Learn About Coffee

The Kona Coffee Growing Region

is situated on the slopes of the Hualalai and Mauna Loa volcanoes at elevations ranging from 500 to 2,500 feet that offers ideal coffee growing conditions. With its balance of acidity, mineral content and water retention, the nutrient-rich volcanic soil is particularly suited for coffee production.

THE KONA NAME

can only be applied to coffee beans grown in North and South Kona, on the western side of the Big Island of Hawaii. This relatively small area, only two miles wide and about 25 miles long, is what makes Kona coffee so rare and unique. Coffee grown elsewhere in Hawaii cannot be called Kona coffee.

Adding to this ideal soil is Kona’ s climate. Hawaii’s famous bright morning sunlight helps the coffee thrive, while the cloudy, humid afternoons protect the coffee trees from overproduction, which can kill them.

This dependable afternoon cloud cover makes the Kona growing conditions comparable to those of shade-grown coffee.