An interesting development in the history of the coffee industry has been that of coffee bags with a valve. Originally coffee roasters had to leave their freshly roasted beans out in the fresh air for a period of time before packing. The reason for this was to allow carbon dioxide to be released from the beans which would obviously have caused problems if put in a sealed bag immediately.
The problem with this was that as soon as beans are roasted, any exposure to air quickly turns the oils in the beans rancid. With the invention of the coffee bag with a valve it was possible to seal the roasted beans straight away in their packaging as the valve allowed the carbon dioxide to safely escape with allowing the damaging oxygen in.
The valve coffee bag is the reason that you can now get such fresh coffee delivered to your home some time after the roasting process has taken place.
Wednesday, 20 May 2009
Making great coffee at home
If you are like the majority of people then you no doubt think it looks real easy to make a great cup of coffee when you see the barista at work in your local Starbucks. Of course, if you've ever paid good money for a substandard cup of coffee then you;ll know that its possible to get things wrong.
The thing is that these Baristas at the local coffee shop are using top of the line commercial espresso machines and grinders. So if they can get it wrong how do you expect to pick up a machine, grinder and some coffee beans from a retailer and quickly throw together world class coffee.
The reality is that if you want to make superior espresso coffee at home then you are going to invest significant time as well as money to reach your goals. First and foremost you will need to spend a fair amount of money because great espresso making equipment doesn't come cheap. You'll have to find an espresso machine capable of producing enough pressure to be able to compete which commercial machines. And you'll need to get yourself a conical burr grinder which is up to the task of producing a consistent grind.
When you've got the hardware in place you'll have to learn how to use it and this is the really tricky part. If you have no experience making coffee with an espresso machine then don't think for a minute you'll manage to figure out how to go it on your own unless you have unlimited time and some great instruction videos. You'll really need to get a hold of someone who knows what they are doing to show you the ropes. Ideally it will be someone with a commercial coffee background who has thousands of hours experience behind a machine and isn't afraid to persevere until you get it right.
The thing is that these Baristas at the local coffee shop are using top of the line commercial espresso machines and grinders. So if they can get it wrong how do you expect to pick up a machine, grinder and some coffee beans from a retailer and quickly throw together world class coffee.
The reality is that if you want to make superior espresso coffee at home then you are going to invest significant time as well as money to reach your goals. First and foremost you will need to spend a fair amount of money because great espresso making equipment doesn't come cheap. You'll have to find an espresso machine capable of producing enough pressure to be able to compete which commercial machines. And you'll need to get yourself a conical burr grinder which is up to the task of producing a consistent grind.
When you've got the hardware in place you'll have to learn how to use it and this is the really tricky part. If you have no experience making coffee with an espresso machine then don't think for a minute you'll manage to figure out how to go it on your own unless you have unlimited time and some great instruction videos. You'll really need to get a hold of someone who knows what they are doing to show you the ropes. Ideally it will be someone with a commercial coffee background who has thousands of hours experience behind a machine and isn't afraid to persevere until you get it right.
Monday, 11 May 2009
Stop Putting It Off - Buy A Burr Coffee Grinder
Buying a quality coffee grinder is the best investment you can make if you are looking to create an exceptional espresso or cappuccino at home. The aroma and great fresh taste of good espresso coffee quickly disappears as the time from grinding your coffee beans gets further away.
Add the phenomenal aroma which fills your house when you grind your own beans as you need them and its easy to see the attraction of spending quite a lot of money on the best burr coffee grinder you can find.
If you have a great love of coffee then really makes no sense at all to be buying your coffee pre-ground when you can grind your own beans in the house.
Add the phenomenal aroma which fills your house when you grind your own beans as you need them and its easy to see the attraction of spending quite a lot of money on the best burr coffee grinder you can find.
If you have a great love of coffee then really makes no sense at all to be buying your coffee pre-ground when you can grind your own beans in the house.
What's Wrong With Pre-Ground Coffee
What's wrong with buying pre-ground coffee for use in your espresso machine?
1. Firstly and most obviously, pre-ground coffee is not as fresh as the coffee which comes stright out of the grinder. Although coffee companies are now able to pack coffee with some sophisticated methods to keep the pre-ground coffee fresher it still won't taste like its freshly ground.
2. Pre-ground coffee comes in packets which are too large for most people to use in a short period of time. Take too long to use your supermarket coffee and the taste will be pretty dire.
3. Coffee ground be someone else won't come ground to the exact consistency needed for your coffee machine to make the prefect coffee.
If you use coffee which has been ground too finely your espresso machine will have trouble pushing the water through the coffee resulting in a machine unable to pproduce a coffee.
Coffee beans which are ground too course result in the water running through coffee too quickly and will be unable to pick up the flavor. You'll be left with a cup of tasteless liquid which doesn't have the most important espresso crema.
The solution to this problem is quite simple you need to invest in a quality coffee grinder if you want to get great coffee at home every from your espresso machine. Do some research on the Internet of ask knowledgable coffee drinking friends for advice to ensure you get the best coffee grinder for the money. Remember its a decision you will have to live with for years to come.
Sunday, 10 May 2009
Why Does My Coffee Taste Like Dishwater?
Anyone who rushes out to buy a new espresso coffee machine on a whim usually ends up wondering why the coffee it produces isn't nearly as good as the drink you usually get at the local coffee shop. The there are two reason why this is the case:
1. You don't yet have the skills needed to make an espresso coffee as well as the Barista at the cafe.
2. You're using pre-ground coffee beans bought from the supermarket.
I can't help you too much if its the skills you are lacking, what you really need to do in this case is to find someone who is an experienced Barista to give you the help you need to brush up on your coffee making technique.
If you are using pre-ground coffee to make your espresso at home then this is something that you can do something about immediately. All you need to do is find a quality coffee grinder, buy it, set up it in your house and you'll be grinding the best, freshest coffee in no time.
The purchasing of a coffee grinder is not something that is to be taken lightly as it is a product that need to be just right if you're going to get the best coffee from your espresso machine. Remember that coffee grinders are not cheap and the one you buy will be in use for many years to come so it makes sense to make the right decision the first time around.
1. You don't yet have the skills needed to make an espresso coffee as well as the Barista at the cafe.
2. You're using pre-ground coffee beans bought from the supermarket.
I can't help you too much if its the skills you are lacking, what you really need to do in this case is to find someone who is an experienced Barista to give you the help you need to brush up on your coffee making technique.
If you are using pre-ground coffee to make your espresso at home then this is something that you can do something about immediately. All you need to do is find a quality coffee grinder, buy it, set up it in your house and you'll be grinding the best, freshest coffee in no time.
The purchasing of a coffee grinder is not something that is to be taken lightly as it is a product that need to be just right if you're going to get the best coffee from your espresso machine. Remember that coffee grinders are not cheap and the one you buy will be in use for many years to come so it makes sense to make the right decision the first time around.
Sunday, 3 May 2009
Looking For A Superior Coffee Experience?
Fed up drinking freeze dried coffee at home? Wish you could enjoy the same flavor you get when you visit the local cafe for a cappuccino or espresso?
Its a problem that many of of have these days, we're spoiled by the great coffee we get when we visit a coffee shop and buy an espresso made by a skilled Barista. We find when you get home and want another cup of coffee we get depressed at the thought of drinking the murky dark liquid that we used to refer to as coffee but which we now realize is nothing of the sort.
So where does this leave us? We can spend a small fortune and our entire day tracking down great places to get our caffeine fix or we can figure out a way to produce the superior coffee we desire in our own home.
A couple of decades ago the only people who were able to recreate genuine coffee shop coffee in their own home were usually Italian immigrants who had carefully smuggled a Gaggia espresso machine all the way back from the homeland.
Today coffee lovers have a much easier task in finding a coffee machine to get them the flavor the need. Having said that its still not as simple as you would think to make great coffee at home when you see the vast range of machines available at any retailer in the high street.
The problem is that because we have become used to drinking the best coffee available when we visit a cafe we need to create something very special at home if it is going to compare. Many of the coffee machines that are for sale in the high street shops just aren't up to the job. Sure they will all make a coffee which is far superior to something that comes in a jar but to find the best possible taste we need to do some serious research.
There are a great number of espresso machine on the market and to someone who isn't well versed in the difference in the various models it can be easy to pick up something which isn't up to the job. Its therefore important to do a bit of research into the coffee machine manufacturers to ascertain which ones can to relied upon to supply a quaility machine.
You will also want to get yourself a coffee grinder to make the best possible cappuccino at home. You could possibly get away with just buying freshly ground coffee if you have a source for it but there are two problems with this. FIrstly, the coffee won't be as free as you would like it so the resulting drink won't be as good as possible. Secondly, its very difficult to buy coffee that has been ground to just the right fineness for you machine which is imperative if you want to best flavor.
Its a problem that many of of have these days, we're spoiled by the great coffee we get when we visit a coffee shop and buy an espresso made by a skilled Barista. We find when you get home and want another cup of coffee we get depressed at the thought of drinking the murky dark liquid that we used to refer to as coffee but which we now realize is nothing of the sort.
So where does this leave us? We can spend a small fortune and our entire day tracking down great places to get our caffeine fix or we can figure out a way to produce the superior coffee we desire in our own home.
A couple of decades ago the only people who were able to recreate genuine coffee shop coffee in their own home were usually Italian immigrants who had carefully smuggled a Gaggia espresso machine all the way back from the homeland.
Today coffee lovers have a much easier task in finding a coffee machine to get them the flavor the need. Having said that its still not as simple as you would think to make great coffee at home when you see the vast range of machines available at any retailer in the high street.
The problem is that because we have become used to drinking the best coffee available when we visit a cafe we need to create something very special at home if it is going to compare. Many of the coffee machines that are for sale in the high street shops just aren't up to the job. Sure they will all make a coffee which is far superior to something that comes in a jar but to find the best possible taste we need to do some serious research.
There are a great number of espresso machine on the market and to someone who isn't well versed in the difference in the various models it can be easy to pick up something which isn't up to the job. Its therefore important to do a bit of research into the coffee machine manufacturers to ascertain which ones can to relied upon to supply a quaility machine.
You will also want to get yourself a coffee grinder to make the best possible cappuccino at home. You could possibly get away with just buying freshly ground coffee if you have a source for it but there are two problems with this. FIrstly, the coffee won't be as free as you would like it so the resulting drink won't be as good as possible. Secondly, its very difficult to buy coffee that has been ground to just the right fineness for you machine which is imperative if you want to best flavor.
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