Kona Coffee Tasting Tour

Sip & Learn About Hawaiian coffees

You'll enjoy a guided behind the scenes tasting at our cafe and roastery with our Certified Q Coffee Processing Professional, mill and farm relations manager, April.

Tours include a talk-story and tasting of:

Chilled mamaki tea on nitro
3 x 4 oz cups of pour-over Hawai'i-grown coffee, customized to your preferred roast level
1 Espresso Bites bar
+ 10% off any purchases made in our cafe

Cost:

$50 per person
50% non-refundable deposit required to hold your reservation
Tastings are free for Coffee Club members

Tasting Experiences are conducted at our Hilo roastery, available Sundays & Tuesdays with start times at 12pm, 1pm and 2pm. Duration is approximately 45 min.

For now, groups are limited to 4 people or less. Please let us know if you're a larger group as we may be able to accommodate.

Schedule a Tour

Coffee 101

Terrior

The volcanic soil and tropical climate of Hawaii's Kona region impart a smooth, rich flavor and slight spice note found nowhere else. Hawai'i's unique geography creates many distinct microclimates that develop a wide array of beautiful coffees -- enough variety to satisfy every palate.

Schedule a Tour

Coffee 101

Cultivation

From soil nutrition to pruning practices, how coffee is cultivated directly impacts flavor. Organic fertilizers and proper irrigation provide balanced nutrition for the best bean development. Attention to details like sunlight exposure through careful pruning also boosts sweetness and complexity.

Schedule a Tour

Coffee 101

Genetics

Coffee varieties like Caturra, Bourbon, and Gesha each shine with their own distinct personalities. Just like grapes, specific types of coffee respond to their environment in ways you can taste and smell.

Schedule a Tour

Coffee 101

Harvesting

Timing the coffee harvest is an art that takes experience to perfect. Picking coffee cherries at peak ripeness contributes to sweeter, juicier flavors and a smooth, silky mouthfeel. Expert harvesters carefully hand-select only the ripest red cherries.

Schedule a Tour

Coffee 101

Processing

Post-harvest processing redefines the coffee's flavor direction entirely. Methods like natural, honey and washed each impart different characteristics. Washed processing highlights the coffee's brightness and intrinsic qualities while natural processing creates a cup dominated by fruity flavors like blueberry and strawberry.

Schedule a Tour

Coffee 101

Age & Storage

Like fine wines, coffees evolve flavor nuances through the aging process, improving body and smoothness over time. Proper storage in cool, stable conditions allows beans to change gradually while minimizing quality loss, allowing more complex flavors to develop.

Schedule a Tour

Coffee 101

Roasting

Varying degrees of roasting draw out diverse personalities from the same bean. Light roasts retain bright, complex fruit tones. As roasting progresses to medium and medium-dark, caramel sweetness develops. Deep, dark espresso roasts bring bittersweet flavors of chocolate and toasted bread.

Schedule a Tour

Coffee 101

Brewing

Factors from grind size to water quality and brewing method play a crucial role in flavor. Uniform grinds optimize extraction for clean flavor definition. Pure, mineral-balanced water allows origin flavors to shine. And techniques like pour over and cold brew tease out different facets from the same roast profile.

Schedule a Tour

Taste Hawaii's rainbow

Join a Guided Hawaiian Coffee Tasting

Sip & Learn About Hawaiian coffees

Terrior

Cultivation

Genetics

Harvesting

Processing

Age & Storage

Roasting

Brewing

When should we send your message?