Kona Kowali Estate

Believe it or not, I have never roasted a Kona coffee. Sure, I have had it here and there at coffee establishments, both in its blended form (people capitalizing on the Kona name while using ridiculously small percentages of the actual beans), as well as single-origin brews from reputable roasters. My reaction has always been, more or less "I don't get it". This stuff is seriously expensive, and my reaction to the cup is always humdrum.

I couldn't resist trying to roast some myself, though, so I sprung the $17 or so for a pound of greens. This is almost 3X the typical price I would pay for high quality coffee from other origins. The beans themselves are gorgeous - jade green and of massive size. Seriously, these are some really big beans. I suppose this has something to do with the altitude they are grown at.

The roast profile was intended to be gentle with these beans, given both their density and their price. The last thing I wanted was to carbonize these pricey beans. I targeted a City+ roast based on some other reviews of this coffee, though I understand Kona often gets a darker roast than this.

And the result? I was surprised by how much acidity was in the cup. It was somewhat unexpected, but not unpleasant. The coffee has an interesting chocolate-malt character, and is extremely intense, even at this relatively light roast. Has a good.....er.... coffee taste. Is it worth the price? Nope. It is a nice cup, but it doesn't have any unexpected character or other unusual traits that might justify the price. Compare this to something like the Gesha coffees of Panama, which are truly unique (and even then don't justify their price, IMO), and I just don't get it. I certainly enjoyed the cup, but I have little desire to buy more. Based on drinking it throughout the week, I think it would do better at a Full City roast, so I will try that at some point.