The Pursuit Of Perfection
Achieving the perfect cup

Brewing a “perfect” cup of coffee is actually fairly simple if you follow these rules. The better you follow them, the closer you will be to achieving coffee bliss and joining the ranks of coffee coinsure.

The Bean

Apart from selecting the right bean, roasting is an extremely important step in getting to that perfect cup of coffee.
Unroasted coffee is called "green". Green coffee (stored properly) has a shelf life of about one year. Once roasted it deteriorates quickly. When first packaged, using good packaging, the roasted bean can last for several weeks. Once it is opened, though, it should be consumed within two weeks. Ground coffee however, loses a considerable amount of its aromatics and flavor in just a couple of days.
Roasting is normally done in the 370° to 450°F range for 8 to 20 minutes, depending on the volume and type of beans being roasted. There is literally hundreds of naturally occurring chemical compounds that make up the composition of green coffee. Some of these are oils, complex polysaccharides, sugars, starches, fats, waxes, and others. Some are broken down by the heat and driven off. Many compounds extracted during brewing are not present in green coffee at all. They actually develop as the coffee is roasted. Some are starches, which are converted into sugar. The sugar, when caramelized, causes in part the brown color of the coffee.
As roasting progresses, additional complex proteins and organic acids are broken down and transformed. The bean develops further in size and becomes a darker brown.  At this time the beans expand considerably (140 to 160% of their original size) and cause a “popping” sound, similar to popcorn. This is referred to as the first crack. To produce the darker roasts, the beans are left in the roaster for a longer period of time. As the temperature continues to build, the aromatic oils volatilize and boil toward the surface, causing a second crack that sounds similar to the snapping of toothpicks.
Finally the roast master determines that the roast is done. The beans are emptied from the roasting drum into the cooling bin. In the cooling bin the beans are cooled down rapidly to stop further development and loss of aromatics.
The roast master has to be the equivalent of an artist at their trade. They pay attention to the color, smell, and sound of the beans, and knows the precise moment when to drop the beans out of the roaster.

 

Coffee should be stored as whole bean in a clean, dry, airtight container, in a cool, dark place. Beans, ideally, will only be ground right before the coffee is brewed.
Never store your coffee in the refrigerator. Coffee will absorb flavors and aromas from other food products in your refrigerator. Freezing coffee can also have a damaging effect, and we do not recommend this practice unless you will not use-up your supply of coffee for a prolonged period of time [two weeks or more].

 

Cupping is a method of systematically evaluating the aroma and taste of coffee beans.  Growers, buyers and roasters to assess the quality of a particular coffee sample often use cupping. Proper cupping requires following an exacting set of brewing standards and a formal step-by-step evaluation process. An expert cupper generally looks at six characteristics:

• Fragrance - the smell of beans after grinding
• Aroma - the smell of ground-up beans after being steeped in water
• Taste - the flavor of the coffee
• Nose - the vapors released by the coffee in the mouth
• Aftertaste - the vapors and flavors that remain after swallowing
• Body - the feel of the coffee in the mouth

* Cupping information as provided by the (SCAA)

 

1. Brewing - To achieve the flavor you desire, you must first choose the right brewing method. There are six basic methods of brewing:
   • Steeping – a method such as used with the French press.
   • Decoction – boiling the coffee and water together to extract the coffee flavors (Turkish coffee method is one)
   • Percolation – I think most of us have seen a percolator, considered by most aficionados as possibly the worst way to make coffee! 
   • Drip Filtration – The most popular way to brew coffee in the US today.
   • Vacuum Filtration – this is where you have 2 specialized containers. The bottom one has the water, and the top has the coffee grounds. The water is brought to a boil, as the pressure builds it forces the water up into the upper container where it “brews” the coffee and then as it cools it is drawn back through a filter, into the lower container.
   • Pressurized Infusion – Just think espresso, cappuccino, latte’ etc.
2. Water - With all of the above methods you must start with High-Quality Water: In general, water that contains 50 - 100 parts per million of dissolved minerals will produce the best-tasting coffee.
3. Water temperature is extremely important. When brewing coffee (manual or automatic drip and French press) the water temperature should be between 196 and 204 deg F.
   If using a manual drip, wet the grounds, let them swell, then continue to pour the rest of the water over the grounds Unfortunately most drip coffee makers used in American homes do not get hot enough. We recommend the Technivorm Moccamaster, which is certified by the Specialty Coffee Association of America  (SCAA). If you don’t want to shell out $185.00, we recommend, among drip style coffeemakers, Cuisinart Brew Central (about $57 - $85), Kitchen Aid’s Pro 10 ($100), both 12-cup models, and 10-cup Melitta Perfect Taste ($24), were very close.
4. Grind - A Coffee Grind That Matches the Brewing Time:
   To prevent under- or over-extracting the flavor from the beans, you must match the right particle size (grind) with the right brewing time. In general, longer brewing times should be paired with larger particles and shorter brewing times with smaller particles.
5. Equipment - Proper grinding equipment – Use a burr grinder for a more consistent grind size. Blade grinders do not process coffee to a uniform size, so you can be over extracting the coffee and under extracting the coffee in the same pot.
6. Filtering - Use a good quality filter medium to separate the beverage from the grounds.

 

E-mail: info@catalinaroastedbean.com.com