Caffeine Trivia 2.28.14

Coffee Tasting Terminology

Fruity: Flavor / aroma often found in good arabica coffees, reminiscent of a wide range of fruits: citrus, berries, currants, etc, always accompanied by some degree of acidity; this is usually positive, but can indicate over ripeness or over-fermentation.

Caffeine Trivia 02.27.14

Coffee Tasting Terminology

Acidic: Very desirable coffee quality, sharpness detected towards front of mouth; denotes quality and altitudel can be fruity (citrusy, lemony, berry-like. etc) or a pure tongue-tip numbing sensation.

Caffeine Trivia 2.26.14

Up until the 1870’s most coffee was roasted at home in a frying pan over a charcoal fire. It wasn’t until recent times that batch roasting became popular.

Caffeine Trivia 2.25.14

Coffee is the second largest traded commodity surpassed only by Oil, the world’s largest traded commodity.

Caffeine Trivia 02.24.14

Leading up to the American Revolution in December 1773, The “Boston Tea Party” was the historical event that began the shift in America to a coffee drinking nation. Tea was a more popular beverage, but the heavy tax on tea imposed on the American colonies by the British forced the adoption and ultimate national popularity of coffee as the number one consumed beverage in America.

Caffeine Trivia 02.23.14

Be careful with ANY supermarket coffee

As you browse the supermarket shelves, be careful about what you select. First, look for whole beans. If you buy ground coffee, you can be sure it won´t be as fresh as coffee you grind yourself. And if you buy tins of ground coffee, more often than not you´ll be buying a blend of all kinds of different coffees, some of which may have come from lower-quality beans. And when you buy bags of beans, make sure the packaging is air-tight and that the bag has a special one-way valve. (Sometimes hard to find – but these valves are usually on the front of the bag, near the top.)

Caffeine Trivia 02.22.14

Did you know?

Wine and lemonade merchants in Italy in the 1600s called coffee “Satan’s drink” due to its threat to their markets.  These merchants asked the Pope to issue an edict condemning coffee.  However, their plan backfired when Pope Clement VII tasted coffee, liked it, and baptized it to make it a Christian drink.

Caffeine Trivia 02.21.14

With whole beans you know what you´re getting

When you buy whole beans from a reputable source, you know what you´re buying. The trouble with a lot of ground coffees is that they contain a whole mix of different beans from different growing areas. And sometimes, when coffee prices go up, even big coffee companies will add cheaper coffee types to their ground blends, just to keep the price down.

Caffeine Trivia 02.20.14

Coffee Type for Cappuccino

A cappuccino is 1/3 espresso, 1/3 steamed milk, and 1/3 frothed milk.

Espresso doesn’t refer to a type of coffee, but rather the brewing method used to make it. Any type of coffee bean can be used, and which type–arabica or robusta–depends on your location and coffee establishment. In Italy, for example, many espresso blends are based on dark-roasted robusta.

Espresso is made by forcing water through coffee grounds under pressure.

Caffeine Trivia 02.19.14

Making Steamed Milk

To make steamed milk, also known as microfoam, for an espresso drink like cappuccino, you will need an espresso machine with a steam wand. 

How to steam/froth milk: 
– Fill a stainless steel milk pitcher with milk. 
– Place the steam wand in the pitcher and open the steam valve. 
– Put your steam valve hand under the pitcher so your palm touches the bottom of the pitcher 
– Place the steam tip just below the milk’s surface. If it’s too high, the bubbles will be too big, too low, you won’t get bubbles at all. The steam tip should be exactly in the middle so that tiny bubbles will rapidly expand the milk. Raise the wand as the milk expands. Be sure to listen for the whispering/hissing/sucking noise. 
– If the pitcher against your palm is body temperature (about 37 degrees Celsius), stop expanding the milk and lower the wand slowly into the milk. Whirl it over the bottom to heat the milk slightly. 
– If the pitcher against your palm becomes too hot to touch, turn off the steam, knock the pitcher gently on the counter, and whirl the milk slowly for a couple of seconds.