COFFEE 101 – THE ROAST

Coffee is roasted.

“We know, we know,” one says.  But what, exactly, does this mean?  One peruses the coffee aisle, seduced by the writing on the bag, the notions of a deep, French, bold, rich roast.  One would think it’s safe to assume a nice, strong cup of coffee must first begin with a bag of deeply roasted beans.

Think again.  The coffee beans gain their distinct flavors and notes from many variables.  Like wine, each region produces a unique bean, depending on things such as climate and soil.  Also, the different ways of picking, fermenting, and processing the beans produce varying results — they may be washed, not washed, dried in the sun, not dried in the sun, and so forth.

Roasting transforms the beans into coffee as we know it, physically and chemically.  Prior to roasting, coffee beans are green in color.  The beans may be lightly roasted, turning a light brown color, or deeply roasted, providing a deep, chocolate brown tint.  “French Roast” is a process of double roasting, after which none of the origins of the coffee can be detected.  Roasters try to choose a roast that will best bring out a certain coffee’s characteristics.

A common problem found in the local coffee aisle?  Over-roasted beans!  Over-roasting masks the dynamic flavors possible from each type of coffee.  The process of growing and picking coffee is a complicated and tedious task for the farmers.  With so many different regions to choose from, and so much hard labor provided, I want to taste my coffee, not my roast.

Many coffee shops boast their own roasts.  This way, they have more control over the coffee they sell and brew.  If you are a fan of French Roast, perhaps try a naturally richer bean.  Kona Coffee from Hawaii is characteristically dark, without much roasting, as is coffee hailing from the Blue Mountains of Jamaica.  Also, it is important to take note of when your coffee was roasted.  Fresh roasted coffee needs some time to settle — usually a day — but retains its true flavor for no more than two weeks, after which it begins to stale.  Companies like Blue Bottle, Joe Coffee, and Colombe provide you with the roast date.

And Starbucks?  All roast, no game.

Hope this helps next time you fall victim to the coffee aisle.
xx Elizabeth

COFFEE 101 – ESPRESSO

Espresso.  Not expresso (oh, I cringe…)

I attended my first class at Joe coffee, happy to meet other coffee enthusiasts.  Led by a spunky and uber coffee-educated barista named Charrow, the class taught me a wealth of information about espresso — including how to pull my own shot.

But what is espresso?  Is it coffee?  Something different?  Well, ’tis both.  Espresso is not a special kind of bean, it is simply a process of brewing — the same as French Press, Drip, Bialetti, etc.  Therefore, any coffee can be “espresso,” though there is a preferred type of roast that is believed to provide the best espresso flavor.  The brewing process entails a large amount of pressure, and therefore the extraction only takes 20-30 seconds.  Many factors affect how one pulls an espresso shot, including the season (temperature and humidity fluctuation), the date of the coffee, water purity, and a whole lot of other things one has to worry about.   Those complicated espresso machines have so many gadgets for a reason!

We learned how to fill the portafilter properly, how to make sure the grounds are packed in evenly, and some other techniques like “the funky chicken” (I won’t even try to explain).

So, you are making your own espresso at home…how does one tell that a shot is “proper”?  First, make sure there is that nice crema on top; the crema is a light film coating that settles at the top of the espresso — it’s actually a collection of the gases and oils the beans release upon extraction.  Also, make sure the taste is balanced — you want a chocolate body with a fruity finish, and not too much of either (unless, of course, you prefer one over the other.)

Next up — milk steaming class.  Perhaps the most difficult part of barista-ing.  But for now, I’ll leave you with some photos of my espresso education adventure.

Mechella’s first shot

Fellow coffee-lover, Mechella in action

Machinery

C’est moi, espresso-ing

…and doing the “funky chicken”

And finally, tasting.