Hoki Poki Hand Picked 100% Estate Kona Coffee at the Made in Hawaii Festival

Today is the last day of the Made in Hawaii Festival.  The festival is at the Neal S Blaisdell Center over the weekend of August 19 through Sunday, August 22, 2011 until 5pm.  Admission is $4 and parking could be a challenge because the Made in Hawaii Festival attracts more than 35,000 visitors, but yesterday I parked in the $1 lot a block away on Young Street.

While I was at the festival yesterday, I stopped at the Hoki Poki Hand Picked 100% Estate Kona Coffee booth to meet Suzy.  Suzy is the owner of the business that sells 100% Kona Coffee from her uncle's farms, Murasaki Farms.  I don't have any photos of the booth, but Suzy had a nice presentation of the family coffee farm in a traditional photo album.  I learned as much as I could about Murasaki Farms and the Hoki Poki Kona Coffee as I could in 2 minutes.  It was quite a bit considering the crowd of people surrounding the booth attempting to get a sample cup and take a peak at the creative art on a special line of their new packaging.  I didn't get a photo of Suzy, but @HNLmark did.  [@HNLmark is a fellow coffee enthusiast from Seattle that joins us on our Saturday Twitter #CoffeeCrew Tweetups at Beach Bum Cafe.]

A few bullet points that I am able to remember from the 2 minute presentation are listed below:

• Hoki Poki is 100% Kona Arabica Coffee.
• Single Sourced from the family's farm in Kona, Murasaki Farms.
• The Murasaki Farms has over a 100 years of experience over 3 generations.
• The Hoki Poki branded Kona coffee is a blend of the top 3 grades of Murasaki Farms harvest (there is a percentage of Kona Peaberry in it).
• Hoki Poki recently created an artistic packaging line featuring the creative art by Jenny Lee, Brand Marketing and Creative Director of Hoki Poki 100% Kona Cofffee.

On to the Kona coffee I brought home...

They had 4 ounce bags of their coffee for sale for $8 (if I remember correctly).  I brought one home to try it.  To my surprise, when I woke up this morning and headed into the kitchen to make my cup of  100% Kona coffee, I realized the bag I had was pre-ground!  This was a slight problem because I have a full-auto espresso machine so I need whole beans to use the machine.  I was forced to do a pour over, a bit challenging to do when I just wake up (I prefer to press a button on my espresso machine and have some coffee to drink in a couple of minutes).

So anyway, I searched my cabinet for my trusty $1 store pour over brewer and a paper filter.  I added 2 tablespoons of the 100% ground Kona coffee and measured out 12 ounces of filtered, boiling water and set off to watch my coffee brew for the next few minutes.

The grind looks a bit coarse. 

I moistened the grounds with about an ounce of hot water and let is rest for about a minute.

Slowly pouring over an ounce or so at a time, watching the coffee oils emerge, anxiously waiting to drink some  Hoki Poki... I was ready to turn myself about!

Finally, a 12 ounce cup of 100% Hoki Poki Kona Coffee... That's what it's all about!

Hoki Poki Kona Coffee
hokipokikonacoffee@gmail.com

Here is the back of the package.  It has their "motto" hand / heart.
It reads...

quote...

Hoki Poki Kona Coffee is proud to feature Jenny Lee's whimsical portrayals of a coffee farm for its new creative collection.

Our hand | heart collection offers a lovely eco-friendly package on the outside, while providing the highest quality on hundred percent Kona Coffee on the inside.  As always, Hoki Poki Kona Coffee only uses beans grown, hand picked, and drived on the Murasaki Farm where for 3 generations they have been using traditional methods of Old Hawaii, honoring their family heritage with every harvest.

We bring the farm to your coffee cup

end quote...

Then it goes on to their process and serving instructions.  Their mission is "to make coffee that tastes good, makes people feel good and does good for the environment."  You can click the photo to enlarge it to read everything on it. 

Here is a closer view of Jenny Lee's art on their creative collection.
Doesn't it just make you want to drink a cup of 100% Kona Coffee?

There were other designs, but the Made in Hawaii Festival was so busy that they only had this design left.  Also part of the creative collection are smaller "favor" size bags labeled with the art or their other metallic purple bag to honor the Murasaki Family.  Murasaki in Japanese translates to purple.  The favor size bags would make great wedding favors or souvenir gifts if your budget is lower.

The 4 ounce package of ground coffee that I have should be able to make four 12 ounce cups of 100% Hoki Poki Kona Coffee.  That is about $2 a cup.  Not a bad price for 100% Kona Coffee.  As for the flavor of this cup, it started with a very strong roasty flavor.  The package says "medium roast", but the flavor seemed a bit darker than I expected.  As the cup cooled, the coffee had a much smoother finish.  It was a good cup of coffee, but I tend to prefer the more fruity or nutty Hawaiian coffees, which are also a lot more expensive.

If you have time this afternoon (and you actually read this in time), stop by the Made in Hawaii Festival.  They close at 5pm.  When you're there, be sure to visit Suzy at the Hoki Poki Hand Picked 100% Estate Kona Coffee booth.  Try a sample and "like" their Facebook Fan Page if you like their coffee!  

If you can't make it this afternoon, their Facebook Fan Page says they are at the Waikiki Farmer's Market every Saturday afternoon.  **Edit** Click the link to their Facebook Page to see their farmer's market schedule.  

Now it's time I brew another cup and head off to open houses and a birthday party later tonight.  I'm a little sad I will miss the 4th Yoga in the Park this afternoon, but if you're interested check it out!  Enjoy the rest of your weekend!