I’ll take any chance I get to combine the things I love most: traveling and coffee. While visiting Kauai, I knew it was a must to visit Kauai Coffee Company’s estate, located in the southern part of the island. Kauai Coffee Company, the largest U.S. coffee grower, produces an impressive 4 million pounds of coffee annually, all grown on its own plantation in Kauai. Given that a healthy coffee tree produces only one pound of coffee per year, this means this coffee producer’s estate is home to nearly 4 million coffee trees.
If you love coffee, be sure to stop by the estate for a self-guided walking tour, where you can explore the grounds on your own and learn a bit about how coffee is made. Of course, the free coffee samples in the gift shop are also a motivating factor. Here’s a look inside the self-guided Kauai Coffee Company walking tour. Coffee lovers visiting Kauai, you’ll want to pay attention.
Starting the Kauai Coffee Company tour
The walking tour’s path begins at the gift shop, where you can either start or end your coffee tour experience with a sample of some delicious flavored coffees. Starting the tour, you’ll head to the left and follow the signs to wander through the beautiful landscape, surrounded by coffee trees. Depending on how quickly you complete the tour (and if you stop to read every sign in depth), you can complete the walking tour in about 15 to 20 minutes.
Types of coffee trees
Whether you’re an experienced coffee enthusiast or a novice, there’s a wealth of value in the information provided through this tour. First, you’ll learn about the five types of coffee varietals grown in Kauai, which have come from all over the world. Some examples are the Blue Mountain and Red Catuai types of coffee trees, each of which produces Arabica coffee beans. From growing to picking, the walking tour takes you through each step of the coffee production process.
As you walk through the tour, remember that coffee beans can only grow under specific conditions (which is why you don’t see them growing in the continental United States). One of these key conditions that allows coffee trees to thrive is rainfall. One stop on the tour teaches you about the importance of rainfall, with an understanding that Kauai is one of the rainiest areas on earth, receiving about 480 inches of rainfall each year. Kauai Coffee Company uses hydroelectricity derived from this abundant rainfall for irrigation and power. Don’t miss this stop (stop #6) — it’s one of the most interesting stops on the tour. From coffee sorting to irrigation, you’ll be surprised by just how much you learn from this short tour.
Inside the gift shop
Though the free coffee samples are enough of a reason to stop in the gift shop after the outdoor walking tour, the historical room and artifacts are also worth checking out. If you love and appreciate learning about coffee, be sure to check out this mini coffee museum, where you can explore various coffee memorabilia and vintage roasting equipment. The visual depiction of coffee beans before and after roasting is also a nice touch, especially for the average coffee drinker who hasn’t given much thought to what coffee beans really look like.
