travelbug2007

Okay you coffee guru's out there.

I would like to hear from some people who have tried many of the Kona coffee's. Let me know in your opinion which one was the best. I have strict orders to bring back the highest quality, best tasting coffee to some family members back home. They are anxiously awaiting their caffiene fix! Only 100% pure Kona coffee please, no blends!

Thanks

fdecarlo

Coffee beans, like any other food crop will vary in quality from year to year, depending on growing and harvesting conditions. So you can't pick one supplier that's always the best. Just to give you one example, I've had maybe 200 different Kona coffees, and the best by far was a bag of no-name local beans we bought at, of all places, Wal-Mart! A second bag of the exact same label was terrible.

A few weeks ago we ordered a pound of Lonn Armour's hand-grown and hand-picked coffee beans, based on rave reviews, and it's excellent. Not the best we've ever had, but certainly better than most:

http://www.hale-hualalai.com/

kauai_aka

my only pure indulgence, kona rainforest peaberry. it’s organic which i don’t care to think about… but definitely the taste i look for. i'm not a connoisseur but have tried cheaper kona (not blended) from stores and exhibits and have yet to find it. i don't know what a lb cost (regular cuppers, so it's just shipped as needed). i'm drinking some right now.

traveller69

I will give you an answer from an expert (well he thinks he is anyway) but I have to call him. My brother is so into Kona coffee that e bought a roaster and joined their coffee club. They send him the raw beans and he roasts it himself. I don't really appreciate it but I know he thinks peaberry is wonderful. I will post as soon as I talk to him. Are you in Hawaii now?

Annabel

Try here www.hubbardcoffee.com

I assume you are going to Hawaii! Although I have not yet been to Hawaii, we do love Kona Coffee. The best I have ever tasted is at the Kona Cafe in Disney World's Polynisian Resort. It is shipped in almost every day. You can order it from WDW for $40.00 per pound. I did some investigating and found that they get their coffee from the above distributor. The coffee is excellent

wtm003

I don't claim to be a coffee guru, but I did enjoy the Kona coffee purchased after a tour at Greenwell Farms. The tour was informative, plus the owners allowed visitors to take any avocados and bananas grown on the farm. The only items off limits were the coffee beans (of course!) and macadamia nuts. So, if you are heading to the Big Island, you may want to stop by for a visit.

www.greenwellfarms.com

cfntmpn

Kona coffee is highly regulated in Hawaii - every bag MUST show the % of KONA coffee - any blends must be visually printed on the bag.

If you look on the bags it will tell you 100%, 10%, whatever the blend is.

I just returned from Maui earlier this year and was told by the locals that the Peabody is the best Kona coffee - though I must say, also the most expensive - I believe I paid over $20 for a lb of it.

It was worth every penny - very smooth, very good.

I flew out of the airport in Maui and they had an excellent store that sold everything that I needed to take home for souvenirs - including 100% Peabody Kona coffee.

elsiemoo

Do keep in mind, travelbug, that some people find they don't prefer even the best Kona coffee, compared to other fine coffees. I could hardly wait to try it, then I found that I liked my Gevalia much better. I made a point of bringing pure Kona coffee back for the coffee-lovers in our family, and they thought it was just okay. So don't feel bad if what you bring back doesn't blow the giftees away ... that happens sometimes.

travelbug2007

Thanks for all the info everybody. I am still in Hawaii for the next week, so if anyone else wants to ad their 2 cents, feel free.

I ask for advice on this topic because neither my husband or I are coffee drinkers at all, so it is all Greek to us.

I assume the coffee's come in different roasts, dark, medium, light as other coffee's do? I have had a request for a dark roast.

Thanks again

travelbug2007

Me again,

I guess I should have let people know how little I know about coffee. I am just now realizing that the several recommendations above stating Peaberry are a type of bean and not the name of a coffee company. Does each coffee company offer peaberry coffee then? I re-read the comments above and see one person has specifically mentioned a Rainforest Peaberry coffee company.

Could I get some more recommendations for specific companies that sell this peaberry coffee.

Thanks

cfntmpn

When I was in Maui it was very difficult to find the Peabody Kona coffee.

I think that so long as you find the 100% Kona Peabody that it will suffice.

fdecarlo

"Peaberry" simply refers to a coffee bean that is whole and has not split into two halves (beans tend to split naturally, but about 5-10% of a bean harvest, regardless of brand will be "peaberries").

Some pretty outrageous and ridiculous claims are made about peaberry beans. Contrary to these claims, NO DIFFERENCE in smell, taste or any other characteristic has ever been shown in taste testings between these beans and regular beans. It's just a scam to allow sellers to charge an extra, often ridiculously high premium for some of their beans.

divingdoc

Hi,
I just recently moved from Oahu back to the mainland (the Navy's choice, not mine). Whenever we went to the Big Island we got coffee from Greenwell Farms. Neither my wife nor I are coffee drinkers but everyone we gave it to as a present raved about it. They have different roasts - whole bean or ground. They also have peabody. The staff is friendly and knowledgeable. Highly recommended checking them out. The tour of the plantation is very good too -- after the tour I almost wished I did drink coffee!

fdecarlo

Guys, the word is peaberry.

Peabody is an award.

DebitNM

We first bought this at Hilo Hattie's and have since ordered it online and had it shipped. It is excellent.

100% Royal Kona Peaberry

There are quite a few places online that sell it:

http://store.hawaiicoffeeco.com/Roya..._RK078114.aspx


Can google 100% Royal Kona Peaberry and find more.

Deb

MelissaHI

...I thought Mr. Peabody was a talking dog! oh, well.

It's hard to say "best" because that can be subjective. All I know is, after I drank fresh-ground, dark roast, 100% kona coffee, the next time I had coffee in a regular diner it was like drinking dishwater. Personally, I don't have a preference of regular Kona beans over Kona peaberry, as long as it's 100% Kona.

Maybe you can bring some regular 100% Kona coffee and some kona peaberry.....and then have the family do a little taste test.

makai1

I order 100% Kona Coffee from Ferrari Coffee regularly. Love the product and price include shipping.
Haven't tried the peaberry, but LOVE the Kona.

http://ferraricoffee.com/index.html

Aloha! Happy bean hunting!

TTess

Bad Ass Coffee's Peaberry is delightful. We've enjoyed it for decades. However, if you want the best coffee, set up a regular delivery of Peet's.

olesouthernbelle

We did the Greenwell Farms tour on the Big Island as well. Sent back various types of the coffee (all were Kona coffees). They encouraged tasting & we could definitely tell a difference in the Peaberry Kona(son & I did our own little blind taste test, & both chose the Peaberry Kona).

When we asked, the guy doing the tour says he prefers the Medium Roast (not the Peaberry Kona). We got some of both.

trippinkpj

Los Gatos Coffee Roasting Company:
http://www.lgcrc.com/index.html
We went to their Hope Family Farms (visit by appointment only), south of Kona.My next fave is Bad Ass Coffee's peaberry.