Kona Coffee Dictionary

Acidity: Acidity in coffee is considered a positive attribute. It is what gives coffee its sparkle and pop in your mouth.

Aroma: The fragrance produced by hot, freshly brewed coffee.

Bean: Two flat seeds formed with the normal cherry (Type I).

Body: The sensation of heaviness, richness, or thickness and associated texture when one tastes coffee.

Cherry: The fruit of the coffee tree, starts as green berries, turning through yellow to orange and picked when deep red.

Drying: The washed beans are laid out on decks and sun-dried to a moisture level between 10-13%. Some mechanical drying may be used, but most Kona beans are sun-dried.

Green: This is the stage after dry milling. At this point the beans are ready to be roasted.

Kona Snow: White, sweet-smelling blossoms that cover the coffee trees at intervals from January through May.

Milling: Removal of the stiff parchment skin and the thin silverskin below it. At this time, the coffee is graded and ready for state-certification.

Parchment: The stage in which the dried seeds covered in a stiff white skin is called parchment.

Peaberry: When coffee cherries produce only one round seed instead of two flat ones (Type II)

Processing (wet-method): Beans are fermented from 12-24 hours,and then washed in fresh water.

Pulping: Separating the beans from the outer red skin.

Roast: Transforming ofthe green beans to a desired color and taste by careful heating.