A little bit of bad news this year folks, the Mauigrown crop – although very tasty – was tiny this year. Normally they sell 50% of their crop on Maui, this year they only pulled in about 52% of their normal yield. Didn’t leave that much coffee for us here on the mainland. Our allotment was chopped to about 90% of what we normally get. Price is up a little last year but luckily not up as much as the crop was down. Get it while the getting is good!
Mauigrown has done an excellent job learning from the last crop to improve the next. Every year they revise the processing method to leave it a little sweeter and cleaner. You can tell the difference just by appearance, it looks much cleaner. An old-world coffee with new world inspirations.
Maui Mokka originated at Ka’anapali Estate in Maui, an experimental coffee plantation project. They transplanted several native coffees from around the world, looking to derive Hawaiian cultivars with unique flavors; the Maui Mokka bean is derived from native Yemeni seed stock. The Ka’anapali project went under in 2002 due to funding issues. In stepped a group of connoisseurs who rescued the Estate from developers, and rehabilitated the original plantings. Today Mauigrown is a thriving farm model producing some very tasty Hawaiian coffee.
Tasting Notes:
Fuller bodied, low acidity with a complex chocolaty factor and some floral aromatics. One can see a little African like herbal spice note in the cup especially at the darker roasts. Light roast get a little acidity but underdeveloped chocolaty tones, so this guy is pretty much a medium to dark roast Hawaiian. Medium roasts get just a hint more floral upfront, a little sweeter and smoother cup but most will want to shoot for right at 2nd crack – big bodied and a very nice chocolaty spice tone.
Roasting Notes:
Can be a little tricky to roast, high chaff and small beaned. Believe it or not, this is actually one of the larger screens of the Mokka but the bean size can still add some challenges. With the small beans, they can go much quicker from 1st to 2nd crack than larger beans – so make sure to keep an eye on them closely. They are a high sugar/pectin beans, they tend to get a slight sheen on them earlier in the roasting than most, can be a little deceiving when judging them. I tend to roast at slightly lower temps and judge the roast by time from first crack. The good news, it is a very tasty coffee just touching 2nd crack – an easier to hit roast point.
