History Behind Hawaii’s Popular Kauai Coffee
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Think you know the true history behind Kauai’s famous coffee? Think again – the history of the island’s favorite cup of joe may surprise you!
For both tourists and natives, one of the Hawaiian island’s favorite daily go-tos is the famous Kauai Coffee. While Hawaii’s exotic climate and beautiful scenery may not immediately scream coffee, it’s no secret that this rich, dark elixir keeps the Hawaiian people moving forward each day.
At Isaiah’s Tree Service, our team of landscaping professionals love a cup of Kauai Coffee. In fact, we may love it a bit too much! When you give us a call to schedule a tree trim or landscape update, and it is likely that you’ll find a friendly voice on the other end of the phone sipping on a cup of the stuff. It keeps our team focused, sharp, and ready to tackle new projects for our neighbors every day.
While we all know and love Kauai Coffee, few truly know the history behind Hawaii’s native coffee creation. Filled with intrigue and mystery, the story of Kauai Coffee’s creation is quite interesting!
If you are looking to learn more about your favorite state’s rich history, it’s time you took a look at the history of Hawaiian coffee, and see how Kauai Coffee became one of Kauai’s most successful exports!
What Makes Kauai Coffee So Great?
The key to Kauai Coffee’s rich, flavorful taste and powerful effect is found in the origins of each cup: the Kauai coffee tree. These beautiful trees bloom each year in the early Spring, giving off luscious white blooms. Not only are these white flowers fascinating to look at, they also give a sweet aroma that let harvesters know that the cherries within each bloom are ready to be picked!
Each cherries within the Kauai coffee tree are allowed time to ripen over the warm Hawaiian summer. Once ready, typically around September or October, each cherry dries to a beautiful red color. With meticulous care, harvesters will visit the Kauai coffee trees time and again to ensure that they only pick the perfect cherries that are ready to be dried, milled, and roasted into the Kauai Coffee we know and love!
However, how did farmers and harvesters know that these cherries were capable of creating such a tasty and fantastic drink? The answer is found within Hawaii’s coffee roots.
Kauai Coffee’s Exotic History
If you want to know who to thank for the gift of Hawaii Kauai Coffee, you really need to go back to the beginning. Hawaiian coffee traces its historic roots back to the island’s original Polynesian settlers who arrived on the island chain around 400AD. In order to reach the shores of Hawaii safely, these brave Polynesian adventurers brought with them the materials and secrets of planting and harvesting a natural source of sweet energy: sugar cane.
Sugar cane, also known as ko in the Hawaiin language, quickly became a flourishing trade amid the settlers and visitors to the Hawaiin islands. Soon, sugar cane plantations sprung up across the island, the trade grew into a powerful force on the island.
So how does sugar cane lead to coffee? Kauai coffee may have never emerged had it not been for a force of nature: Hurricane Iwa. This powerful storm hit the island chain in 1982, devastating the sugarcane crop and forcing plantation companies such as the Mcbryde Sugar Company to pivot and adapt to survive.
Fortunately, there was one intrepid farmer who had already perfected the art of planting and harvesting coffee. In 1828, Samuel Reverend Ruggles took his chances and planted his very first coffee tree in Kailua-Kauai. With luck and hard work, Ruggles’s small plantation of coffee grew into a huge empire – catching the eyes of post-hurricane companies trying to survive.
One of those new crops that the planters chose to try their hand at after the storm was the coffee tree. Thus, in the wake of devastation, Kauai’s famous Kauai Coffee was born!
Isaiah’s Tree Service – Protecting Our Sacred Kauai Coffee Trees
Today, there are over 4 million coffee trees that are grown and maintained on over 3,100 acres of the Hawaiian islands. Those trees are cultivated by nearly six hundred farms that account for nearly 95% of all the Kauai coffee that is made here. Today, the Kauai Coffee Company is Hawaii’s largest coffee grower, and has now become the largest coffee producer in the United States!
At Isaiah’s Tree Service, we are thankful for the hard work and ingenuity of the early settlers and those hard working farmers who helped bring the coffee trade to life in Hawaii. To help do our part, Isaiah’s Tree Service is committed to helping protect these trees with professional tree services and landscaping. Not only do we work hard to ensure that our favorite natural resources are protected, but we help our community enjoy their property with high-quality services every day.
Want to learn more about Isaiah’s Tree Service, as well as learn more interesting Hawaiian history such as this? Visit us online today to see more, and contact us today to learn more about our full suite of services that can help you enjoy your home and business even more this year!