Whole Beans Coffee

Whole beans coffee is coffee that is in its natural state.  The coffee beans normally come already roasted to whatever roast you choose, and ready to grind for fresh brewed coffee.  Whole coffee beans are a better choice if you plan to store your coffee for longer periods of time.  Ground coffee is convenient and easy to use.  So which type should you purchase?

Whole beans coffee keeps its flavor longer than reground coffee. When the coffee beans are ground in a special coffee grinder, they release their essential oils which is a crucial step in the coffee brewing process.  If the beans are left in their whole state, they release their oils slower and stay fresh longer.  It is best to only purchase a few days worth of coffee beans at a time and only grind them right before you are ready to brew the coffee for the best, most fresh flavor.  However, if you are not able to purchase fresh coffee beans every few days, you can freeze your fresh coffee beans for up to two weeks.  Only take out as much as you need for every couple of days and return your beans back to the freezer as soon as possible.  It is best not to purchase more that two weeks of coffee at a time because, even in the freezer, the coffee can lose its freshness rather quickly.

Ground coffee is more convenient than whole beans coffee however, and in some parts of the country, ground coffee is the only kind of coffee people can get.  The bad thing about ground coffee is, while it may be more convenient, it goes stale much faster than whole coffee beans.  If you purchase ground coffee, you will need to use it within a couple of days or it will not be as flavorful as it should be.

When purchasing coffee, you can tell the quality of whole beans coffee better than you can with ready ground coffee grounds.  Fresh coffee beans will be closed (old beans crack open and leak oil so you will want to stay away from those) and have a slightly shiny coat on them.  Ready ground coffee can be mixed with old or cheap coffee beans and it is very hard to detect if the coffee is bad or not.

If you have made it your mission to brew the perfect cup of coffee, it should be said that investing in a quality coffee grinder and coffee maker are just as important as how you buy your coffee.  You will probably never brew a “perfect” cup of coffee using pre ground coffee and a regular drip coffee pot, but if you purchase a grinder and only purchase fresh, whole beans coffee, you may come close.  There are many theories on which type of coffee makers make the best coffee, so we will save that for another article.  But if you always start with fresh ground coffee beans, you will definitely improve your chances of brewing a cup of coffee that you can be proud of.

The variety of coffee roast you choose to drink will depend on the taste and robustness that you prefer when you drink a cup of coffee.  Many Europeans generally prefer a dark roast coffee, which is more intense and offers a stronger coffee flavor than a light or medium roast coffee.  In the United States however, most coffee drinkers prefer a medium roast variety.  Even when you enjoy your favorite specialty coffee from your local gourmet coffee shop, you are probably getting a more medium roast blend of coffee in your espresso, cappuccino or latte.

Roasting coffee beans is a complicated process which draws out the moisture, oils and other substances from the coffee bean.  The longer you roast the coffee beans, the more of a “woodsy” flavor it develops. A lighter roasted coffee will still have the sweetness from the beans natural liquids because they have not been in the roaster long enough to draw all of the substances to the surface.

If you enjoy the stronger coffee flavor or your favorite coffee shop’s coffee, you may enjoy trying out a darker roasted variety of coffee.  If you find the coffee’s flavor a bit overwhelming, you may want to try out some lighter roasted coffees available on the market.  With the availability of so many varieties and flavors of coffees on the market today, you can experiment with different blends and roasts until you find the ideal coffee for your palette.  Once you have found your ideal roast of coffee, try sampling coffees from different parts of the world, all within that roast variety, to get a real feel of how coffee is drank throughout the world.

The region in which the coffee is grown makes a big difference in how the finished product will taste.  Hawaiian Kona coffee will taste much different than a coffee imported from India, even though they both have been roasted to medium roast.  The way the coffee is roasted also has a big influence on how the medium roast coffee will taste.  Roasting coffee in an oven will produce a different flavor than those coffee beans roasted with open flame.

In general, the darker the roast the fuller the flavor of the coffee beans.  Lighter roasts are more acidic and have a sharper taste than their darker cousins.  A medium roasted coffee bean offers a nice, mild balance to the coffee that is most pleasing to most palettes. The variety of roast also effects how much caffeine remains in the coffee as well.  The darker the roast of coffee bean, the less caffeine actually stays in the bean.  This is another reason why most Americans find the medium roasted coffee bean to be the most universal.

Gourmet Coffee Maker

A gourmet coffee maker has increasingly become a common household item these days.  With the explosion of corner gourmet coffee shops, there has been a boom of interest in gourmet coffees.  Many consumers have discovered that with a great coffee maker they can brew their own coffee that tastes just as good or even better than the expensive coffee shop’s coffee for a mere fraction of the cost of a gourmet cup of java on the go.

It is always important to use the highest quality ingredients, including quality fresh ground coffee beans, fresh filtered water and the freshest cream or milk or flavoring. However, perhaps the most important tool in making the best coffee possible is the coffee maker.  The question is, which coffee maker produces the best coffee flavor and aroma?  Does a gourmet coffee maker make any better tasting coffee than a regular coffee maker?

A gourmet coffee maker usually performs a specific function such as making espresso.  These machines are great for consumers who enjoy espresso, lattes and cappuccinos.  If you are looking for just a good old cup of Joe, a gourmet coffee maker may not exactly be what you are looking for.

Both the gourmet coffee maker and a standard brew system have their uses, your decision will depend on what type of coffee you drink most often.  If you are a true coffee connoisseur, you may prefer the French press.  This type of coffee brewer is basically a glass jar which holds a plunger and a mesh filter.  To make the perfect cup of coffee with a French press, you will need to place freshly ground coffee into the jar and pour hot water over the top.  Place the lid on the jar and press the plunger down for 3-4 minutes.

Drip brewers are the most common of the coffee makers.  They are simple to use by easily putting ground coffee into a paper filter, filling reservoir with water, and letting a pot brew.  Drip brewer machines are a great convenience appliance, but the coffee goes rancid rather quickly in these machines.  If you want the best coffee when using a drip brewer, it must be consumed within an hour or so.

Single brew machines are great for convenience.  These machines brew one cup at a time so you can have a great fresh cup of coffee any time you want.  The disadvantages of these types of machines are that most of them require the user to purchase specific pre-sealed pods of their brand of coffee.

There are many more different types of coffee makers than these on the market.  It is important to do your research and make a decision about what type of machine will work best for your tastes and lifestyle.  Once you have made your decision, be sure to buy the highest quality machine you can afford and you will be sure to be sipping on the perfect cup of brew any time you feel like it.

Kona Blend Coffee

Kona blend coffee is simply a blend of coffees grown throughout the world with 100% Hawaiian grown Kona coffee. Kona blend coffee is popular because it gives consumers the flavor of Kona coffee without the very expensive price of pure Kona coffee. Kona coffee is only grown in the Hawaiian region, so it is not as available of a commodity as coffees grown throughout other regions of the world. This makes Kona coffee much more valuable than most other coffees. Kona coffee beans are some of the most expensive coffee beans available on the market today.

Kona coffee beans are known for their rich flavor, smooth texture and distinct aromas. Since there is such a limited supply of Kona coffee beans in the world, they are some of the most sought after commodities in the world.

Since pure Kona coffee is so expensive, roasters and retailers have long been blending this precious commodity with other varieties of coffees to develop many different varieties of Kona blend coffee. These blended varieties usually contain between 10%-20% Kona coffee that has been blended with imported coffees from other regions of the world.

By blending Kona coffee beans with other types of coffees, producers can create their own distinct coffees that are specific to that particular company. By doing so, the coffee roasters are able to produce more sales since their specific blend is only manufactured by them. However, there are many different varieties of Kona blend coffee products on the market, so a consumer may have to try many brands before deciding which brand produces a coffee blend that pleases their palette the most.

Coffee connoisseurs who prefer the flavor of pure Kona coffee, but do not want to pay the steep prices per cup can still get their Kona fix and save their wallets by purchasing Kona blend coffee varieties.

Blended Kona varieties are a great choice for those coffee connoisseurs who are looking for that perfect cup of coffee but do not necessarily want to pay for pure Kona coffee. These coffee blends still offer the full-bodied taste experience of their more expensive counterparts, but for less cost. While they are obviously different in taste and aroma than Kona coffee, they are an excellent choice for most coffee drinkers.

If plain coffee just isn’t your style, there are hundreds of Kona blend coffee flavors available as well. Some coffee retailers will even let their customers blend their own flavors to cater to their own tastes.

It is important to remember than many factors will influence the taste of coffee. Purchasing whole beans and grinding them yourself will create a different version of the same blend that was purchased pre-ground. The way in which the coffee is brewed will also affect the outcome of your coffee. A drip brewed coffee will taste different than a coffee that has been ran through a coffee press. Kona blend coffees come in many different varieties and roasts, so a consumer can choose just the right amount of robustness for their tastes.

Espresso Coffee

Most people aren’t aware of the origins of expresso coffee. Here’s a short but fascinating history of this popular coffee drink.

The Accidental Invention of Expresso Coffee

The owner of an Italian manufacturing business, Luigi Bezzera, is credited with inventing expresso coffee at the beginning of the 20th century. Luigi was looking for a way to make coffee brew faster, so he tried adding pressure to the brewing process. He was successful with his “Fast Coffee Machine” and there was an added bonus. In addition to brewing coffee faster, the coffee produced by his machine had a bolder, richer flavor. The faster extraction which his brewing method used actually resulted in a stronger cup of coffee. Luigi’s new machine came to be known as Expresso, which translates to “fast” in Italian.

The Marketing Success of Expresso Coffee

Desidero Pavoni purchased the rights to the expresso coffee machine from Luigi Bezzera. It was Pavoni’s marketing skill that really made expresso coffee popular. His efforts resulted in a change in coffee-drinking habits. The coffee shops which have appeared everywhere as new social gathering places all serve expresso coffee and owe a debt of gratitude to Desidero Pavoni.

Timeline for Development of Expresso Coffee

1901: A patent for the original expresso machine is granted to Luigi Bezzera. His original design was for a boiler and four containers.  Each container used a different size filter containing coffee.  As the water boiled, it was forced through the coffee filters and dispensed to a cup. This design included the process for making “fast” (or expresso) coffee.

1903: Desidero Pavoni saw the potential in the new fast coffee and purchased the patent rights from Bezzera.

1905: Pavoni’s company begins manufacturing expresso coffee machines. Pavoni used his marketing skills to make the expresso coffee machine popular.

1927: The first expresso machine appeared in America. Regio’s in New York was the site of the installation of a La Pavoni machine.

1938: A piston pump to force boiling water through coffee was designed by Cremonesi. The first installation was at Achille Gaggia’s coffee bar.

1946: Gaggia began manufacturing the commercial piston machine by Gaggia. It included layered foam or cream on expresso coffee.

Note: The correct words for “expresso coffee” should be “espresso coffee”. I wrote this article to catch those readers who may have typed the wrong ones in search engines. Are you one of them?

Bulk Coffee

What is a Bulk Coffee Program?

A bulk coffee program is a plan that will ship you a predetermined amount of coffee each month. The amounts vary, so make sure you find a plan which suits your needs. Begin by ordering a conservative amount to make sure you aren’t stuck with too much coffee on your hands. Most of the plans offer a house blend brand of coffee which may be imported from Sumatra, Kenya, Central America or South America.

If you buy bulk coffee online, you should be able to find it at a discount. But don’t just look at the discount price – also be sure to checking out what the shipping costs are. The shipping cost may be sizable since bulk coffee ships in bags weighing up to 25 pounds. One way to cut down on shipping costs is to find a local distributor. This will not only save money, but will also get your coffee to you faster. The last thing you want to do is to end up paying high overnight shipping costs for 25 pounds of bulk coffee.

Tips for Brewing Bulk Coffee

If you do own a restaurant, coffee house, or large business and are making a lot of coffee, be sure to use a commercial grade coffee machine for brewing your bulk coffee. A coffee maker designed for home use cannot make coffee fast enough and does not produce hot enough water for optimal brewing. Using very hot water is one of the secrets to the great coffee served at your favorite restaurant or coffee shop.

If you don’t consume a lot of coffee in a short amount of time, purchasing bulk coffee may not be your best option. The best cup of coffee comes from fresh beans, bought within the last month. You may save money with bulk coffee, but if it sits for several months before you use it up, you’ll be disappointed in the quality of your coffee.