Good News for Those Seeking Maui Coffee: A Fresh Harvest is Here
Coffee lovers and enthusiasts, we’ve got exciting news! A small but significant flow of Maui-grown coffee has started to make its way to Maui Chocolate and Coffee Tours from the scenic slopes of Haleakalā. Although the fresh harvest season for many small farms began in late July or early August, only a trickle of this precious coffee has been making it to consumers. If you’re hoping to snag some from your local retailers, you might need to wait a little longer – most of the beans are still being carefully handled by local farms and roasters before they’re ready for market.
Maui’s Kupa’a Farms: A Hidden Treasure of the Island
One of the farms at the forefront of this new harvest is Kupa’a Farms. Known for their dedication to sustainable agriculture and coffee production, Kupa’a Farms has been an essential player in the Maui coffee scene. After nearly a year of missing their coffee due to the Coffee Berry Borer (CBB) infestation, they are finally back. MCCT’s has sourced from a handful of small upcountry coffee growers, so now we have Maui grown coffee, specifically Kula grown. The coffee cherry borer impacted Kupa’a coffee production requiring MCCT to source coffee off the farm where our tours are hosted. Hopefully, within another year Kupa’a’s award winning coffee will be available to our guests on the tour. (If you’re unfamiliar with CBB and its devastating effects on coffee crops, be sure to read our detailed blog post on the topic here).
A Visit to Lilinoe Farm: Coffee’s Best-Kept Secret
One of Maui’s lesser-known yet remarkable coffee farms is Lilinoe Farm. The farm manager, Alex Tranavich, is leading the charge for Lilinoe’s first meaningful coffee harvest of 2024. The magic starts after the beans are harvested—Alex ensures they are meticulously fermented and dried to the ideal moisture content of 9-12%. Then, the milling process begins, where the chaff is separated from the bean, leaving behind a pristine coffee bean ready for roasting.
Lilinoe Farm is producing two standout coffees this year: the Koa Blend, which is 60% Maui-grown and 40% Nicaraguan, and the O’hia Blend, which is 100% Maui-grown on Lilinoe Farm’s own soil. These carefully cultivated beans carry the unique flavors of the slopes of Haleakalā, where the farm has been nurturing coffee trees since 1993.
Keeping It Local: The Importance of Label Transparency
At Maui Chocolate and Coffee Tours, we’ve always prided ourselves on being ambassadors for transparency, and that extends to the coffee we serve. When Kupa’a Farms was affected by the CBB last year, we had to look beyond Maui to continue offering high-quality coffee, sourcing from other Hawaiian islands to maintain the integrity of our tours. But we stayed committed to supporting local farms and being transparent about where every bean came from, even during challenging times.
Now that Kupa’a Farms is back in action, we will be thrilled to offer their coffee once again in another year, and we continue to ensure that every cup served on our tours tells a story of local resilience and care for the land.
The “Coconut Wireless” Connection: A Roaster’s Dream
In a perfect example of Maui’s famous “coconut wireless” (word of mouth), Maui Chocolate and Coffee Tours recently helped connect Alex from Lilinoe Farm with Daniel, the owner of Social Hour Coffee Roasting. Alex had just finished milling fresh coffee from Kupa’a Farms and needed an expert to roast it. We were delighted to introduce him to Daniel, whose talent and reputation precede him in the coffee community.
Interestingly, Daniel had just won first place at the Seed to Cup competition at the Maui Tropical Plantation – a prestigious event celebrating excellence in coffee cultivation and roasting. With such an esteemed roaster on board, we knew Alex’s coffee was in the best possible hands.
Daniel didn’t just roast the beans; he helped Alex fine-tune the process and select the best global single-origin beans to complement the delicate and complex flavors of Lilinoe Farm’s Maui-grown coffee. Together, they’ve crafted a coffee experience that embodies the harmony between tradition and innovation.
Celebrating Maui Coffee’s Return to Our Tours
We’re beyond excited to share these exceptional Maui-grown coffees with our guests at Maui Chocolate and Coffee Tours. From the fertile slopes of Haleakalā to the expert hands of roasters like Daniel at Social Hour, every step of the journey is a testament to the love and craftsmanship behind each cup of coffee we serve.
As these small batches of coffee slowly make their way to us, we invite you to experience the rich flavors and stories of Maui coffee for yourself. Whether you’re a seasoned coffee aficionado or just beginning your journey into the world of specialty coffee, there’s something truly special waiting for you at Maui Chocolate and Coffee Tours.
Stay tuned as we continue to bring you updates on the latest harvests, new collaborations, and the unique people behind Maui’s extraordinary coffee culture. In the meantime, we’ll be brewing up something special for your next visit – literally!