The History of Hawaiian Coffee

The world's most popular beverage, coffee, comes from the Arab word qahwa. It literally means 'that which prevents from sleep'. Although Hawaii isn't the place where coffee originated, it has become the location of the world's most sought-after coffee beans. Hawaii needed a long period of time and the perfect harmony between the climate, soil and farmers to manage to reach that status. Let's take a look at the history of Hawaiian coffee.

Coffee plants are a member of the Rubiaceae family, which were first discovered in the mountains of Kaffa, in Ethiopia. A man named Kaldi, who was herding goats in these mountains, saw the goats eating wild berries. After the goats ate the wild berries, they were acting very energetically. Kaldi became very curious and tried some of the wild berries. He felt the surplus of energy himself. Soon after this discovery, these wild berries became popular throughout the region especially in the monasteries; because they helped monks meditate longer. After that, coffee seeds were discovered and shared in other parts of the world. It soon became a very popular beverage. In the 18th century, Johann Sebastian Bach composed an opera titled "The Coffee Cantata". The heroine sings: 'coffee is more delicious than a thousand kisses and sweeter than muscatel wine".

Documents reveal that the first coffee seeds came to Hawaii in 1813. About 12 years later, documents show the registry of a coffee plantation in Manoa Valley. The coffee trees were acquired by the Governor of Oahu, Chief Boki, who brought these plants from Rio de Janeiro. The coffee trees were planted in Oahu, in Manoa Valley and soon they began to be introduced to other regions of Oahu. Kona coffee farms came to life when Reverend Samuel Ruggles established his base in Captain Cook, Kona back in 1828. Coffee trees were planted on that base, and began to flourish in their new home. An early coffee plantation established in 1842 became the Hanalei Valley, which is located on the North Shore of Kauai. Although the climate and soil of Hawaii produced extremely healthy coffee plants that resulted in a unique product, the economy did not help the survival of big coffee plantations. This is when the big farms were replaced by small Kona coffee farms with an average of 5 acres per farm. The big plantations' time was over.

The area where the world's finest coffee is grown is called the Kona Coffee Belt. It is an area 20 miles long and 2 miles wide. This belt is located on the slopes of Mauna Loa and Hualalai. It contains about 600 independent Kona coffee farms, which range in size from 3 to 5 acres. There are a few larger farms in the area that contain a little over 50 acres each. By the 1930s, Hawaii registered more than a thousand coffee farms in Maui, Kauai and Molokai, as well as Oahu and the Big Island of Hawaii. Approximately 6,500 acres are in production across the state, producing about 7 million pounds of green beans every year.

- Beginning in 1992, Maui Coffee Company has established themselves worldwide as the premium roaster of Kona and Maui coffees. From the coffee fields of their backyard, Maui Coffee Co. takes fresh Kona coffee and http://www.mauicoffeeco.com beans and roasts them to perfection for your coffee enjoyment.

Maui Coffee Company
219 Kupuohi Street
Lahaina, HI 96761
(808) 661-9401