree that the coffee is creamy, low acidity and has a taste of butterscotch, cocoa and cream.
It’s quite delicious and the first thing that came to my mind was when I read that part of this coffee included Maui beans, if there was a mokka blend because I tend to associate Maui coffee for its sweetness (due to the mokka). This is sweet, but delicious. The finish is cream and cocoa.
I have to say this is a safe and delicious coffee!
Safe as in those who are casual drinkers that don’t even know what coffee they like. Those who use cream. Those who want to start loving coffee but as a friend or family member, want to start off with something sweet, delicious before introducing them to something complex.
That’s how I feel about Big Island Coffee Roasters “Hawaiian Harmony”, great for those who love sweet coffee. Those who are just getting into Hawaiian coffee. You really can’t go wrong, it’s delicious, delightful and highly recommended!
