Coffee

Although it is just south of the birthplace – Ethiopia – of coffee, coffee cultivation did not begin in Kenya until the late 19th century apparently under the direction of missionaries. The British, though, significantly ramped up production around the turn of the century. Today, Kenyan coffee production is known for its network of small farms and mills.   More than 6 million Kenyans are said to be employed in the coffee industry. A cooperative system has evolved over the years with at its core an open auction system.   This auction system may be what has allowed Kenyan coffee to maintain its highly regarded quality. 

There is some confusion among drinkers about the much sought after “AA” designation of Kenyan coffee.   The “AA” is not a type of coffee per se, but rather the label refers to the size of the bean itself.   The Coffee Board of Kenya has established a grading system based on the size and form of the bean.   Coffees assigned the grade “AA” are generally the largest bean. The grading scale, from largest to smallest, is AA, AB, PB, C, E, TT and T. One reason quality is often remarked to coincide with the size of the bean is the higher oil content of larger beans.  Kenyan AA beans also are cultivated from the premium Arabica coffee plants, rather than the less flavorful Robusta coffee plants.

After the beans are milled, the coffee is graded according to size.   Samples from each lot are then provided to licensed exporters, who then bid on each lot according to their own evaluations. Weekly auctions are held in downtown Nairobi.  The open, transparent system wherein the highest bidder obtains the lot reinforces a positive price-quality relationship – that is, the best quality yields a higher price. 

Of course, the quality of Kenyan coffee is not based solely on its exporting infrastructure. The quality must originate in the cultivation process. For certain, Kenya has rich, acidic volcanic soil where the coffee is grown at altitudes ranging between 5,000 and 7000 feet above sea level. Production is concentrated on the high plateaus that surround 17,000-foot Mount Kenya.   Here the climate is moderate throughout the year along with a relatively consistent rainfall patterns. Kenya has invested in researching the best cultivation techniques and even the smallest farmer is likely to be knowledgeable about coffee production. 

Premium Kenyan coffee beans – in particular, AA beans – are universally wet processed. The cherry surrounding the bean is removed and then the beans are submerged in a water tank. In the water tank, a natural fermentation process breaks down the cherry residue left on the bean. The final parchment layer is then removed after the beans have been dried by hulling.

So what should you expect from a cup of Kenyan coffee?  While it generally is classified as medium bodied coffee, Kenyan coffee packs an intense flavor and enticing aroma. Multi-faceted in taste a premium Kenyan coffee enthralls with fruit dimensions ranging from citrus to berry along with noted wine-toned acidity. It is a rare Kenyan cup that will leave the drinker with an unpleasant aftertaste.

The next time you are seeking a quality coffee, remember to try the king of African coffees – Kenyan AA. 

Joe Jefferson is the resident coffee expert at World Trader Coffee, which is proud to offer online a fine Kenyan AA coffee as well as a full selection of African coffees.

Author: Joe Jefferson
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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All About Coffee

When you are making gourmet coffee at home, you will need to use whole coffee beans, grinding the beans just before brewing insures the freshest coffee as if they are exposed to the air for too long the coffee beans will oxidize, thereby potentially ruining the taste. Of course, you don’t have to grind your own, if you prefer you can purchase coffee already grounded. Personally I really prefer to grind my own, and remember to only grind just enough for the amount you’re brewing.

Grinding The Coffee Beans

Widely considered to be one of the best types of coffee grinders is the burr variety, the coffee beans are loaded into a holding hopper which feeds them into the bean grinding mechanism, or burr’s as they are commonly known. The burrs provide a slow grinding of the coffee beans which is perfect for best results. Blade grinders, on the other hand, use razor sharp blades that spin, grinding the beans in the process. Although these are pretty good, the cheaper models do suffer from irregular grinding.

What Type Of Coffee – The Arabica

All Kenyan coffee is of the Arabica variety, grown on rich volcanic soils in the highlands of Kenya. There are two main species of coffee plant – Arabica and Robusta. Gourmet coffee houses serve the smooth and very palatable Arabica coffees, while the worst cup of coffee you ever had probably came from a pot of bitter Robusta coffee that had been sitting around for hours.

What Type Of Coffee – The Robusta

Traditionally Balinese coffee was of the robusta variety. The origins of Robusta can be traced back to the beginning of the 20th century or earlier

Robusta tends to be higher in caffeine and can be grown in climates and environments were Arabica would not be profitable, Its also typically more bitter and acidic in flavour. In contrast most Italian coffee is brewed very strong from the lower-quality Robusta bean, which might suggest why Italy gave us such innovations as cappuccino (coffee with steamed milk) and flavoured coffees.

What Type Of Coffee – Jamaican Coffee

There is a huge demand for Blue Mountain Jamaican Coffee, and a very limited supply. As a result, genuine, 100% Blue Mountain Jamaican coffee is sometimes not available, at any given price.

For more information on the various types of coffee beans and how to make the perfect cup of coffee. Make sure you visit The Coffee Makers today…

Author: Robert Funge
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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Lets suppose you want to sell coffee beans or an electric bean grinder, the smart place to market your particular coffee products is the ebay auction site. Coffee products for whatever reason sell very well on ebay, the thing is to follow a few basic rules and it could be that you end up selling coffee products longterm.

The most important thing is you must know the prices for coffee items and connected food and drink goods, the ideal location to check prices would be the many niche food and drink magazines or websites that also deal with coffee and drink products. If you have no idea as to what to sell your coffee merchandise for then you are very likely to make a loss.

To sell ebay you must first list the item, lets say its a Green Coffee product, it is fairly easy to estimate a cost level for this specific coffee merchandise. then you need to take a digital photo and load it with your ad, most of the best ebay secret books will tell you to set your coffee product on some kind of red backdrop, something like red velvet is ideal, why would you do this? you see its a well known fact that products like antique coffee pots and also antique coffee machines will stand out more if this backdrop trick is used, the more buyers who discover your products the more chance there is the bidding will be greater.

The next trick to marketing your coffee or merchandise on ebay is this, when you are marketing these types of goods you should always list a sizeable amount of keywords, you should not merely list a Kenyan Coffee blend or coffee roaster [ depending on what coffee items you are wishing to sell ], you should list a whole mass of products. What you should really do is list all the large brand names that are connected with coffee products and as many related products as you possibly can, coffee cups, Coffee Tea Sets, list any coffee related item that people could possibly be looking for on ebay.

Yet another secret when selling goods on the ebay auction site is this, spelling errors can lead to huge amounts of cash when auctioning coffee, a lot of bidders are terrible spellers and may will very often misspell words, this is especially the case with coffee company brands and makers trademarks. In essence what this means is that if you were to place a Colombian Organic pack or italian coffee pot with a few missing letters or a few misspellings then you could certainly attract some extra bidders, this then could add to the success of your auction session and could even get you a higher fee at auction.

This advice is not just relevant to coffee items it also relates to any product connected to the area of food and drink, you must though remember the main points and you never know, you might just become a full time coffee seller with the assistance of ebay and also make yourself a decent profit.

The Free Secret coffee report by Carol Hansonly the author of this article can be found at : http://www.bjcoffee.com

Author: John Gauge
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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The subject of coffee is one that covers a large number of products such as wholesale coffee beans, specialty coffees and also coffee makers, as with a variety of other topics food and drink data is best obtained from a specialist. A coffee expert will supply anyone with much better knowledge than say a general food and drink website, specialists know coffee products inside out will be able to offer you first hand info on merchandise like stainless steel coffee pots or even insulated coffee mugs.

For many years coffee reviews have been published all over the web and the subject of beverages is now easier than ever for buyerss to research, imagine you were searching for a food and drink review on a kenyan coffee powder, such a thing may appear on one of the many specialist coffee directories.

Also when shopping for a coffee you should ponder this, if you buy a stainless steel coffee blender but were unhappy with the item would the coffee supplier be happy to part exchange the merchandise for a barista coffee maker or make a mutually acceptable arrangement? you should to select a coffee merchant you have some confidence in or a coffee site that looks trustworthy.

When you first start looking into the world of coffee make sure you make a note of the coffee product you are actually interested in obtaining, for instance coffee grinders, gourmet coffee powders, blended coffee beans, be exact as this will be particularly useful later on, Once you have done this you should evaluate these items on some of the coffee portals, by making the list in the you will save a mass of time because you can easily get lost in a whole heap of food and drink and coffee connected guidess and reports.

The Free Secret coffee bean report by Carol Hansonly the author of this article can be found at : http://www.bjcoffee.com

Author: John Gauge
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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