VIRTUOSO LIFE | www.v irtuoso.com54

Global Gourmet

Discover the Big Island’s sweet and savory sides. BY CAROL PUCCI

PHOTOGRAPHY BY KEVIN J. MIYAZAKI

HAWAII

EILING FANS SPIN ABOVE TABLES

covered with mint-green cloths as

we settle in for lunch and a farm

tour at the Hawaiian Vanilla Com-

pany. Here in the rain-forest town of Paauilo,

an hour’s drive from the sunny Kohala Coast, jelly jars filled with

vanilla-scented iced tea and lemonade arrive, along with vanilla-

infused sautéed shrimp, grilled chicken in a bourbon-vanilla-citrus

marinade, and a salad tossed with a vanilla-spiked raspberry vinai-

grette. Any regrets I had about leaving the beach behind to explore

the agricultural side of an island normally associated with volcanoes

and lava-rock fields disappear as quickly as our dessert of vanilla ice

cream with passion-fruit curd. In business since 2000, Hawaiian

Vanilla is among a handful of Big Island microfarms and culinary en-

trepreneurs welcoming visitors for a look behind the scenes.

In 1988, when Peter Merriman, one of Hawaii’s best-known chefs

and a cofounder of its regional cuisine movement, opened his first

restaurant (Merriman’s Waimea) in the inland ranching town of

Waimea, the majority of agriculture was intended for export, and

it was mainly cattle, pineapple, and sugar. Like the rest of the state,

CLocal flavor:

Merriman’s Waimea

restaurant and (right)

Rare Hawaiian Honey

Company’s finest.

Taste of

VIRTUOSO LIFE | www.v irtuoso.com56

husband steers our rental car onto High-

way 19, the two-lane road that turns into

Highway 11 and circles the island. It’s just a

12-mile drive from the white-sand beaches

on the south Kohala Coast to Waimea, at an

elevation of 2,600 feet. First stop: the Rare

Hawaiian Honey Company. Without a

GPS or good directions, it would be easy to

miss the warehouse that doubles as a tasting

room for an organic white honey as precious

as fine perfume.

Michael Domeier, a marine scientist, and

his wife, Amy Grace, a jewelry designer,

raise bees that harvest nectar from a single

grove of kiawe trees, a type of mesquite

often used for firewood. The honey is put

through a natural crystallization process

that produces a creamy texture, more like

butter than traditional honey. The company

hopes to start tours soon. For now, tastings

are free, and visitors sample honey infused

with ginger and passion fruit, among others.

THIRTEEN MILES EAST OF WAIMEA, A

landscape lush with tropical foliage flanks

the highway as we approach the rainy Ha-

makua Coast. This is the start of a scenic 45-

mile drive ending in Hilo, the jumping-off

point for visits to the summit of the Mauna

Kea volcano, the highest point in Hawaii.

Big Island locavores. From the “dirt farm”

salads composed of tomatoes, roasted beets,

and papayas to the roasted mushrooms and

naturally raised lamb, 90 percent of what’s

served comes from the island. Tables fill

early, even on off-season weeknights, when

they’re often reserved by locals and afflu-

ent visitors from Honolulu who have second

homes in Waimea.

Visit a few of these new-school purveyors,

Merriman says, and “you’ll get close to the

heart and pulse of the real Hawaii.”

SHORELINES STREWN WITH LAVA ROCK

give way to green hills and forests as my

the Big Island imported much of what it

needed from the mainland. “There weren’t

enough people in Hawaii, and the tourism

industry wasn’t big enough yet to develop

supplies for the local market,” Merriman

says. “We literally had to run an ad in the

newspaper saying, ‘Hey, we want to buy

stuff that’s locally grown.’ ”

Sugar exports all but disappeared by the

mid-1990s, lost to countries with lower pro-

duction costs, but the island’s diverse mix of

microclimates and rich volcanic soil meant

almost anything could grow well. Today, the

menu at Merriman’s country-manor-style

restaurant reads like a guide to the best of

Global Gourmet

1-2. A vanilla plant and ice cream at Hawaiian

Vanilla Company. 3. Tending the hives under a

kiawe (mesquite) tree at Rare Hawaiian Honey

Company. 4. Busy bees. 5. Rare Hawaiian Honey

Company owners Amy Grace and Michael Do-

meier. 6-7. Long Ears Hawiian Coffee advertising

and owners Wendell and Netta Branco.

1

3

2

4

5

AD XXXXX

If BLEED, make it fit and center in the DARK GRAY BOX.

Ads should have been designed with bleed on all sides for balance

when imported.

If NON-BLEED, make it fit and cen-tered in the LIGHT GRAY BOX.

There are NO FOLIOS for 1/2-page ad pages.

hand-cranked pulping machine he bought for $500 and laughs at how he tried to dry his first batch of beans in a clothes dryer. The Brancos have since improved their equip-ment and techniques, but still do every-thing themselves by hand, from picking the bright-red coffee “cherries” from their trees to drying, aging, and roasting the beans.

LEAVING LONG EARS, WE DRIVE A FEW

more miles southeast on Highway 19, then detour onto a steep back road and across a one-lane bridge to the Hawaiian Vanilla

Company, in the hills overlooking the Pa-cific. An orchid enthusiast convinced Jim and Tracy Reddekopp that vanilla (the fruit of the planifolia orchid) could grow in Hawaii. They planted two acres on their high-elevation ranch and in 2000 became the first to grow vanilla beans commercially in the U.S.

Working in an abandoned coffee mill and slaughterhouse they converted into a kitch-en and country store, they and some of their five children cook for visitors and refine a

growing wild on his estate in the foothills of Mauna Kea.

Wendell and his wife, Netta, both 71, greet visitors with handshakes and hugs, and offer samples around a picnic table in a tasting room decorated with vintage coffee pots. Explaining the challenges of small-scale production, Wendell points to a

Coffee, cultivated today mainly on the dry Kona side of the island, thrived here too before sugarcane became the major crop. Today, a small group of artisan producers is leading a coffee-growing revival. Among them is Wendell Branco, a rugged former mule breeder who founded Long Ears

Hawaiian Coffee with coffee from trees

6 7

KEY WEST BIG P INE KEY & THE LOWER KEYSMARATHON

ISLAM

ORADA

KEY

LAR

GO

With its natural beauty, world-class fishing and diving, eco-adventures, rich history and fine island

cuisine, a week or more in The Florida Keys is exactly what your inner explorer needs.

For reservations, call your Virtuoso travel advisor. fl a-keys.com

For modern-day explorers, there’s no place like The Florida Keys.

AD XXXXX

If BLEED, make it fit and center in the DARK GRAY BOX.

Ads should have been designed with bleed on all sides for balance

when imported.

If NON-BLEED, make it fit and cen-tered in the LIGHT GRAY BOX.

There are NO FOLIOS for 1/2-page ad pages.

Global Gourmet

repertoire of 80 vanilla-infused products for sale. Lunches include a lesson on making ex-tract using vanilla beans and vodka, followed by a walk to the farm, where vines grow under black shade cloths to buffer the sun.

Growing and harvesting vanilla on a small scale is a labor-intensive business. Blossoms appear just one day a year for four hours and must be hand-pollinated in that brief win-dow of time – one reason why a single bean sells for $11.

OUR LAST STOP BEFORE HEADING BACK to Waimea for dinner at Merriman’s is the Onomea Tea Company, a 30-mile drive south along the coast’s most scenic stretch. Owners Rob Nunally and Mike Longo were sipping a cup of Earl Grey one day in 2003, thinking about a crop that would fit the ag-ricultural history of the former sugarcane fields they’d bought overlooking Onomea Bay, just north of Hilo. They found out that tea, part of the camellia family, had been grown in Hawaii in the late 1800s and ear-ly 1900s. Starting with 40 seeds planted

in pots on their front steps, they began a boutique business growing organic teas.

Tours start with a walk through the tea fields, where citrus and banana trees sur-round 2,500 plants spread out on land above rocky sea cliffs. Rob shows visitors how tea is picked by plucking the stem and top one or two leaves, and explains the different processing methods that result in organic green, oolong, or black varieties that sell for $15 to $20 per ounce.

When we return to Onomea’s outdoor deck, warm cranberry scones appear as Mike begins a Chinese-style tea ceremony. Filling a thimble-shaped “aroma cup,” then covering it with a larger sipping cup, he dem-onstrates how to quickly invert the two so as not to spill any liquid. We do the same, tilt-ing the aroma cup to inhale a fragrant mist. Then we slurp the tea, letting it hit the back of our throats, and savor yet another taste of Hawaii.

tip

“Stop at Island Gourmet Markets in

Waikoloa for specialty foods or a cup

of Kona coffee in the café. The store

has a bakery, meat and fish market,

deli, wine bar, and health and beauty

products. They also do catering.”

– Jill McGowan, travel advisor,

Maunaloa, HawaiiLocal brew: Chinese-

style service at Onomea

Tea Company.

With every spectacular sunrise, opportunity and adventure dawn across the picturesque Kenyan

landscape. Picture yourself traveling aside a thundering herd of wildebeest or encountering

unique cultures in a world of wonder. No other country offers the visitor as much to see and do;

much more than you would ever expect.

CONTACT YOUR VIRTUOSO TRAVEL ADVISOR TO PLAN YOUR NEXT VACATION.

59

AD XXXXX

If BLEED, make it fi t and center in the DARK GRAY BOX.

Ads should have been designed with bleed on all sides for balance

when imported.

If NON-BLEED, make it fi t and cen-tered in the LIGHT GRAY BOX.

There are NO FOLIOS for 1/2-page ad pages.

LE

IGH

WE

LL

S

STAY The 540-room

Fairmont Orchid, Hawaii

bloomed anew last year with

a comprehensive renova-

tion. The hotel offers guests

guided botanical tours,

“turtle talk” sessions, and

archaeological hikes to

nearby petroglyph fields.

Doubles from $299, includ-

ing breakfast daily and two

activity passes.

Four Seasons Resort Huala-

lai has 243 rooms and suites

and a family-friendly focus.

There’s a sand-bottomed

children’s pool, in-room

cookies and milk, and a kids’

program and babysitting on-

site (plus an adults-only pool).

Doubles from $645, including

breakfast daily and a $100

dining credit.

Many consider the white-

sand crescent beach at

the 252-room Mauna Kea

Beach Hotel to be the

island’s best. Soak up the

views from private lanais off

bedrooms and sign up for

the Saturday tours of found-

er Laurance Rockefeller’s

Asian art collection. A

renovated beachfront wing

includes 96 rooms ideal for

families. Doubles from $405,

including breakfast daily and

complimentary parking.

At Mauna Lani Bay Hotel

& Bungalows on the Kohala

Coast, 90 percent of the

341 rooms have ocean views.

Chef Allen Hess’ plantation-

style menu wins praise from

locals for its focus on fresh,

sustainable ingredients.

Doubles from $400, including

breakfast daily and a $100

dining, spa, or golf credit.

TASTE Long Ears Hawai-

ian Coffee Call ahead for

drop-in visits or tours ($35).

46-3689 Waipahi Place,

Honokaa; 808/775-0385;

www.longearscoffee.com.

Hawaiian Vanilla Compa-

ny Tastings, lunches, tours,

and teas ($25-$39)

by reservation. 43-2007

Paauilo Mauka Road,

Paauilo; 808/776-1771;

www.hawaiianvanilla.com.

Rare Hawaiian Honey

Company Tasting room

open Monday through

Friday, 9 AM to 4 PM. 66-

1250 Lalamilo Farm Road,

Waimea; 888/663-

6639; www.rare

hawaiianhoney.com.

Onomea Tea Company

Tours and tastings by

reservation ($30). 27-

604 Alakahi Place, Pa-

paikou; 808/964-3283;

www.onotea.com.

BIG-ISLAND BOUNTY Plush hotels and lush destinations around Hawaii.

MARCH | APRIL 2014

Four Seasons

Resort Hualalai

Mauna Lani Bay

Hotel & Bungalows

The Fairmont

Orchid, Hawaii

Mauna Kea

Beach Hotel

Rare Hawaiian

Honey Company

Merriman’s Waimea

Long Ears Hawaiian

Coffee

Hawaiian Vanilla Company

Onomea Tea Company