914 Centre St. N., Calgary, AB T2E 2P7
Telephone: (403) 230-8636 / 230-1644
Toll Free: 1-800-813-5336
Coffee Facts
Fundamentals of
Up
- Freshness Start with fresh roasted coffee. Consumption
closest to the roast date produces better flavor and aroma. Therefore
only buy what you will drink within two weeks.
- Water Use fresh water.
Bottled or distilled water is always best. Really, it is.
Filtered tap water is Okay. I am always cautious of product like Brita,
not that I am knocking them, but I try to stay cognizant of bacteria.
- Grind Use the correct grind. Too fine a grind
will over-extract the coffee flavor thus
making it bitter. Too coarse a grind: brown water
and no flavor.
The most common method is the Drip Method; most cone shaped paper
filter type of brewers need a very-fine grind. Most flat
bottom basket shaped paper filters need a fine grind.
Metal or gold cone filters need a fine grind, because
it is more porous than paper (and you don't want the soot in the
bottom of the cup). Metal or gold flat bottom basket filters
need a medium-fine grind, again more porous than paper.
Espresso machines need
extra-fine to very-fine depending
on how much extraction one wants.
I enjoy the plunger-pot, Melior,
press-pot or more commonly known as the French Press. This requires
a coarse grind to get more contact area between the coffee
and the water. This is the best way to drink coffee, it is known
as the direct-contact method -- no filters here, just pure coffee
flavor. It is also the easiest way to prepare coffee and to clean
afterwards.
We'll talk about grinders later.
- Proportion Use the correct proportion. The industry
standard is two rounded tablespoons of ground coffee for every
six ounces of water. Everyone should start from this point, then make adjustments
to your taste or the tastes of your fellow drinkers.
- Equipment Use clean brewing equipment. Clean out your
brewer once a month with a mix of vinager and water. This will help clean out the accumulated
oils that coat your equipment. Expired coffee taste is the taste
that these oils leave..
In summary, the five fundamentals are: Freshness, Water, Grind, Proportion, and Equipment.
Storing Your Coffee
Up
Always buy fresh roasted coffee. Even suppliers like
Mr Cappucino and West Roast Coffee can only provide
you whole bean coffee that's been roasted within a week at best.
There are very few roasters that can provide coffee beans roasted
within two days. Whole bean coffee keeps the longest. Yet it
only keeps for fourteen days in an air tight container. Ground
coffee expires within three days, therefore grind as needed or
as early as the night before your morning brew, which is also
a good habit . It is a great routine to grind your morning
coffee the night before and leave it in a sealed container. Never
store your coffee in its original bag. Transfer your whole beans
immediately into a ceramic or glass container with a rubber seal
and preferably one that does not allow light through it. Enemies
of storing coffee are air, light, heat and moisture. STOP freezing
your beans! Never store your coffee in the freezer, especially
the refrigerator as this develops moisture around the bean. You
may store it in the freezer if you intend to keep the beans for
over two weeks but no more than 45 days and ONLY if you intend
to take it out of the freezer ONCE. Each time you take it out
and let air into the bag, you have compromised the seal and the
moisture will deteriorate the flavor.
Water Temperature
Up
The perfect temperature
for brewing coffee is water "just off boil" in technical
terms approximately 195 degrees. Too hot and you burn the beans
giving you a bitter taste, too cold and you won't extract any
flavor or the oils off the bean. After the brewing process is
complete, most equipment typically keeps the coffee served at
165 to 175 degrees. Coffee in a glass carafe stored on a warmer
only lasts twenty minutes before taste is compromised. Coffee
kept in an air-pot lasts up to an hour, so invest in an air-pot.
How to Make Espresso at Home
If you have a home espresso machine, great...use it! Don't keep
it as kitchen furniture. Yes, it is easier to run down to the
cafe and order up a latte and keeping equipment clean can also
be a pain. But think of how you can impress your guests with
your ability to make perfect foam and get perfect crema on top
of your espresso. Steaming milk is an art
in itself. Golden rule: Always start with cold milk.
Also if you want to cheat a little, use non-fat milk it has more
proteins added by the dairy therefore it foams easier, but there's
nothing like heavy foam from extra rich milk. Why cold milk?
'Cause it's easier to foam and you can only foam milk ONCE before
you scald off all the proteins that create the foam, but you can
steam milk twice. More than twice and your milk will taste funny.
Start by placing your steamer wand just below the milk line in
the metal "bell" pitcher. After you have sufficient
foam, plunge the wand to the bottom until you've reached the correct
temperature of 165 degrees and shut down the steamer. Remember
only 165 because the milk's temperature will still rise by as
much as ten more degrees and beyond 175 you've burnt your milk
and good-bye foam too! Don't guess, invest in a $5 thermometer
it's easier. By the way, it is not necessary to rotate or bounce
or do anything with the pitcher... that's just if your bored of
holding it in the same place while it is heating up. If you have
the right type of bell pitcher the milk agitates sufficiently
from the pressure of the steam, so no need to look fancy. Pour
your milk first in the container your serving in, then followed
with the shot or shots of espresso, finally cap it with the foam.
The dreaded Crema! That is the sign of freshness and correct
extraction. A perfect shot of espresso is one ounce "pulled"
at 20 seconds, that's it! Pulled just means, the moment you push
that button to start the brew into your porta-filter basket (the
metal handle that holds the ground espresso). The time is measured
from the push of the button to the last drop of coffee pouring
out of the basket. The window of acceptable espresso particularly
if you will be using it with steamed milk is between 18 to 23
seconds. But if you are drinking a shot with no milk, it may
as well be the best and that's 20 seconds. Also, whether it is
a single shot or a double shot, your only switching your porta-filter
basket from a one spout to the two spout so it is still 20 seconds.
The Crema is the caramelly sweet foam that settles on top of
a shot that's just been pulled. After 20 seconds the crema's
gone, in fact the shot is cold too by then. Ten seconds is the
longest a shot should be left sitting until it is used, therefore
steam your milk first then pull your shots last. If you don't
have Crema, your grind may be wrong, you may have over/under extracted
(too much or too little water has gone through) or you just have
old coffee.
Acidity, Flavor and Body,
Up
Ever refer to a cup of coffee as "strong". Well, for
most people that's the best description they have for a more acidic
or a smoky flavored coffee. The industry professionals rarely
use the term strong. Acidity is the sharpness in a cup of java,
relative terms to describe acidity is mellow, soft, flat, dead,
delicate, bland, and rough. Flavor is the combination of the
aroma and the taste that the coffee impresses in the mouth. Terms
relating to flavor are nutty, caramelly, earthy, spicy, fruity,
smoky, musty, rich, grassy, chocolaty, neutral, sweet, turpeny
and winey. Body is the "mouth-feel" in terms of weight
and texture. These terms are best described as syrupy, harsh,
lifeless, thin, heavy, medium, muddy, and of course full.
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Mr Cappuccino
914 Centre Street North Calgary, Alberta. Canada T2E 2P7
Phone: (403) 230-8636 Fax: (403) 277-2874
You can contact us at:
coffee@agt.net