So I tried the last of my Kauai-Reserve coffee I roasted on Friday, you can read about the roast attempt here. The first pot I brewed didn’t turn out well I was using the coffee brewer at work, and me and this particular Bunn auto-drip do not always get along. Today went much better using my stovetop espresso maker.
I was surprised how this roast tasted. It was clean yet rich with chocolate and caramel tones. This batch of coffee had the taste of a darker roasted coffee even though it was roasted just a shade past cinnamon. It was a truly enjoyable cup of coffee, but as I predicted it had a touch of bitterness in the finish, because of the extended roast time.
I am anxious to give this origin another shot. I am going to roast on the stovetop next time. I think having greater control over temperature throughout the roast of this coffee will allow me to remedy the problems with bitterness. The fact that this cup was not only drinkable but actually enjoyable after the raost fiasco, has sold me on Hawiian coffee and the price tag it comes with.
Sunday, August 16, 2009
Saturday, August 15, 2009
Is It Normal to Watch Latte Art Videos on Youtube for an Hour
So I spent the last hour on Youtube watching latte art videos because I am such a cool person. I have to admit that even when I had my coffee shop and was pulling espresso shots twelve hours a day I was never that good at latte art, something that always upset me. I see latte art as a true measure of a barista’s skills. Don’t get me wrong I was able to pull a great shot of espresso and steam milk; it was just that my art was more abstract in nature.
I was really impressed with some of the videos that are circulating right now. I have always been a bit obsessed with latte art and considered myself a bit of a purist. I believe that the barista should only get to manipulate the milk when it is being poured. No, going back and defining lines with chocolate sauce or things of that nature.
After watching a few videos today I may have changed my mind a bit. I am still not a big fan of using chocolate sauce, but I think I may be coming around on some slight manipulation of the foam.
This barista’s latte art bear really impressed me. The barista does manipulate the foam some after pour the milk but the bulk of the latte art is complete and it is only some small detail he adds. The most impressive part is that he completed all the shading during the pour.
I was really impressed with some of the videos that are circulating right now. I have always been a bit obsessed with latte art and considered myself a bit of a purist. I believe that the barista should only get to manipulate the milk when it is being poured. No, going back and defining lines with chocolate sauce or things of that nature.
After watching a few videos today I may have changed my mind a bit. I am still not a big fan of using chocolate sauce, but I think I may be coming around on some slight manipulation of the foam.
This barista’s latte art bear really impressed me. The barista does manipulate the foam some after pour the milk but the bulk of the latte art is complete and it is only some small detail he adds. The most impressive part is that he completed all the shading during the pour.
Friday, August 14, 2009
Great Instrunctional Video on Steaming Milk
Found a great step by step video on steaming milk. I was thinking about it after listening to the conversation in the wine/coffee bar I wrote about on Thursday and thought I would post something that was actually informative on the subject. I thought about writing a long winded article on the step by step instructions, but learning to steam milk is really a visual process (or maybe I’m just being lazy).
Okay I won’t be completely lazy and offer some general advice for learning to steam milk for cappuccinos and lattes (you steam the milk for cappuccinos and lattes the same, the difference is in how you pour it.)
The first step when learning to steam milk is to go out and by a couple of gallons of milk. Your going to waste a lot of milk in the beginning. I would suggest starting with skim milk to build your confidence and move up to whole milk when you are comfortable with the milk steaming process, plus skim is usually cheaper. When you steam milk a chemical process takes place that the fat in milk plays an integral part in. This is why whole milk is an infinitely richer when steamed but also harder to steam properly.
Okay so you have your milk. At this point I am going to let the video do most of the explaining since I think it covers all the steps pretty well. I will add a couple notes first, though. The demonstrator does not use a thermometer. It is possible after steaming lots of milk to determine when to stop by the sound the milk makes, but in the beginning stick to using a thermometer to avoid burning your milk. The other note and this is personal preference is that I felt the demonstrator emphasized the tapping a little too much. It is helpful to knock the pitcher against the counter a couple of times, but doing this too much or too hard can have an adverse effect on your steamed milk.
This video is geared a little more towards training a professional barista, but I think it is just as informative for the home barista
Okay I won’t be completely lazy and offer some general advice for learning to steam milk for cappuccinos and lattes (you steam the milk for cappuccinos and lattes the same, the difference is in how you pour it.)
The first step when learning to steam milk is to go out and by a couple of gallons of milk. Your going to waste a lot of milk in the beginning. I would suggest starting with skim milk to build your confidence and move up to whole milk when you are comfortable with the milk steaming process, plus skim is usually cheaper. When you steam milk a chemical process takes place that the fat in milk plays an integral part in. This is why whole milk is an infinitely richer when steamed but also harder to steam properly.
Okay so you have your milk. At this point I am going to let the video do most of the explaining since I think it covers all the steps pretty well. I will add a couple notes first, though. The demonstrator does not use a thermometer. It is possible after steaming lots of milk to determine when to stop by the sound the milk makes, but in the beginning stick to using a thermometer to avoid burning your milk. The other note and this is personal preference is that I felt the demonstrator emphasized the tapping a little too much. It is helpful to knock the pitcher against the counter a couple of times, but doing this too much or too hard can have an adverse effect on your steamed milk.
This video is geared a little more towards training a professional barista, but I think it is just as informative for the home barista
Hawiian Kuai-Reserve Roast Attempt #1
I just finished roasting 100 grams of Hawaiian Kauai-Reserve from Burman Coffee Trader’s. I roasted in two separate batches since my Sonofresco is still out of service.
I should probably take this opportunity to update everyone on the Sonofresco refurbishing project. Everything was going swimmingly until I ran into a few seized hex bolts. They have been stripping all my Allen wrenches. Hopefully I can get to the hardware store soon and resolve the problem. So in the mean time I was relegated to my popcorn popper.
Okay back to the Kauai-Reserve. I was unable to get the beans to reach second crack and called it off at about thirteen minutes. This roaster usually brings coffee beans to a French roast in less than ten minutes. The Hawaiian Kauai-Reserve coffee beans were just past a cinnamon when I stopped the roast. They must be an incredibly dense bean. I think these green beans would have done better on the stove top in my whirly pop. Oh, well I will let them set and see how the taste. I suspect they will be better since I let them roast so long without progression.
Kind of bummed about it since I was looking forward to trying this origin, I will try again tomorrow on the stove top. Sorry no pictures either, down to my camera phone right now and could not get pictures to upload.
To Read the review of this coffee roast click here.
I should probably take this opportunity to update everyone on the Sonofresco refurbishing project. Everything was going swimmingly until I ran into a few seized hex bolts. They have been stripping all my Allen wrenches. Hopefully I can get to the hardware store soon and resolve the problem. So in the mean time I was relegated to my popcorn popper.
Okay back to the Kauai-Reserve. I was unable to get the beans to reach second crack and called it off at about thirteen minutes. This roaster usually brings coffee beans to a French roast in less than ten minutes. The Hawaiian Kauai-Reserve coffee beans were just past a cinnamon when I stopped the roast. They must be an incredibly dense bean. I think these green beans would have done better on the stove top in my whirly pop. Oh, well I will let them set and see how the taste. I suspect they will be better since I let them roast so long without progression.
Kind of bummed about it since I was looking forward to trying this origin, I will try again tomorrow on the stove top. Sorry no pictures either, down to my camera phone right now and could not get pictures to upload.
To Read the review of this coffee roast click here.
Thursday, August 13, 2009
Coffee Rant
So I am sitting in a wine/coffee bar right now. It is very nice, but maybe a little too trendy and hip and ultimately cold for its own good. I like wine/coffee bars, partly because of the crowd they draw. I am sitting next to two men and a woman. One of the men is trying so hard to impress his companions with his knowledge of coffee and everything else. He was explaining the difference between steaming milk and what he referred to as foaming the milk. He told his friends that steaming was a process that used steam and foaming used air. I think what he meant was frothing not foaming milk. Steaming and frothing are indeed two separate processes used to create foam in milk. He then proceeded to talk about all other kinds of nonsense from the origin of the Americano to the best way to hang cabinets.
Of course however humorous I find his stories, I have to concede to fact. Coffee culture is rife with misinformation and conflicting definitions. The second is as I sit here alone in a wine bar on a Thursday night drinking some weird rotation of coffee and beer, can I really talk that much smack?
Of course however humorous I find his stories, I have to concede to fact. Coffee culture is rife with misinformation and conflicting definitions. The second is as I sit here alone in a wine bar on a Thursday night drinking some weird rotation of coffee and beer, can I really talk that much smack?
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
How to pick a coffee roaster
Thought I would write a quick article on picking a coffee roaster, not a actual roaster but a company that roasts coffee. I truly believe that finding a coffee roaster you can develop a relationship with can enrich your coffee drinking experience. Finding a knowledgeable and passionate coffee roaster with an operation small enough that they have time to take out and talk and educated their customers is so important. Coffee roasters are wealth of coffee knowledge, and generally cool people.
So what should you look for when picking a coffee roaster?
There are a few elements I think are important when picking a coffee roaster. They should be local, fair trade, and passionate.
A local coffee roaster has many benefits for the consumer. The first is they will be able to get your coffee to you much quicker which means the coffee will be fresher. Many small coffee roasters will take orders on Monday, roast on Wednesday, and deliver on Friday. This means your coffee was roasted to order and is as fresh as possible. This means tastier coffee. The second way a local roaster benefits you is by contributing to your local economy, which is the economy that affects you the most.
You should look for roasters that offer fair trade coffee. It may not be realistic to find a roaster that offers exclusively fair trade or organic coffee, but they should at least be making an honest effort and appear to be responsible coffee purchasers. By doing this you are contributing to the economy of others and making it more fair and sustainable.
Passionate and knowledgeable, this one is a little tricky since it would be hard to find a coffee roaster that didn’t claim to be passionate about coffee. I would recommend finding a roaster that is small enough you can talk with those involved in the roasting process. You will be able to tell if they truly care about the coffee they are producing or if they are just punching the clock. Ask questions about the coffee they roast. Do they know what the climate conditions where affecting the crops they purchased from? Are they knowledgeable about the regions and farms their coffee is grown on? Even if you can’t meet with them in person send an email or call them on the phone. A good coffee roaster is always happy to talk about coffee.
I want to point out to that I think it is important to try coffee from different roasters. Of course this all take a back seat to taste. That is the point of coffee after all. If you find a coffee roaster over the internet that you can’t get enough of, then who I am I to tell you to switch.
So what should you look for when picking a coffee roaster?
There are a few elements I think are important when picking a coffee roaster. They should be local, fair trade, and passionate.
A local coffee roaster has many benefits for the consumer. The first is they will be able to get your coffee to you much quicker which means the coffee will be fresher. Many small coffee roasters will take orders on Monday, roast on Wednesday, and deliver on Friday. This means your coffee was roasted to order and is as fresh as possible. This means tastier coffee. The second way a local roaster benefits you is by contributing to your local economy, which is the economy that affects you the most.
You should look for roasters that offer fair trade coffee. It may not be realistic to find a roaster that offers exclusively fair trade or organic coffee, but they should at least be making an honest effort and appear to be responsible coffee purchasers. By doing this you are contributing to the economy of others and making it more fair and sustainable.
Passionate and knowledgeable, this one is a little tricky since it would be hard to find a coffee roaster that didn’t claim to be passionate about coffee. I would recommend finding a roaster that is small enough you can talk with those involved in the roasting process. You will be able to tell if they truly care about the coffee they are producing or if they are just punching the clock. Ask questions about the coffee they roast. Do they know what the climate conditions where affecting the crops they purchased from? Are they knowledgeable about the regions and farms their coffee is grown on? Even if you can’t meet with them in person send an email or call them on the phone. A good coffee roaster is always happy to talk about coffee.
I want to point out to that I think it is important to try coffee from different roasters. Of course this all take a back seat to taste. That is the point of coffee after all. If you find a coffee roaster over the internet that you can’t get enough of, then who I am I to tell you to switch.
Sunday, August 9, 2009
Dulce Moldova: The Unofficial Coffee Drink of Moldova
I just returned from an incredible trip to Moldova, a country situated between Romania and the Ukraine. Moldova is traditionally known for its wine, which was very good, but this is not a wine blog.
The coffee culture of Moldova is interesting. On the one hand there are no shortages of coffeehouses. On the other there is an abundance of instant coffee. Over the years I have come to realize that many of the rituals and. To me it is the coffee equivalent of licking the bottom of an ashtray, but I digress. nuisances coffee enthusiast undertake have only a marginal effect on the taste of coffee and can forgive the average coffee drinker for not caring about them. Instant coffee is not one of those things. It truly makes me retch
Other than the instant coffee, Moldovans actually treat coffee with a great amount of respect. They love coffee and drink it often, but you will not find quick service coffee shop were people rush in and out. The coffee houses are places to meet, relax and enjoy coffee with friends. Of course it does it hurt that they all serve alcoholic beverages as well.
All the coffee houses I visited had a wait staff and menus at the table (I would like to note that as a former coffee shop owner, I have great respect for any coffee shop owner that has table service at their establishment since makes running a profitable shop very difficult.) On the other hand I actually saw Nescafe instant coffee on the coffee shop menu.
The Region was at one time occupied by the Ottomans so Turkish coffee is quite popular and done well. Espresso based drinks were a little more hit and miss, but overall very good. My one complaint would be that latte based drinks seemed to be made with skim milk as the default. Personally, I don’t feel a cappuccino can be made properly without whole milk.
One coffee house served a drink called the Dulce Moldova, or sweet Moldova. The waitress insisted I try it. It was made with drip coffee, hazelnut syrup, and some kind of brandy I think. It was topped with whip cream and some crushed nuts. It sounded alright on paper, but the flavors did not come together, and it gave me heart burn before I had swallowed any. On the other hand my girlfriend’s drink was coffee condensed milk and I can’t remember the third ingredient (sorry I’m a bad blogger.) It had strong citrus tones and was more deserving of the name Dulce Moldova
On my way back to the States, I flew through Moscow, I did drink coffee there but it was only in the airport and I would not want someone judging the coffee in the United States based one shot of espresso they had at the airport so I am not going to do that to another country. I’ll leave it at that.
Sadly I had the opportunity to go to Turkey but had to cut my trip short to return to work. My girlfriend has been sending me reports of all the incredible coffee I’m missing out, maybe next year.
The coffee culture of Moldova is interesting. On the one hand there are no shortages of coffeehouses. On the other there is an abundance of instant coffee. Over the years I have come to realize that many of the rituals and. To me it is the coffee equivalent of licking the bottom of an ashtray, but I digress. nuisances coffee enthusiast undertake have only a marginal effect on the taste of coffee and can forgive the average coffee drinker for not caring about them. Instant coffee is not one of those things. It truly makes me retch
Other than the instant coffee, Moldovans actually treat coffee with a great amount of respect. They love coffee and drink it often, but you will not find quick service coffee shop were people rush in and out. The coffee houses are places to meet, relax and enjoy coffee with friends. Of course it does it hurt that they all serve alcoholic beverages as well.
All the coffee houses I visited had a wait staff and menus at the table (I would like to note that as a former coffee shop owner, I have great respect for any coffee shop owner that has table service at their establishment since makes running a profitable shop very difficult.) On the other hand I actually saw Nescafe instant coffee on the coffee shop menu.
The Region was at one time occupied by the Ottomans so Turkish coffee is quite popular and done well. Espresso based drinks were a little more hit and miss, but overall very good. My one complaint would be that latte based drinks seemed to be made with skim milk as the default. Personally, I don’t feel a cappuccino can be made properly without whole milk.
One coffee house served a drink called the Dulce Moldova, or sweet Moldova. The waitress insisted I try it. It was made with drip coffee, hazelnut syrup, and some kind of brandy I think. It was topped with whip cream and some crushed nuts. It sounded alright on paper, but the flavors did not come together, and it gave me heart burn before I had swallowed any. On the other hand my girlfriend’s drink was coffee condensed milk and I can’t remember the third ingredient (sorry I’m a bad blogger.) It had strong citrus tones and was more deserving of the name Dulce Moldova
On my way back to the States, I flew through Moscow, I did drink coffee there but it was only in the airport and I would not want someone judging the coffee in the United States based one shot of espresso they had at the airport so I am not going to do that to another country. I’ll leave it at that.
Sadly I had the opportunity to go to Turkey but had to cut my trip short to return to work. My girlfriend has been sending me reports of all the incredible coffee I’m missing out, maybe next year.
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