KONA COFFEE CULTURAL FESTIVAL CUPPING COMPETITION OPENS

November 4-13, 2022 CALLING KONA COFFEE FARMERS KONA COFFEE CULTURAL FESTIVAL CUPPING COMPETITION OPENS ENTRIES Calling all Kona coffee farmers! Submissions for the 2022 Kona Coffee Cultural Festival Cupping Competition Coffee open Monday, October 10 and must be received by Monday, October 31 by 4pm. All coffee entered into the competition must be 100% Kona coffee grown in the district of Kona. Kona coffee entered in the competition will be scored on the globally accepted and recognized Specialty Coffee Association cupping format using a 100-point scale and evaluated in a double-blind format in the Crown and Classic divisions. Pacific Coffee Research will once again oversee the prestigious Kona Coffee Cupping Competition. Entries must be received by Monday, October 31, 2022. Winners will be announced on Friday, November 11 at 4:00 pm during the Kona Coffee Village event happening at Hale Halawai County Pavilion in these divisions: ●      Kona Classic – This division is reserved for growers of smallholder farms. Each entrant is limited to three entries per Farm. The Kona Classic Award is given to the top three scoring coffees in the KCCF Cupping Competition using the Specialty Coffee Association cupping scoring system and protocol. ●      Kona Heritage – In celebration of the Kona Coffee Heritage profile, coffees in the Kona Classic division will also be evaluated against a pre-defined profile for the Kona Heritage Profile Award. ●      Kona Crown – The rules in the Crown Division are designated by Ueshima Coffee Company (UCC) and this division is reserved for larger operations. Growers or processors may enter this division. Coffee may be grown by entrants or purchased from other Kona coffee farms. Corporate brands and multi-estate coffees are eligible as long as they are 100% Kona. Only one entry per entity. Submissions within this category must enter a representative 2 lb sample of a 500 lb lot minimum. The 500 lb lot must be certified by the Hawaii Department of Agriculture prior to entering the competition and the 2 lb sample must be selected from the certified lot. The Certification of Quality and Declaration of Origin must be graded Kona Number 1 or better and must meet all Hawai’i state standards for certified 100% Kona green bean coffee. Submissions will not be accepted without a copy of this certificate. UCC Coffee reserves the right to purchase some or all of the first, second and/or third place coffees at fair market value. Terms of sale will be net 30 days from the date of the cupping finals, November 11, 2022. The cupping competition will take place November 4 through November 7 at Pacific Coffee Research in their SCA and CQI-certified cupping lab. In an effort to keep the cupping process pristine and consistent, cupping the 2022 Kona Coffee Cultural Festival Cupping Competition entries will be closed to the public. However, representatives of the cupping panel will be on-hand during the November 11 Kona Coffee Village to announce the winners, followed by a tasting of the Top Ten scoring coffees from the competition. Cost to enter the Kona Coffee Cultural Festival Cupping Competition is $100 per entry. Detailed information can be found online and farmers may register at konacoffeefest.com, under the 2022 Festival tab. The Kona Coffee Cultural Festival Cupping Competition is sponsored by UCC Hawaii and Kamehameha Schools. A $5 Festival admission button is required for events and also gives special rates for ticketed events. Buttons are available for purchase online, at many retail and farm locations throughout the Kona area. Visit konacoffeefest.com for more information and check out Facebook (@konacoffeefest), Instagram (@konacoffeefest), Twitter (@konacoffeefest), and YouTube (@konacoffeeculturalfestival). The Kona Coffee Cultural Festival is made possible through the support of Hawaii Tourism Authority through the Community Enrichment Program and the generous sponsorship of UCC Ueshima Coffee Co., Ltd., Kamehameha Schools, Alaska Airlines, Hawaii Community Federal Credit Union and numerous other corporate and community donors.