Ka`u News Briefs April 29, 2012

The Ka`u Coffee Experience will be the title of the coffee tasting inside Pahala Community Center Saturday, May 12.
Photo by Julia Neal

A REVERSE TRADE MISSION is coming to Ka`u for the second year during the annual Ka`u Coffee Festival. Festival chair Chris Manfredi said the Trade Mission brings specialty coffee industry leaders to the state’s largest agricultural district to “taste and see what Ka`u Coffee is all about.” Those invited by Manfredi whose trips are sponsored by the Festival are Midwest native Anthony Carroll, manager of Coffee Quality for Starbucks and Jeff Taylor, founder of PT’s Coffee Roasting Company in Topeka, Kansas.

Anthony Carroll Photo from nicefmradio.com

      Manfredi said that Carroll taste-tests up to 100 cups of coffee per day to ensure consistency of Starbuck’s core coffees and seasonal favorites. He also develops new coffee blends and seeks out rare and exotic single-origin coffee to add to Starbuck’s exclusive Reserve Program. Last fall, Ka`u Coffee was featured in New York City and select markets through Starbuck’s Reserve menu.
      Manfredi said Taylor is known as one of the top micro-roasters in the nation. His PT Coffee Roasting Company was recently selected to represent the U.S. in the World Roasting Championship. Each spring, Taylor travels to coffee-producing areas to personally select the finest coffees available for roasting and selling throughout the U.S. Taylor is also a former award-winning photojournalist.
      Said Manfredi, “These representatives from the Mainland coffee industry will take farm tours, get in on guided coffee tastings with U.S. Barista Champion Pete Licata and also meet and personally visit our individual growers at friendly festival vendor booths,” during the Ka`u Coffee Festival Ho`olaule`a on Saturday, May 12. Open to the public, these activities are 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and headquartered at Pahala Community Center.

Jeff Taylor Photo from ptscoffee.com

      Among growers with festival booths are top ten Specialty Coffee Association of America’s 2012 Coffee of the Year winners Will and Grace Tabios with Rising Sun Coffee, Lorie Obra of Rusty’s Hawaiian 100 Percent Ka`u Coffee, and Francis and Trinidad Marques of Ali‘i Hawaiian Hula Hands Coffee.

      On Sunday, May 13, the visiting coffee experts will share “invaluable insight” on roasting, packaging and marketing coffee to Mainland and international consumers during the 9 a.m. to noon Ka`u Coffee College, said Manfredi. The sessions at Pahala Community Center are geared to Ka`u farmers and will also include a presentation on controlling the coffee berry borer by Dr. Robert Hollingsworth, research entomologist with the USDA-Agricultural Research Service.

       For details on all festival events, visit www.kaucoffeefest.com and follow Ka`u Coffee Festival on facebook, twitter and at kaucoffeefestival.blogspot.com.

Lee McIntosh Photo by
Chuck Greene

THE PRIMARY ELECTION on Aug. 11 will determine Ka`u’s County Council member and the island’s prosecuting attorney, unless there are one or more runoffs in the General Election in November. It is also the primary for state and federal elections, including President of the United States and U.S. senators and House of Representative members. To date, here’s who is running to represent Ka`u, South Kona and Volcano (names in alphabetical order):
· County Council District 6: Marie Burns, Maile David, Brenda Ford, Lee McIntosh and Bradley Westervelt;
· Hawai`i County Prosecuting Attorney: Lincoln Ashida, Paul Dolan and Mitch Roth;
· Hawai`i County Mayor: James Agee, incumbent Mayor Billy Kenoi, Anne Marsh, Abolghassem Sadegh and Dominic Yagong.
      State Representative and Senate Districts are subject to change based on the outcome of a lawsuit challenging reapportionment.
· State Representative District 3 (Punalu`u through Kea`au and parts of Hilo: Fred Fogel, Marlene Hapai and Brittany Smart;

Marie Burns Photo by
Chuck Greene

· State Representative District 5 (Honu`apo into Kailua-Kona: Denny Coffman and Rep. Bob Herkes;
· State Senate District 2 (Punalu`u through Puna): Rep. Bob Herkes, Steven Hirakami, Wendell Ka`ehu`ae`a, Russell Ruderman and Gary Safarik;
· State Senator District 3 (Honu`apo to Keahole Airport): Josh Green, Michael Last and John Totten;
· U.S. Representative District 2: Patric Brock, David Crowley, Matthew Degeronimo, Tulsi Gabbard, Mufi Hannemann, Esther Kia`aina, Bob Marx, Miles Shiratori and Mark Terry;
· U.S. Senate: Heath Beasley, Ed Case, Charles Collins, Michael Dane Gillespie, Antonio Gimbernat, Mazie Hirono, Linda Lingle, Edward Pirkowski and Arturo Reyes.
· U.S. President: Newt Gingrich, incumbent President Barack Obama, Ron Paul and Mitt Romney.

Kailee Kuhaulua-Stacy

KAILEE KUHAULUA-STACY won Evening Gown and Miss Sunshine awards and became Second Runner-up Princess in the Young Miss Lehua Hawai`i competition last night in Hilo. She was the sole participant from Ka`u.

MAY DAY IS LEI DAY this Tuesday from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Volcano Art Center Gallery in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, with live entertainment by Kani Le`a Ma Kilauea `Ukulele Band and a hands-on cultural demonstration of lei making. The event is free. Donations are welcomed, and park entrance fees apply. Call 967-7565 or visit volcanoartcenter.org.

KAPOHO: MEMOIR OF A MODERN POMPEII is the topic Tuesday at 7 p.m. at Kilauea Visitor Center Auditorium in Hawai`i Volcanoes National Park, when Frances Kakugawa shares stories of her life growing up in Kapoho. Two-dollar donations support park programs. The program is free, and park entrance fees apply.

VISIT OUR SPONSORS AT PAHALAPLANTATIONCOTTAGES.COM AND KAUCOFFEEMILL.COM.