Coffee

Gourmet coffee is an incredibly delicious treat, and before you take your next sip of your freshly roasted gourmet cup of Joe, it is important to know how it came to be. Gourmet coffee roasting takes skill and specialty, but it is incredibly worth it when it becomes a premium and superior final product.

First of all, when gourmet coffee beans are roasted, they will lose weight or shrink in the roasting process. While the beans are roasted, they will swell to twice their normal size, but they will shrink down after they have been roasted. This means that if you start out with a pound of green unroasted coffee beans, you will end up with less than a pound when you are done roasting. This is something to keep in mind if you ever decide to home roast your coffee because 1 pound of green coffee beans will not yield 1 pound of roasted coffee beans.

The longer that the gourmet coffee beans are roasted, the darker in color they will become. This will also cause a greater amount of shrinkage or weight loss, which means that it will take more coffee to make up a pound. Basically, if you are roasting a lighter roast of coffee, then it will take less green coffee beans. If a darker roast is being roasted, it will take more green coffee beans to make up a pound.

Gourmet coffee beans will normally shrink up to 20%, but a darker roast can shrink up to 25%. If it is an extremely light gourmet roast, it can shrink as little as 11% during the roasting process. One thing to understand is that many types of commercial coffees are under roasted to save costs overall for the business. With more gourmet brews on the market and an increase in gourmet coffee sales, it shows that the customer truly prefers a fully and authentically roasted coffee over the shortcuts often found on the market.

When it comes to roasting gourmet coffee, there is something called the Optimum Degree of Roast, which will bring out the best flavor characteristics for each type of coffee. This will provide the customer with the perfect taste and aroma within the specific coffee blend. This is something that is unique to each different roast, based on the characteristics of the coffee beans themselves.

Last of all, if coffee is under roasted, it will have an astringent or grassy flavor because the beans will still be partially green. If a gourmet coffee is over roasted, it will taste burnt or smoky, which will be apparent in the brew. There are many different flavor combinations and characteristics available with each specific roast, but it is still important to know the step-by-step process of roasting gourmet coffee to pick the best roast and blend for you. Gourmet coffee is more popular than ever, and for a reason. This is a premium method of roasting fresh and high-quality coffee beans for your cup of Joe!

Another popular accessory for coffee is the commercial coffee maker! For a great selection, check out Chuggin McCoffee’s website, The Coffee Bump.

Author: Mark Ramos
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Dark roasted coffee is more popular than ever, and the odds are that you may have enjoyed a dark roasted cup of Joe a time or two in your lifetime. However, as a coffee lover, it is important to understand the difference between dark and light roasted coffee because they are two diverse coffee styles.

Interestingly enough, mass marketing and commercial appeal has presented dark roasted coffee as the best quality and choice. Dark roasted coffee is popular on the market, especially when you consider that the coffee industry is the second-largest exporter next to oil worldwide. This gives the coffee industry the opportunity to market dark roasted beans as the number one choice available. A dark roast is actually made of coffee beans roasted for a longer period of time at a higher temperature, which causes many flavor molecules within the beans to burn away. This is both good and bad because bad flavors can be burned away in the roasting process, but that can include good flavors as well. When a coffee is roasted very dark, it is difficult for the drinker to tell if it is made from good or bad quality beans because it has a smoky and charcoal flavor overall.

Many coffee companies are attempting to dark roast all of their coffee to mask the type of beans that they are using, which is why dark roast Java is presented as the more popular variety on the market. This does not always mean a dark roasted coffee is a bad choice because there are many wonderful beans used to create dark roasts of Java. However, it still pays off to be a savvy customer and choose a roast made of flavorful and quality beans, whether it is light or dark.

A light roasted coffee is roasted for a shorter period of time, and it will have more flavor characteristics from the region that it is grown in. Some of these flavors may include those influenced by weather and soil, and some examples of light roasted coffee beans are Java and Kona. Light roasts are for coffee drinkers who want more specific flavors and characteristics within their brew, native to the region that the beans were grown in. Oftentimes, the coffee drinkers that choose a darker roast are not focusing necessarily on where the beans came from but the flavors that the roasting process provided as a result.

The lightest roasted Java available is called the City Roast, and the beans will normally look light or medium brown. These beans are roasted after the first crack in the roasting process, and the second lightest roast, Full City Roast, will be roasted until the second crack.

If you are a dark roasted Java drinker, it may be worth your while to try a lighter roast if you want to experience flavors and tastes from each specific coffee growing region. This is an excellent way to sample premium varieties in your cup of Joe!

Another popular accessory for coffee is commercial coffee makers! For a great selection, check out Mark Ramos website, The Coffee Bump.

Author: Mark Ramos
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Anti-angiogenic Food

All over the world, people drink coffee from basically one of two types of coffee beans: Arabica beans (“Coffea Arabica”) and Robusta beans (“Coffea Robusta”)

Arabica beans are aromatic, flavorful coffee beans used for gourmet, specialty coffees. The term refers to Coffea Arabica, the taxonomic species named for the genus responsible for about 75% of the world’s commercial coffee crop. Coffea Arabica is a woody perennial evergreen that belongs to same family as Gardenias.

Robusta beans contain twice the caffeine as Arabicas. Robusta beans are somewhat bitter and lack the flavor and aroma of Arabica beans. Robusta beans are used to produce blends, instant and freeze dried coffees.

There are other types of coffee species but they are very rare or non-existent in the export market. As a result, the fact is that we all drink either Arabica or Robusta coffee. Sounds simple, right? Not quite.

There are many “varietals” within Arabica coffee trees which yield coffee beans with distinct flavors and characteristics. This is where the fun begins. To name a few,

ETHIOPIAN COFFEE: Ethiopian Harrar, Sidamo and Yirgacheffe. Each is named after their region of origin and they have very distinct flavor characteristics. For example, Ethiopian Harrar is known for its medium body, earthy flavor, almost no acidity and a very smooth mouth feel. This is a complex coffee with light spicy tones and a fruity flavor that some people compare to the taste of dry red wine. As the ‘birthplace of coffee,” Ethiopia has a unique place in the coffee world.

KENYAN COFFEE: Kenyan AA. This coffee comes from the area surrounding Mount Kenya, a region with fertile red volcanic soil. The coffee is known for its very acidic taste you taste right away in the mouth, and then followed by a medium body with an aftertaste of earthy flavor.

TANZANIAN COFFEE: Tanzanian Peaberry focuses on pea berry instead of traditional coffee beans. Coffee is the dried seed from the fruit of a flowering tree. Each fruit has two seeds facing each other. On the coffee tree, there is a percentage of the fruit that has a single seed or peaberry and the rest will have two flat beans for the usual two (2) seeds per fruit. The single bean peaberry occurs in less than 5% of any crop and is generally considered to produce a more concentrated flavor.

COLOMBIAN COFFEE: major cultivars of Arabica beans include Bourbon, Caturra, Maragogype and Typica. Colombian coffees also include the name of the growing regions such as Cauca, Nario, Amazonas, Bucaramanga, etc. Colombia accounts for more than a tenth of the world’s entire coffee supply. Colombian Arabica coffee is perhaps the most well-known, partly due to its “living” and successful coffee advertising iconic symbols recognized worldwide, Juan Valdez and Conchita, the mule. The more generic Colombian coffees are rated as Excelso and Supremo. These terms simply refer to the size of the coffee beans, not necessarily to better coffee grades.

COSTA RICAN COFFEE: Costa Rican Tarrazu is a prized Arabica coffee. It is named after the San Marcos de Tarrazu valley, one of the four premium coffee growing districts surrounding the capital city of San Jose. The other varietals include Tres Rios, Heredia and Alajuela. Costa Rican coffees are balanced, clean, with bright acidity featuring citrus or berry-like flavors and hints of chocolate and spice in the finish.

BRAZILIAN COFFEE: Brazil Santos Bourbon comes from the hills of So Paulo state in the south-central portion of the country near the port of Santos. Historically, these Arabica coffee plants were brought to the island of Bourbon now known as the Island of Reunion. Brazil Santos Bourbon is a light bodied coffee, with low acidity, a pleasing aroma and a mild, smooth flavor.

INDONESIAN COFFEE: Java is the most famous Arabica varietal from the island of Java. The top grade of Java coffee is cultivated on former Dutch plantations and is called Java Estate. This is a clean, thick, full body coffee with less of the earthy characteristics that other Indonesia coffees feature, such as Sumatra or Sulawesi. The Java coffees provide a smooth complement to the Yemen Mocha which is very intense. The traditional Mocha Java blend is the combination of Java and Yemen Mocha.

SUMATRAN COFFEE: Sumatra Mandheling and Sumatra Lintong. Sumatra Lintong originates in the Lintong district of Sumatra near Lake Toba. This coffee has a medium, bodied coffee, low acid, sweet with a complex and earthy aroma. Sumatra Mandheling has a rich, heavy body, subdued acidity and unique complex flavor. This coffee actually does not originate in the Mandheling region but is named after the Mandailing people in the north of Sumatra.

HAWAIIAN COFFEE: closer to home, in Hawaii, the best known Arabica varietal is Hawaiian Kona coffee. This Arabica bean grows on the slopes of Mount Hualalai and Mauna Loa which makes it not only exclusive to Hawaii but also to the Kona District specifically.

JAMAICAN COFFEE: the Arabica varietal that grows predominantly in the Blue Mountain region of this island is called Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee. The Blue Mountains stretch between Kingston and Port Maria in Jamaica. This region enjoys a cool and misty climate. Due to its limited production quantity, Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee is expensive.

PAPUA NEW GUINEA COFFEE: located just north of Australia, Papua New Guinea coffee cultivation was started in 1937 using imported seeds from Jamaica’s famous Blue Mountain region. As a result, Papua New Guinea has noticeable similarities to Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee. The rich volcanic soil and excellent climate produce a mild and mellow, full-bodied coffee with moderate acidity, broad flavor and very interesting aromatics.

Is this all? No, there are many more varietals, brands, and special flavors of Arabica coffee to try and discover.

For now, what about a cup of Ethiopian Harrar or Papua New Guinea coffee?

Timothy (“Tim”) S. Collins, the author, is called by those who know him “The Gourmet Coffee Guy.”
He is an expert in article writing who has done extensive research online and offline in his area of expertise, coffee marketing, as well as in other areas of personal and professional interest.

Come visit the author’s website: http://www.ourgourmetcoffee.com

Copyright – Timothy S. Collins. All Rights Reserved Worldwide

Author: Timothy S. Collins
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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