Categorized | Business, Featured

Ka‘u Coffee Festival sets the dates (May 1-2)

Moaula Ka'u Cloud Rest Farm is one of the farms offering tours at the Ka‘u Coffee Festival. (Photo courtesy of Ka‘u Coffee Festival)


MEDIA RELEASE

The second annual Ka’u Coffee Festival invites everyone to head south to taste and celebrate Ka’u’s coveted crop over May Day Weekend, May 1-2.

Most events are free, and will be held at the Pahala Community Center. Pahala Village is ideally located between Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and Punaluu Black Sand Beach.

The fertile soil and temperate climate of the Ka’u District produce exceptional coffee beans, and Ka’u coffees – relatively new on the specialty coffee scene – have consistently placed among the top dozen of the finest coffees in the world at the Specialty Coffee Association of America’s (SCAA) Roaster’s Guild International Coffee of the Year Competition.

Ka’u has entered several farms in the 2010 competition, held April 15-18 in Anaheim, Calif. Ka’u coffees have been drawing the attention of some of the top names in the specialty coffee world since placing 6th and 9th in this competition in 2007.

Ka’u coffee is making a buzz not just at the SCAA competitions, but among coffee connoisseurs and with top chefs, including Chef Alan Wong, who currently offers coffee from five different Ka’u farms at his restaurant, Alan Wong’s Honolulu. In January 2009, Ka’u Coffee was served at President Barack Obama’s Inaugural Gala, held at the Hay-Adams Hotel in Washington, D.C.

“Last year was such a blast, we’re doing it again!” said Chris Manfredi, an event organizer and manager of Ka’u Farm & Ranch Company. “We are eager to share our distinctly sweet, aromatic and complex coffee in its birthplace – the beautiful Ka’u District on Hawaii’s Big Island.

“Ka’u has earned its place among the top coffee growing origins in the world. It’s a testament to the passion, dedication and tenacity of Ka’u farmers,” he said.

On Saturday, May 1, events start at 9 a.m. and last until 5 p.m., including a hoolaulea (celebration) with food, Hawaiian music, hula, vendors, Ka’u Coffee tastings, a Ka’u Coffee recipe contest, farm tours, and appearances by Miss Ka’u Coffee and Miss Peaberry, who will be crowned at the March 27 competition.

On Sunday, May 2, sign up for the Ka’u Coffee College, free for Ka’u coffee farmers and $25 for the public. Meet the farmers (currently, Ka’u has nearly 50 coffee farms growing on approximately 400 acres), tour the farms and learn more about the art and science of coffee growing and processing. The new Ka’u Coffee Mill will also be open for tours.

Attendees can plan a fun weekend getaway in Ka’u, one of the most historically significant areas in all of Hawaii. A selection of accommodations ranging from luxury inns to affordable B&Bs and cottages, restaurants featuring local products, and lots of outdoor adventure await travelers.

For more information, schedule of tours and events, visit www.kaucoffeefestival.com or contact info@kaucoffeefestival.com. Sponsor and vendor opportunities are available.

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