Red Catuai — 100% Kaʻū Coffee

Best of Hawaiʻi 2026 — 4th place, Micro-Lot Pulped Division, Kaʻū.

• Final score 85.62 · Hawaiʻi Coffee Association
• Named to the 2026 Winners List (80+)

Caramel and dark chocolate, with apricot, plum and a bright citrus lift.

Red Catuai is compact and hardy, bred for exactly the kind of weather Kaʻū delivers. The cherries ripen a deep red and hold onto the branch, which lets us pick them at full maturity instead of racing the weather.

This lot is a honey — we strip the skin but leave the sticky mucilage on the bean while it dries, so the fruit sugars go into the seed instead of being washed away. It is slower than a washed coffee and it has to be turned and watched daily. It is also what puts the caramel and the stone fruit in this cup.

Grown on the south slope of Mauna Loa in deep volcanic soil across our two farms — Pahala at 1,600 feet and Nāʻālehu at 2,100 feet. The Miranda family planted our first roots in Pahala in 2006, after arriving from El Salvador.

What the judges found

“Bright and complex.”
— Cupping panel, Best of Hawaiʻi 2026

Ten cuppers, double-blind protocol, zero defects. Top descriptors: caramel, dark chocolate, apricot, brown spice, plum, black tea. Bright lemon-lime and mandarin acidity, a syrupy body, and a finish of dark chocolate, chamomile and toasted nut.

Tasting panel

• Notes: caramel, dark chocolate, apricot, plum, brown spice, black tea
• Body: Syrupy, full
• Acidity: Bright — lemon, lime, mandarin orange, stone fruit
• Sweetness: Honeyed, cacao nib
• Finish: Dark chocolate, chamomile, citrus, nutty
• Varietal: Red Catuai
• Process: Honey — pulped, dried in the mucilage
• Origin: Kaʻū, Hawaiʻi — 100% single family farm
• Elevation: 1,600–2,100 ft (Pahala and Nāʻālehu)
• Harvest: 2025/26

Medium or dark

Medium is the roast the judges scored, and the one we recommend — it keeps the apricot and the citrus that this process is for. Dark trades that fruit for depth and gives you a heavier, chocolate-forward cup that holds up to cream.

How to brew it, and shipping

18 g to 300 ml. A pour-over will separate the citrus from the caramel; drip and French press bring out the chocolate. Roasted the day we pack it, out of Hawaiʻi within 1–2 business days. Free shipping over $75, applied automatically.