Over the last four months I have experienced some
of the most exciting times in my life as giant steps of growth
and development have occurred at Blair Estate coffee farm in Kauai.
After nearly two years of planning, ground was finally broken
in mid-June for the construction of a new multi-purpose timber
frame barn that will serve as a coffee processing and roasting facility
as well as a home. This building project has proven itself to
be not only the greatest challenge but the most rewarding thing
I’ve done in life. I must also add that it wasn’t very
far into the process that I realized none of this would be possible
without the support of family and close friends.
In June the preparation of the frame began with
the shaping of redwood timbers shipped in from a small mill in
northern California. For over a century in Hawaii, redwood, now
a scarce commodity, has proven its natural resistance to decay
and termites. It wasn’t until I ran across Randy Huffman,
an ecology- minded sawyer who operates a wood mill that specializes
in wind-blown and salvaged redwoods, that I decided with clear
conscience to build a classic New England style timber frame barn
out of redwood on my organic coffee farm. Having been raised in
New Hampshire and having lived in Hawaii for the last fourteen
years I was looking to compliment an island way of life with a
familiar style of building that reminded me of my roots. This
barn has lent itself well to both purposes.
Over the course of two months the timbers were
slowly sculpted by friend and master timber ...
framer, Scott Dorwart of Stowe, Vermont. Despite
the prospect of having to leave his wife and two children for
nearly three months (something he rarely does) Scott arrived in
Kauai to begin work on this exciting project. The challenge that
faced him would be the turning of raw wood timbers into the frame
work of a barn that would serve many purposes. Having spent a
couple of summers in Vermont many years back, laboring with Scott
to build his own house, it was during those years that I gained
an appreciation for this style of old-world architecture. Mortised
and tenoned, drilled and frameged with wood dowels, the barn at
Blair Estate was chiselled into a six bent system and created
entirely on the ground.
It was in the quiet of the morning on July 14th
that we arrived at the farm to see the sun rise. The pieces of
the frame lay on the ground before us. Needless to say nervous
anxiety made it difficult to sleep the night before. So much was
riding on the concept of everything fitting in perfect order for
our timber frame barn to stand up by day’s end. But in almost
perfect fashion the barn was raised, fitted and joined by the
time the sun set. As the daylight exited the barn now stood before
us. With so much time spent in preparation it was an incredible
feeling to see all the pieces literally come together. Two days
later the rafters and purlins were lifted and set into place and
the barn that appeared only in our minds and on paper finally
stood before us in real life.
We had come so far on a journey that had begun
with a design session with architect Kim Brown of Waterbury Center,
Vermont on a snowy night in the far northern reaches of New England;
stretched through the months of arranging permits, suppliers and
subcontractors, and finally led us to this sight -- our barn standing
tall with banana trees and Kauai’s blue sky in the background.
Thanks to the efforts of my parents the project
moved along in great fashion. Bob Drent handled the finances of
the building and Kaaren Drent masterfully handled the cooking
for the crew so our pace of work was able to continue in a timely
fashion. As we were nourished daily by Mom’s home cooking
she also contributed to our success by handling the constant flow
of outgoing coffee orders. Thanks to both of them because none
of this would have been possible without their help.
In the midst of all this construction the farm's
first coffee cherries began to ripen on the trees. Harvest season
was indeed upon us! Handpicking nearly all of this first year
coffee was Gigi Nhu who somehow found the time and energy to lend
a hand after her long days of teaching math at the local community
college. It is a well documented fact that most coffee farms in
Kona over the last century were operated in the same fashion.
Most families saw moms and dads holding down normal day jobs,
the farm work was something that occurred after work or on the
weekends. It wasn’t until the recent craze for specialty
coffee that farming coffee in Hawaii could be seen as anything
more than a way to supplement a family’s income.
Also helping to save the day and aid in the maintenance
of the farm were five St. Croix sheep that arrived in early June
from the Big Island. Bred and raised by fellow organic Kona coffee
farmer, Trent Bateman, this variety of sheep do not harm or eat
coffee and they continue to go the distance in helping to keep
the weeds down on the farm. Besides having great appetites they
also produce endless amounts of free fertilizer!
While construction is scheduled to end by Christmas,
Blair Estate coffee farm is scheduled to be open to the public
for free farm tours and tasting in 2004. If you plan on visiting
the island of Kauai we invite you to stop by and sample and see
first hand Kauai's proud new addition to the world of organic
coffee. We hope to see you soon! Aloha
