Description
Ka‘anapali Estate • West Maui • Hawaii
Hawaiian Maui Yellow Caturra Natural
Region West Maui, Ka‘anapali Estate • Process Natural • Variety Yellow Caturra • Elevation ~350–1,800 ft
QUALITIES: floral • citrus • silky • clean
RECOMMENDED ROAST: Medium (Light–Dark works)
CHAFF LEVEL: Normal
TASTING NOTES – ROASTING NOTES
Light Roast
Floral aroma • Round citrus & honey • Plum & nut • Silky mouthfeel • Quiet caramel-toast finish
Medium Roast
Sweet & defined • Soft fruit & floral • Malty undertone • Balanced silky body
Dark Roast
Acidity softens • Subtle spice • Dark malt & chocolate • Full body • Sweet edge
Natural adds a hint of floral and soft fruit over a clean base; medium roast is the sweet spot, a touch darker turns hefty and full bodied.
Flavor Profile
Honey • Citrus • Plum • Floral • Nut • Cocoa
Clean and silky rather than explosive: a floral aroma with round citrus and honey-like sweetness, then a delicately silky cup of citrus, plum, nut and flowers that closes on caramel and a quiet toasted note. Low in acidity and very defined. If you want a cleaner, less fruit-leaning cup, look to the Washed. If you want a touch more body, soft floral-fruit and a gentle edge, this Natural is the one.
ORIGIN: Ka‘anapali Estate, West Maui, Hawaii
MauiGrown Coffee
This lot comes from MauiGrown Coffee’s Ka‘anapali Estate, a roughly 500-acre farm near the historic town of Lahaina in the West Maui Mountains. The estate is a slimmed-down revival of the older Kaanapali Coffee project, where coffee was used to diversify Maui’s sugar plantations. After extensive field trials to find the Arabicas best suited to this soil, altitude and climate, MauiGrown settled on four varieties: Maui Mokka, Yellow Caturra, Red Catuai and Typica. The Yellow Caturra ripens yellow instead of red, is a high-yielding semi-dwarf with short internodes, is rarely planted outside Hawaii, and is typically the first variety to ripen each season.
AREA
West Maui Mountains, Ka‘anapali
Planted in hedgerow style between 350 and 1,800 ft above sea level, the estate is drip irrigated from West Maui’s fresh mountain streams, which feed a century-old ditch system left over from the sugar era. Standing guard above the slopes is Pu‘u Kukui, the highest peak in West Maui and the second wettest spot in the world. Coffee is harvested once a year starting around September, and the estate’s own processing plant pulps and dries the cherries, separating ripe from overripe and immature fruit before hulling, polishing and grading by size. For the record, MauiGrown’s Yellow Caturra scored 90 at Coffee Review (Kenneth Davids, March 2010).
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
Primary harvest window: Sep → Dec (West Maui, Ka‘anapali)
See the previous description format.
We have been waiting forever for our lovely Maui coffee, and we are always thrilled when a little of it lands in our container. This lot comes from MauiGrown Coffee at the Ka‘anapali Estate, up in the West Maui highlands near Lahaina.
The roughly 500-acre estate is a former state and private project that used coffee to diversify Maui’s old sugar plantations. It ran extensive field trials to find the Arabicas that grow best in the local soil, altitude and climate while delivering the best cup quality and yields. MauiGrown grows the four best types from those trials: Maui Mokka, Yellow Caturra, Red Catuai and Typica. The Yellow Caturra ripens yellow rather than red, is a high-yielding semi-dwarf, and is usually the first variety to ripen each season.
Tasting Notes: Best from medium to dark roast, this cup has a little crisp floral acidity and soft fruit tones mixing into a fuller bodied nutty and chocolaty undertone. Similar to the washed processed but with a hint of floral and fruit, not an overly fruity natural like some. Light roasts can come off a bit dry and acidic but smooth out and become nice and defined at the medium roast level. Very tasty a bit darker as well, hefty and full bodied with a sweet edge and the subtle spice the Yellow Caturra is known for.
Roasting Notes: This is interesting coffee on its own but one of our favorite blend components. If you are into espresso and like Hawaii, this is a perfect blend base. We would shoot for right before the second crack, which gives a very smooth cup, lower acidity with a very floral aroma, accentuating the dark malt and chocolate tones. Medium roasts are best for a single origin drinker, very sweet with some soft fruit and a malty undertone.
John (verified owner) –
I found it tastes good by itself but was even better when I mixed it with some Mexican Chiapas. Will try it with some Colombian El Cortijo and Venicia next.