The annual Ka‘u Coffee Festival will host an upcoming series of free online events to celebrate the district’s award-winning brew and the hardworking folks behind it.
The 2020 festival kicks off this week and includes a virtual Ka‘u Coffee Farm Tour, “Meet the Farmer” profiles, a Ka‘u coffee brewing demonstration, Ka‘u Coffee College and Hawaiian music and hula.
Most of the virtual festival will be pre-recorded and posted online at www.kaucoffeefest.com, while the Coffee College is an interactive webinar using the Demio platform. Once completed, all festival activities will be conveniently available for later viewing on the website.
“2020 and the COVID pandemic sent more than its share of curve balls our way, yet we don’t want to leave our fans and supporters without their annual fix of Ka‘u coffee fun,” said long-time festival organizer Chris Manfredi. “We are excited and grateful to create this virtual content, which will help us continue to share our coffee community both now and into the future.”
The Ka‘u Coffee Farm Tour will showcase select farms and the scenic surrounding region, plus a sampling of other activities available in the historic Ka‘u district. The segment includes shadowing a farmer from harvest duties to wet mill processing. “Meet the Farmer” profiles offer rarely seen insights into the men and women cultivating Ka‘u coffee and what drives them to do what they do.
The Ka‘u coffee brewing demo is an educational video detailing various ways to brew Ka‘u coffee while conducting a tasting demonstration. Participants will not only share brewing methods, but also how roasting and grinding can impact brew flavor and intensity. You will learn how to do your own Fellow Stagg Pour Over, Chemex, French Press, Aeropress and more.
The festival’s Ka‘u Coffee College, which assists local farmers in all areas of coffee production, will reach more attendees in this year’s virtual format. Educational presentations will include COVID recovery techniques, an overview of the introduction of Coffee Leaf Rust to Hawaii and garnering support from the USDA Rural Development programs.
The virtual festival attendees will also enjoy an online video of Hawaiian music and hula performed by Keaiwa and Halau Hula O Leionalani. Performing arts is a mainstay of the annual Ka‘u Coffee Festival and viewers will be invited to “watch the show” while sipping on their favorite brew of Ka‘u coffee.
For more information, visit www.kaucoffeefest.com.