Coffee comes from plants, and plants have to grow somewhere -- that may seem obvious, but those somewhere affect our experience of drinking coffee in ways which can be hidden, obscure, or even counterintuitive. Newly revised, The Hawai‘i Coffee Book: A Gourmet's Guide from Kona to Kaua‘i introduces the agriculturally rich story of Hawaiian coffee as a way of thinking about coffee anywhere in the world. Hawai‘i blurs the traditional distinction between a growing economy and a consuming economy, and as such is a rare model how coffee can be a responsive system through the work of many hands: farmers, roasters, baristi, and consumers. The implications for coffee quality, environmental stewardship, and economic justice mean that Hawai‘i can be a model for direct trade relationships with farmers and other industry best practices, whether mediated by green bean brokers, roasters, cafes, or consumers. The privilege of establishing close relationships with the folks who grow, roast, and brew their coffee means consumers can influence the increasingly dynamic local coffee culture in ways that contribute to Hawai‘i’s adaptive cultural niche.
Accessible discussions of coffee quality, specialty coffee, and coffee growing frame a refreshing dive into Hawai‘i’s coffee history and its modern coffee industry. Local farmer, roaster, and cafe profiles capture the complexity of the state’s 10 growing regions across five islands.
Brew something hot and settle in for this insistently diverse Hawaiian story. Novice grokkers will acquire a solid footing in coffee production and culture, while industry insiders will learn about how Hawaiian coffee has evolved within the specialty market and the organoleptic possibilities it affords.
Encyclopedic in its reach, this book is valuable to anyone eager to immerse themselves in coffee. Each chapter is a thorough exploration of a given topic, written by an industry expert. The writing is accessible to everyone, even though the depth can sometimes be academic is scope. Topics cover a wide range of subjects, including coffee production, history, social science, natural science, country profiles, and medicine.
The book is divided into the following sections, but it covers a good deal more than they suggest:
Part 1 - The Coffee Business
Part 2 - The State of the Trade
Part 3 - The History of Coffee and Its Social Life
Part 4 - The Qualities of Coffee
Part 5 - The Future of Coffee
This book has been translated to Indonesian and Chinese. If you’re interested in these versions, please contact me.
Making coffee isn’t rocket science, but that doesn’t mean there’s still not plenty of science behind all the growing, roasting, brewing, and drinking. In a friendly FAQ style, this book explores the “why” and “how” of coffee, from seed to cup, incorporating the most current scientific research for an engaging, lively education in all things coffee. Whether you are a budding enthusiast or wizened professional, you’ll never look at your morning pick-me-up the same way again.
This book has been translated to Indonesian, Korean and Chinese. If you’re interested in these versions, please contact me.
In Hawai‘i, there is a law that regulates the blending and labeling of coffees. If a company wants to blend a local coffee and name the origin on the package, then the package must contain at least 10% of that named origin and it must be labeled a certain way. Many people dislike that the …
Continue reading “Coffee labeling in Hawai‘i – the 10% blend”
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Finally, the Coffea Consulting website is getting a long overdue overhaul! The old site was stale, details were out of date, and many of the links were broken. It is now functional, attractive, and current! Coffea Consulting is going through a refreshing moment. There is renewed attention being paid to the business, its offerings, and …
Continue reading “A fresh cup”
Read More...Ozburn-Hessey Logistics was a defendant in a lawsuit concerning the storage of green coffee. I served as an expert witness on their behalf.
