Coffee has been a significate part of morning habits to social gatherings to office vibe to societal culture. The vast world of coffee offers tremendous variations which can be both exciting and overwhelming. This non-alcoholic beverage is a go-to necessity for coffee aficionados. Coffee’s aromatic flavor and caffeine’s energetic kick enchanted billions around the world.
According to Statista, global coffee market is expected to reach around US$ 108.40 billion in 2029. This figure reflects how popular coffee is. The top coffee consuming countries are United States, Germany, Japan, France and Italy whereas most coffee producing country is Brazil (29% of world’s coffee production) following Vietnam and Indonesia. Moreover, The amount of Coffee intake is around 1.3 kg/person each year according to International Coffee Organization.
Globalization and Commercialization of coffee offers so many options available, from coffee beans to brewing equipment, finding the best coffee for perfect brew as per your preferences is a challenging task. This beginner’s guide will assist you to shop coffee that suits your budget, taste, and lifestyle.
Understanding Coffee Beans
The journey of buying coffee begins with the understanding the coffee bean itself. Coffee beans are the fruit stone or seeds of the cherries, and they mainly come in two types: Arabica and Robusta.
Arabica: Arabica coffee beans are come from Coffea arabica Plant. Arabica offers milder and smooth flavor with floral and fruity tones. Besides, it is sweeter and contain less caffeine than Robusta. Generally considered as better or higher in quality than Robusta. Because of the higher altitudes cultivation process it’s quite expensive. It is account for 70% world’s coffee consumption.
Robusta: Coffea canephora plants produce another common type of coffee beans, named Robusta. Robusta has a strong, full bodied and bitter taste compared to Arabica beans. Robusta plants are more disease resistant than Coffea Arabica. It contains more caffeine and less expensive than Arabica.
Understanding Basic Coffee Flavor
The foundational flavor of coffee is influenced by the origins along with Cultivation Process, the roast level and the brewing method. Strong (bitter), Smooth (Sweet) and Bright (citrusy) are the base flavor of coffee drinks.
Choosing The Right Roasting Level
Primarily dried green coffee beans are roasted to bring out their distinct flavors, and the level of roasting can significantly impact the taste of coffee. The roasting level is classified with Light, Medium and Dark. Each roasting level offers discrete flavor. Let’s explore the most common roasting levels:
Light Roast: Light roasted coffee beans are associated with the hints of citrus or floral notes which provides bright or fruity aka original flavor in coffee drinks and are often more acidic.
Medium Roast: Balanced and less intense version of coffee drinks comes from Medium roasted coffee beans which gives a smooth or mild well-rounded cup of coffee. It’s also offers caramel or chocolate notes maintaining the acidity.
Dark Roast: Dark roasted coffee beans offer intense and full-bodied flavor with low acidity. If you prefer strong coffee, go for a dark roast.
Understanding the Coffee Ground
In the process of coffee making, grinding roasted coffee beans are necessary. Though, there is also have coffee grounds available in coffee market. The grind size plays a crucial role in your coffee tastes. Different brewing machines require different ground coffee to achieve the best flavor extraction. Here’s a quick guide:
Coarse Grind: Coarse ground coffee beans refer to larger particles which requires longer extraction times, ideal for brewing methods that don’t use filters such as French Press, Cold Brew and Percolator. Resulted in a smoother, less bitter and less acidic cup of coffee. It also helps to reduce sediment in the final brew, offering a cleaner texture.
Medium Grind: The medium Grind coffee beans need balanced extraction time, ensuring that the water flows through the coffee grounds at the right speed to produce a well-rounded flavor. It works well with drip coffee makers, pour-over methods or single-serve coffee makers, such as Keurig machines. If you use fined coffee grounds in those machines, it leads to over-extraction and bitterness.
Fine Grind: Fine Ground coffee beans are commonly used for Espresso Machines, AeroPress and Moka Pots. The smaller particles need short brewing time (under high water pressure) producing strong and concentrated coffee drinks. However, it can produce bitter taste if over-extracted.
Extra-Fine Grind: This type of coffee power is primarily used for brewing Turkish coffee. It boils with water, with no filter involved. The final result offers strongest and bittery coffee with after effect of sweetness. Extra-fine ground is not suitable for Drip or French Press.
Choosing Coffee Innovations
Instant Coffee and modern-day inventions K pods (also known as K cups) are the remark achievement in Coffee Revolution and coffee convenience.
Instant Coffee
Invention of Instant Coffee date back in 1889 in New Zealand by David Strang, though Frenchman Alphonse Allais, Satori Kato and George CL. Washington developed it in the contemporary times. Nearly half of the world’s green coffee supply is dedicated to producing instant coffee.
Instant coffee is typically offers mild and slightly bitter taste along with lack of aroma which founds in Whole-bean. Instant coffee is made from brewed ground coffee beans which follow ‘dry hot-air’ process. To prepare, simply add hot water to the instant coffee (sometimes it’s been added with flavors and sugars to enhance the taste), stir and ready to drink.
K pods (cups)
K-cups are single-serving coffee pods introduced by Keurig in late 1990. K-pods or cups is a pre-measured coffee grounds with filter container for simplify coffee making process. K-cups offers mild to smooth to rich flavorful options according to roasting levels. They are also flavored with vanilla, hazelnut or mocha. K-cups typically used medium-coarse grind of coffee because of quick extraction process. Single-serve coffee makers are specially design for k-cups.
Decoding Coffee Labels
While buying your coffee from online store or local retailers, the labels of the packaging refers what to expect from the beans inside. Consider the following:
Decaf: This label indicates that 97% caffeine is eliminated during decaffeination process from the coffee beans before roasting. Decaf coffee retains the aromatic flavor of regular coffee but offers milder experience without the stimulating effects of caffeine.
Single-Origin vs Blends: In regards to coffee, Single-Origin refers to a specific region such as Guatemala or Honduras where this country belongs to single source of Coffee and used either Arabica or Robusta. On the contrary, Blends combines Arabica and Robusta from various countries or regions such as Guatemala, Costa Rica and even India. If you are new to coffee, a well-balanced blend could be your safe starting point.
Roast Date: Coffee offers best taste when it is fresh. So, look for the roast date and aiming to consume within 2 or 3 weeks of roasting as it demarcates at peak flavor in that period.
Organic: Organic coffee is cultivated without the use of pesticides and fertilizers, which is better for the Earth’s environment as well as for your health.
Fair Trade: As a conscientious coffee buyer, always look Fair Trade Certification as it ensures coffee farmers receive fair prices and that beans are being produced with maintaining environment sustainability such as Shade-Grown Coffee cultivation.
Knowing Brewing Methods & Equipment’s
Once you’ve selected your coffee beans and grounds, it’s time to choose brewing methods and other equipment to finalize the drink to consume. Let’s explore them in a very short note:
Coffee Maker: Popular methods of coffee brewing such as Espresso machines, Drip coffee maker, French Press, Pour-over, single-serve machines, Shipon Coffee maker, each method or machine brings out different aspects of the coffee’s flavor profile. Depending on coffee variations and grind size, coffee maker has it’s own way of brewing and offers cup of joe.
Grinder: Freshly ground coffee tastes better than ready-ground coffee. Though, ready-ground coffee is popular now because of coffee convenience. So, If you want to elevate your coffee experience, it’s better to invest in coffee grinder. In this case, Burr Grinders (two types: wheel and conical) is better than Blade Grinders because of consistency in grinding. Besides, only grind the amount of coffee beans you needed for each brew to ensure maximum freshness.
Scale & Thermometer: A tablespoon of roasted beans and ground beans aren’t same. The volume may vary based on the grind size. So, it’s better to measure coffee by weight rather than volume to maintain consistency and achieve standard coffee-to-water ratio. As between 195° F and 205° F water temperature (little below boiling point) is better for coffee brewing, so there is an option to buy pen thermometer to measure water temperature for perfect coffee drinks.
Filters: Filters are the essential part of the coffee machines. It’s separate the grounds from the brewed coffee to give you particles free smooth coffee. If you use a drip or pour-over, the type of filter (paper or metal) can affect the taste of your coffee. Paper filters are disposable gives light and clean taste whereas Metal filters are re-usable and provides naturally derived oily and aromatic cup of coffee.
Tips for Storing Coffee
Once you’ve purchased coffee, it is necessary to store them properly for freshness and flavor. As coffee is sensitive to light, air, moisture, and heat, it’s better to store them in an airtight container and place it in a cool and dark place. And avoid storing it in the refrigerator as this can gain moisture and affects the flavor.
Experiment and Enjoy
Coffee drinking is a deeply personal experience. For finding the perfect brew according to your preferences need experiment.
Understanding the basic of coffee, there is more additional flavors such as, Amaretto, Blueberry, Caramel, Chicory, Chocolate & Mocha, Chocolate Raspberry, Cinnamon, Coconut, Vanilla, Hazelnut, Peppermint, Pumpkin Spice etc. are a blessings for your coffee journey. Besides, special ingredients like Acai Berry, Ashwagandha, Garcinia Cambogia, Ginger, Ginseng, Maca, Mushroom, Turmeric etc. are used for health and exquisite aroma flavors.
Conclusion
So, dive into the vast world of coffee shopping and don’t be afraid to try different beans, roasts, brewing methods, and variations until you discover what you love.
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