What: The Best of Ka‘ū Coffee Auction: A private auction of specialty coffees grown in Ka‘ū District, Hawaii Island

Hosted by: The Alliance for Coffee Excellence and Isla Custom Coffees

Where: For samples and online auction details, visit https://allianceforcoffeeexcellence.org/best-of-kau-coffee/

When: June 15, 2023

On June 15, 2023, Isla Custom Coffees and the Alliance for Coffee Excellence (ACE) will hold the first auction devoted to beans from one of Hawaii’s best-kept secrets: the Ka‘ū District on Hawaii Island.

“We are thrilled to introduce the first regional coffee auction from Hawaii, as well as the first cupping competition exclusively for Ka‘ū growers,” says R. Miguel Meza, Isla’s founder. “As we have grown our Private Auction Collection program since its inception in 2014m we are excited to work with diverse coffee origins and this partnership with Best of Ka‘ū is a great match says, Executive Director of Alliance for Coffee Excellence, Darrin Daniel. 

It has been more than 15 years since green beans from Ka‘ū made a splash in the international coffee scene. From 2007-2012, Ka‘ū growers regularly scored in the top 10 of the Coffees of the Year (COTY) events. Organized by the Roasters Guild of America, COTY was among the most prestigious worldwide cupping competitions.

Since COTY’s end, there hasn’t been a competition to demonstrate the quality of Ka‘ū green beans to an international audience. Isla is proud to partner with ACE in selecting and sharing the best coffees this region has to offer. After more than a decade of sourcing Hawaii grown specialty coffees for importers and roasters, Isla has a deep network of Ka‘ū farmers — including ones who have scored highly in COTY events and the Hawaii Coffee Association's statewide cupping competitions.

This marks the second coffee auction that Isla will hold with ACE, building on the successful 2021 Hawaii Specialty Coffee Auction. In March of 2021, Isla worked with its best producers to showcase 16 micro-lots from the Kona and Ka‘ū Districts of Hawaii Island. All were selected for auction by a panel of 18 Cup of Excellence judges from 6 different countries, which are known as a Global Coffee Centers (GCCs)

About The Alliance for Coffee Excellence

Alliance for Coffee Excellence is a global non-profit membership-based organization that brings together the global marketplace in order to create a more transparent and sustainable economic future for high-quality farmers. ACE manages a Global Coffee Center Education Lab, Cup of Excellence samples and Private Collection Auctions. Adhering to ACE’s mission of rewarding exemplary coffee farmers, ACE Private Collection Auctions is a curation of auctions with organizations and farmers who best exemplify ACE’s standards with Cup of Excellence programming. For more information about membership and to register for samples and auctions please visit allianceforcoffeeexcellence.org. 

Contact:
Kathia Lopez Rosa. 

Auction Manager 
Alliance for Coffee Excellence
kathia@cupofexcellence.org