We took a morning trip to Mountain Thunder coffee roasters, just up the road from the house we were staying at on the big island of Hawaii. It’s on a hillside in the middle of the Kona coffee belt on the western side of Mauna Loa.
When we arrived we were invited to try samples of the different roasts, including light, French, espresso, and a blend of light and espresso they called “black and tan.” Before our coffee education, we were just glad to drink coffee. Later, we’d understand the different roasts and flavors of each. In other words, we were just steps away from becoming coffee snobs.
The free tour explained the whole process, from farm to brew. This roaster bought coffee beans from many nearby growers, all of whom harvested by hand. We got to see where the beans were sorted, rinsed and shelled, roasted, and finally packed for sale. We learned a lot.
- Light roast has more caffeine than dark, which is roasted hotter and longer.
- Most coffee beans grow two to a pod. The pods which only have one bean are called “peaberry.” The $70 per pound price of peaberry meant no free samples of that roast. But we bought dark chocolate covered peaberry beans in the gift shop. A nice caffeine boost without drinking a cup of coffee.
- Kona blends (10%) are more common and affordable than 100% Kona coffee. the Starbucks in the Honolulu airport served Kona coffee.
- Other regions (Ka’u, Puna, and Hamakua) boasted about their superior beans and roasts. We enjoyed the coffee in those places, too. We’re not that snobby.
I looked but never found a place to try a cup of peaberry coffee. I just wanted to find out if I could taste the difference. After the tour, I tried the samples again and did taste a big difference between light and espresso roasts.
This was one of our must-do activities in Hawaii. We could have spent a whole day visiting the coffee shops and shacks that lined the roads around the island. That would be a very good day!
Waite for it... 