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Surgeon proves he is more than just an average ‘Joe’
Creator of patented coffee-growing method, ‘Kona Joe’ Alban, MD, offers up coffee with care.
Like many future surgeons plowing through medical school and residency, Joseph B. Alban, MD, lived off of coffee. But he never imagined that his work as a doctor would one day lead him to own his own coffee plantation and company, in Kona, Hawaii, where he would spend his time roasting and brewing high-end coffee.
“I drank coffee regularly when I was an intern and resident so I wouldn’t fall asleep at three in the morning taking emergency calls,” Alban said.
It wasn’t until 1988 that he experienced authentic Hawaiian Kona coffee. Alban had been working alongside his father, Seymour Alban, MD, as cruise ship doctors for the American Hawaii Cruise Line, and one of the stops.
“I had my very first cup of real Kona coffee on that trip, and I thought, ‘Wow!’ I had no idea that coffee could taste that good,” Alban said. “After that, I went to my practice in California, but I kept fantasizing about having a coffee farm in Kona to retire to. Rather than wait until I finished my medical career I decided to start growing coffee as early as possible, so I could have a producing farm when I ultimately retired.”
And that is exactly what he did. Alban began reading whatever literature he could find relating to coffee production and appreciation. He also joined the Hawaii Coffee Association and the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA), where he was introduced to people working in the coffee business from all over the world. The SCAA would even later award Kona Joe Coffee with a blue ribbon in 2001.
In 1997, Alban officially began his coffee company. Since then, he has been steadily growing his all-organic 100% Kona Arabica coffee on 20 acres within the Kainaliu region of Kona. He is currently expanding his farm and developing an additional 15 acres.
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Images: Alban J |
The perfect blend
A surgeon for 19 years, Alban spends about a third of his time working at his Los Alamitos, Calif. practice, where he specializes in industrial medicine. The remainder of his time is spent in Hawaii, where he lives with his wife, Deepa Alban, and their “children:” three German Shepards and a miniature donkey. Deepa, an artist, manages the company full time and is also in charge of Kona Joe’s marketing and sales.
Alban said one of the things he enjoys most about his practice is that he helps to make his patients’ lives better. Another perk is that he has found that his interest in coffee correlates to his passion for health.
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“Actually, coffee has many health benefits and through the literature, I actually identified 16 that are supported by university studies,” Alban said. “We have a large poster at our farm where we talk about these health benefits and its one of the most popular topics for visitors who come to the farm.”
In fact, his patients drink Kona Joe on a regular basis. “We have a fresh brewed pot in the office everyday,” he said.
Alban grows his coffee using his own patented trellis method. Much like the technique commonly used by vineyards for growing grapevines, Alban trains each of his coffee trees to grow horizontally on a trellis, forming a T-shape. The branches are carefully pruned to ensure that each of the coffee berries, called coffee cherries, receives as much exposure to sunlight as possible.
This method ensures that the natural sugars and acids of the fruit are balanced, enriching the texture and sweet flavor of the coffee as it becomes physiologically mature, Alban said.
Growing up in a family with a long tradition of farming, Alban learned a thing or two about creativity when it comes to cultivating a successful crop. His father owns the Alban Vineyards, located along the central coast of California in Arroyo Grande.
“Since wine is a specialty beverage, and so is coffee, it made sense to use many of the principles as adopted by professional wine growers to make gourmet coffee,” Alban said. “And just like wine, to make a good cup of coffee, you have to grow a good cup of coffee.”
When the fruit reaches its optimal maturity, it is handpicked, pulped (which involves removing the fleshy parts of the fruit to get to the bean), processed with pure Hawaiian rainwater and then sun-dried using a rooftop or Hoshidana method. The beans are then slow-roasted and packed into gas-valved stand-up pouches.
Kona Joe sells a wide variety of ground and whole bean trellis-grown coffee, including Kainaliu, Peaberry, Greenbean and even decaf.
The company recently released a medium and dark roast blend, which is made of 30% Kona and 70% high elevation Arabica Extra Fancy coffee. Kona Joe products are offered at select Dean and Delucas, Whole Foods, duty-free shops, Neiman Marcus and through the company’s Web site, konajoe.com.