Kona Coffee FAQs-Roasting, Sourcing, and Shipping
Find answers to common questions about our 100% Kona coffees, roasting schedule, shipping times, and sourcing practices.
Panama Mokkita Natural -Mama Cata Estate
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Roasting Wednesdays.
Tasting Notes
Incredibly floral and complex aroma; Violet, jasmine, rose. Sweet and fruit saturated cup with of papaya, bergamot, strawberry, and raspberry. An Effervescent acidity and lush body. The Floral notes linger long after the last sip.
Farm: Mama Cata Estate
Process: Natural
Variety: Mokkita
Roast: Light
Coffee Review Scored this coffee 97 Points! Their highest score of 2021.
“Blind Assessment: Aromatically other-worldly, resoundingly juicy. Caramelized pineapple, aromatic orchid, pistachio, raw chocolate, oolong tea in aroma and cup. Sweet-savory-tart structure with gently bright acidity; deep, syrupy mouthfeel. Flavor-laden finish with especially impressive fruit and florals”
Background Info
A unique Mokka type variety growing only at Mama Cata estate in Panama.
In 2020 and 2021 their Mokkita Natural was the highest scoring non-geisha variety at the Best of Panama Cupping competition. This year at Auction the Mokkita received the highest price ever paid for a non-geisha variety coffee from anywhere in the world: $400/lb of green coffee!
In 2004 after the 'Discovery' of the Geisha/Gesha variety from Hacienda La Esmeralda that won that year's Best of Panama Competition, Jose David Garrido of Mama Cata estate went looking through the trees in his farm for plants that looked unusual and might produce an excellent cup. One plant he found had very small cherries and they called it Mokkita. The following year they had a small sample harvested from this tree cupped by Japanese coffee buyer Mamoru Taguchi. Based on the positive feedback they decided to use the next harvested for seed. The first place they planted the trees didn't take well. Believing this to be a Mokka variety from Yemen, they next decided to try planting in a drier area at 1550-1600m with different soil that might be more similar to the environment there.
In January 2022 we sent samples of this coffee to RD2 in France for genetic testing to get a better idea of it's background. The results suggest it is a hybrid of a Bourbon* type variety and Geisha.
*Many plants called Mokka are a dwarf hybrid from Bourbon and cannot be distinguished from Bourbon, or other mutants from bourbon such as Caturra, or Laurina.
Most likely Geisha and a Mokka type plant at Mama Cata crossed at some point in time and resulting in this unique (and delicious) cultivar on their farm.
They now have about 2 hectares (5 acres) of Mokkita planted. Mokkita is a very low yielding plant. Producing less than half the amount of cherry as Geisha and Typica. They harvest the cherries in small batches and dry them slowly over a month on raised screens inside a greenhouse structure.
What Is 100% Kona Coffee?
100% Kona coffee refers to coffee grown exclusively in the Kona district of Hawai‘i Island — a small, volcanic region
along the western slopes of Hualālai and Mauna Loa. The combination of mineral-rich soil, afternoon cloud cover, and gentle trade winds produces one of the world’s most distinctive coffee terroirs.
To be labeled “100% Kona Coffee,” every bean must be grown within the Kona district and meet strict Hawai‘i grading quality standards. Kona coffee can be made from different arabica varieties, but Kona Typica — a heirloom lineage — remains the region’s most common and traditional cultivar.
If you’d like to explore more Kona coffees, you can browse the full collection here: Browse the Kona Coffee Collection .
About Kona Coffee
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Kona coffee grows on the volcanic slopes of Hawai‘i Island, where mineral-rich soil, afternoon cloud cover, and slow cherry maturation create a naturally sweet and balanced cup. Our Kona Classic Medium is sourced from high-elevation farms and hand-harvested for clarity, smoothness, and elegant sweetness.
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Yes — this roast is Authentic Kona coffee made exclusively from North Kona district-grown coffees, never blended. Our Kona coffees comes from small farms at the highest altitudes in the region.
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Medium roasts highlight Kona’s signature profile: gentle sweetness, soft citrus, toasted almond, and milk chocolate. The result is a balanced, approachable cup ideal for everyday brewing.
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This coffee shines in pour-over, drip, and French press. Use filtered water just off the boil and a medium grind for maximum clarity and sweetness. If you are looking for a Hawaiian coffee for espresso use we recommend our Hawai‘i Island Blend
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Kona is the highest labor cost coffee region in the world. Wages for farm workers here are 15-20x higher than almost all other coffee producing countries. Limited and expensive land, hand-picking, and high production costs create a naturally small supply each year — especially from high-elevation farms like those we partner with.
Company & Facility
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We roast and fulfill all of our coffee orders in Hilo, Hawai'i.
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We roast in small batches using a Diedrich IR12 roasting machine.
Satisfaction Guaranteed
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We source an array of the top specialty coffees worldwide that appeal to an array of different palates.
If at any point you have difficulty brewing, or just appreciating one of our roasted coffees, no problem. Shoot us an email within 5 days of receiving your coffee and we'll help you find the correct brew settings for your coffee, or give you a credit (minus actual shipping costs) on your next purchase. Yep, we're a Satisfaction Guarantee coffee company!
Please note, our Satisfaction Guarantee only applies to U.S. orders of roasted coffees, and you must contact us within 5 days of receiving the coffees. Credits do not include actual shipping fees, which may be different from posted shipping fees.
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We roast and ship on Monday/Wednesday/Friday.
Coffees
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Our commitment to you is to serve exceptional, fresh-roasted coffees. And part of being exceptional means roasting before the flavors inherent in the green bean begin to fade, which happens over time.
Like apples and pumpkins, coffee is a seasonal agricultural product and each country has a different harvesting cycle in which coffees are at their peak. If we were to insist on serving a single origin all year long, the flavors in that coffee would be noticeably better one half of the year over the other. So the reason you no longer see that coffee you loved is because the optimal season has passed. For more on seasonality in coffees, see this blog post here.
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Hopefully so. If it was a popular product or we receive customer requests, we will make every attempt to bring it back. However, please note that coffees from a certain producer may not taste the same year after year.
If you loved a coffee and no longer see it listed, shoot us an email and ask us what is similar. We’d be happy to provide a personal recommendation.
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We aim for balance and completeness along with differentiation and distinction. You shouldn't need to be a professional coffee taster to tell the coffees a part, so, when we’re selecting coffees, we want them to be distinct from each other.
We avoid ”one-trick pony” type coffees, such as Ethiopians with great aroma but no body or acidity, or coffees with good aroma and acidity but lacking sweetness. These elements, which are often reflections of the growing conditions, are harmonized through good roasting.
And, obviously, defects — even subtle defects — influence our selection. Since we live and work at origin, we’re sensitive to coffee defects like “past crop”, pulpy, and naturals that border on over-ferment. With naturals, we’ll only carry these when great examples are available.
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Our perspective on roasting is similar: we seek balance and distinction. To expect that a coffee is “best” when roasted to some pre-determined degree (i.e. only light roasting or only dark roasting) is analogous to thinking that each person would look best in the same outfit, or each coffee should be grown in the same way. We believe it’s our job to discover the roast degree which best highlights outstanding qualities in each coffee.
