BLENDING & ROASTING
THE ART OF COFFEE ROASTING
Prime beef prepared by an expert chef can be an out-of-body dining experience. In the hands of the wrong cook, it’s hamburger.
Similarly, coffee roasting is an art. Beans develop widely differing properties based on roasting time and temperature carefully overseen by an artisan coffee “chef”.
Beans roasted at high temperatures result in dark coffees, called French or Espresso roasts. At high heat, oils rise to the beans’ surface, giving the roasted beans a dark, oily sheen and intense aroma. Flavors tend to be “stronger” but can be one dimensional.
Slow roasting at low temperatures allows beans to retain more oils and the subtle flavors and acids that give coffee its more complex qualities.
nkope captures the best of both methods by roasting some beans at low heat and others at high temperatures in an exhaustive process involving as many as eight roastings in a single cup of nkope. Dark-roasted “richness” combined with the range of bright, fruity and spicy flavors retained in low-temperature roasting combine to create nkope’s singular coffee cuvee.
Precision roasting is key to releasing the depth of flavor from every bean. The nkope protocol was refined over decades of experience and striving for perfection.
OUR ROASTERS DON’T KNOW JUST ANY COFFEE. THEY KNOW HAWAIIAN COFFEE.
Mastering the art of coffee is like making fine champagne. Just as a master winemaker carefully selects the grapes comprising each season’s CUVEE1, as the nature of coffee harvests differs from season to season, nkope’s artisan roaster adjusts the proportion of beans from each island and even from different farms. He may even vary roasting times to ensure the quality and consistency connoisseurs expect.
The nkope team knows the soils and climate of every island and the trees on every plantation that he selects like they were his children. He tests each new harvest to detect even the slightest changes in key properties like acidity and oil content.
Perfecting the quality, complexity and consistency of the nkope premium blend requires both rigorous discipline and a sensitive, almost intimate connection with beans that can only be acquired through literally tons of roasting experience.
Each cup of nkope embodies the essence of Kamaka’s experience and the nkope team’s life work. In each cup, you’ll taste our reverence for the land and our desire to share the very best of pure Hawaiian coffee with friends around the world.
Our love of the art of coffee is as deep as our kama’aina roots. That passion is steeped in every cup of nkope.
THE PERFECT CUP OF nkope
Pure Hawaiian Coffee
Making the perfect cup of nkope doesn’t require special training or expensive equipment. The most important ingredient, besides nkope pure Hawaiian coffee is a little patience.
RECOMMENDATIONS
USE A COFFEE PRESS We recommend using a coffee press, also called a French press, instead of a drip coffee maker, percolator or other coffee maker requiring paper or metal filters. During the steeping process, coffee releases essential oils that give the finished beverage its complex flavors and aroma. Paper and metal filters remove oils from the coffee, resulting in less richness and a sometimes bitter or acidic taste.
USE A FINE GRIND We recommend using a fine or medium fine grind for the deepest flavor. If possible, use a burr rather than a blade grinder. Burr grinders produce more uniform grounds, and produce less heat that can damage your coffee during the grinding process.
TAKE YOUR TIME The most important part of the process is the steeping period during which the coffee grounds release their magic. Don’t rush the process.
THE QUICK PRESS (2-3 minutes preparation time)
Nkope tastes best when prepared with a simple coffee press. Coffee filters and other methods remove the oils that give this gourmet blend its rich, bold flavor.
- Any coffee press will do. The most important thing to note is how many ounces (or ml) of water your coffee press holds.
- A cup of coffee = 6 ounces of hot water + 1 tablespoon of ground nkope (approximately 10 grams). So if your press holds 12 ounces (177 ml) of water, you need two tablespoons, or about 20 grams, of nkope.
- Grind the beans fine. Remove the cover from your press, add the ground coffee and pour hot water to cover grinds and fill the press.
- With the cover off, let the coffee “bloom” and steep for at least 2-3 minutes.
- After the steeping period, stir briskly, press, and pour for a bold, smooth, flavorful experience with no bitter aftertaste.
THE GOURMET PRESS (4-6 minutes preparation time)
- Use the same measurements of coffee and water as above.
- Grind nkope beans using a medium grind.
- With the cover off, fill half the press and let the coffee “bloom” for at least 2-3 minutes.
- Fill remainder of the press and let steep for an additional 2-3 minutes. The foam you see is the oils which produce the rich, bold flavor of nkope.
- After the steeping period, stir briskly, press, and pour for a bold, smooth, flavorful experience with no bitter aftertaste.
Enjoy with aloha from nkope
