Kaanapali Estate West Maui Hawaii

Hawaiian MauiGrown Kaanapali Estate Yellow Caturra Natural

Region West Maui, Kaanapali Estate Process Natural Variety Yellow Caturra Elevation ~3501,800 ft

QUALITIES: floral citrus silky clean

RECOMMENDED ROAST: Medium (LightDark works)

CHAFF LEVEL: Normal

Floral aroma  Round citrus & honey  Plum & nut  Silky mouthfeel  Earthy caramel-toasty finish

Sweet & defined  Soft fruit & floral  Malty undertone  Balanced silky body

Sweet Roasty and Toasty Tones  Subtle spice  Dark malt & chocolate  Full body 

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.

Roasting Notes

A medium/small beans size, pretty even roasting with medium/high chaff levels. Recommended a medium-light to medium-dark roast (from the lighter side of a medium to borderline dark), too light it can pick up a little nutty/earthy quality, too dark it can get some bitter contrast. A bit softer beans so watch your temps after first crack, it can go quickly. A longer setup time after roasting really smooths it out.

ORIGIN: Kaanapali Estate, West Maui, Hawaii

MauiGrown Coffee

This lot comes from MauiGrown Coffees Kaanapali 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 Mauis 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, Kaanapali

Planted in hedgerow style between 350 and 1,800 ft above sea level, the estate is drip irrigated from West Mauis fresh mountain streams, which feed a century-old ditch system left over from the sugar era. Standing guard above the slopes is Puu 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 estates own processing plant pulps and dries the cherries, separating ripe from overripe and immature fruit before hulling, polishing and grading by size.

Seasonality Harvest

Primary harvest window: Sep Dec (West Maui, Kaanapali)