From Bean to Brew: The Rich Story of Kona Coffee on the Big Island
Kona Family Farms – Mastering Coffee-Growing for Over 200 Years
The story of the coffee in your cup at breakfast dates back over two centuries, when missionaries brought coffee plants ashore in 1820, sowing the seeds of what has become one of the world’s most treasured coffee-growing regions. After seeing how well Brazilian coffee grew on Oahu, Samuel Ruggles transported a plant cutting to the Big Island, where it thrived equally well in the mineral-rich volcanic soil and high-elevation slopes of volcanoes. The legend of Kona coffee was born, prized ever since for its smoothness, complex flavor, and overall sweetness.
Today, coffee cultivation is more abundant than ever on the Big Island, with over 600 farms in the Kona area alone. Most are family-run and only 3 to 5 acres, their coffee hand-harvested and grown artisanally, unique in the modern mass agriculture era. And while most Big Island coffee has traditionally come from the Kona side of the island, numerous coffee roasters, micro-farms, and boutique coffee shops ply their delicious trade just a short drive away from our Volcano bed and breakfast.
You’ll discover – cup by cup, bean by bean – why Kona coffee has been a java lover’s dream for generations.
Grown in Paradise – What Makes It So Special
Hawaii is famously the only state where coffee is commercially grown and harvested (fun fact: it’s also the only US state where cacao is grown commercially – see our recent blog about Hawaii chocolate to learn more – and after all, what pairs better than chocolate and coffee?). The Big Island’s tropical climate, plentiful rain, and pristine volcanic soil make it an ideal place to grow coffee trees, which, like wine grapes, are notoriously temperamental and fickle in terms of needing just the right environment to flourish.
Throughout the 1800s, sugar and pineapple plantations consumed most of the land, but small-scale farmers saw how well the coffee trees produced, and the Kona coffee trade picked up steam. Japanese and Chinese immigrants worked tirelessly alongside native Hawaiians, evolving their coffee-farming techniques and passing them down through the generations (Hawaiian coffee farms are now five generations old, a true pastime and Big Island family tradition). As sugar plantations faded into distant memory and pineapple-growing moved overseas to other countries towards the end of the 20th century, Kona coffee growing took root more than ever before, burgeoning into the $250 million annual industry it is today.
With the bounty of coffee options on the shelves at your local grocery store, you may wonder what makes Kona coffee so legendary, gushed about by coffee connoisseurs. It’s one of the only places in the world where every single coffee tree is hand-picked, the uneven volcanic terrain not allowing for machine harvesting. Because of this human element, coffee farmers only harvest their beans at ultimate ripeness, preserving the most sweetness and natural flavor within each bean. The Big Island’s recent lava flows also impart the soil with richness, resulting in less acidity and more nuance in your Hawaiian-sourced cup of joe.
Touring Kona Coffee Farms and Sampling the Best Big Island Coffee Near Volcano Village
The famed “Kona coffee belt” is only 30 miles long, encompassing the steep slopes above Kona proper along the western side of the Hualalai and Mauna Loa volcanoes (one of the world’s most active, erupting in world-capturing fashion as recently as late 2022). It’s a two-hour drive to get there, but you’ll have your choice of several Kona coffee farms where you can tour their properties and see how this world-famous coffee comes to life. At Buddha’s Cup, you can take an off-road guided tour in their ATVs, sometimes with farm owner Manny on board, and check out their sprawling five coffee plots. Their beans – such as Kona Gold and Kona Kulana, which nod to their deep Kona roots – have won extensive awards over the last two decades. Another option nearby in Kona is the Uluwehi Coffee Farm. Although only in operation since 2018 and a relative newcomer to the scene, their beans have already garnered glowing reviews amongst the Kona coffee cognoscenti. They offer tours of their 5-acre working farm on Tuesdays and Fridays, where you’ll get an intimate look at the entire seed-to-roast process.
Staying closer to Volcano Village, start at the Hilo Coffee Mill, just 15 miles from your Volcano Village Lodge rainforest suite. Another family-run working farm, you’ll see how they have transformed an old sugar plantation into one of the top-producing coffee-growing operations on the Puna side of the Big Island. Growing a coffee plant from seed to harvest is a 3-year process, requiring intense dedication and hands-on expertise, which you’ll witness during their tours on Tuesdays at 10 am and 12 pm. With the copious amount of annual rainfall on our eastern side of the Big Island, drying the beans (a crucial step in the harvesting process) is more challenging, but you’ll see how they do it, adapting and working in tune with the local weather patterns. Just a couple miles down the road in Old Mountain Village, plan a latte stop at Koana Coffee Shop, where their unique beans, like Chocolate Lava, take inspiration from the volcanic soils of Kilauea from which they sprout.
The coffee options in Hilo are also top-notch, perfect for incorporating into day trips. After browsing and shopping at the always-popular Hilo Farmers Market, walk a few blocks over to Paradise Roasters. They specialize in roasting coffee from around the world, including Jamaica and Colombia, but they also roast many coffee beans grown on the Big Island. Whether you order pour-over style or saddle up for an espresso flight, it’s an excellent way to sample several types of Kona coffee beans and find your favorite to bring home. Another fantastic cafe to check out is the Hilo outpost of Big Island Coffee Roasters, located right near the magnificent Liliuokalani Gardens (one of Hilo’s treasures and worthy of a day trip). Check the Big Island Coffee calendar for upcoming weekend events like Hawaiian wreath-making and live music, which you can enjoy while sipping specialty coffee in their colorful and inviting cafe.
Stay with us on the Big Island, enjoy a cup of Kona coffee, and plan to take a bag home with you after your stay. Just ask the innkeeper.