Lifecycle of a coffee bean
The coffee bean begins life as a seed inside a protective husk called a cherry. Coffee cherries grow on plants ranging in height from 12-16 feet. The two main coffee tree categories are Arabica and Robusta and they are very, very different. Arabica plants are delicate and grow at elevations of 3,500-7,000 feet. Arabicas grow best under moderate conditions and yield one crop per year. Robusta plants, in contrast, are hearty, grow at low elevations, able to withstand more extreme weather conditions. To read more link here
Harvesting / quality control
Coffee cherries must be picked individually – during harvest, coffee farms come alive with troops of tireless pickers. Many pickers are migrants traveling from farm to farm for food, lodging, and a small wage. As these remote mountain paradises can be dangerous, work is done in groups to protect pickers from thieves and natural predators. At the end of the day burrows, mules, and workers file down the mountain trails for the main road with sacks and barrels of beans on their shoulders and head. To read more link here
Processing
Coffee processing is the art of transforming freshly picked coffee cherries into what we know as green coffee beans. While processing isn’t regularly discussed it plays a determining role in a bean’s flavor profile. During processing, nearly all of the material surrounding the cherry’s seed is removed and the seed is dried until it reaches a humidity content of 11%. How the material is removed depends on the type of processing. To understand processing, it’s important to understand the anatomy of a coffee cherry. To read more link here
The art of roasting
Roasting is as much a skill as it is an art of balance, instinct, and control. For the home roasting newbies among you, on the most basic level, roasting is the process of removing moisture from the bean until you achieve the desired balance of sugars, acids, and carbonization. As the beans roast they darken, drop water weight, expand, and generate natural CO2. To learn more link here
The proper grind
As coffee lovers, we often devote a great deal of time uncovering the nuances of bean origin, shape, flavor, texture, roast, etc. but rarely think about what happens next — the grind. After bean quality and roast, the grind you chose has the biggest impact on the overall quality of your brew. Using grinds that are too fine can morph a fabulous roast into a gritty, thick mess while grinds that are too coarse can result in a watered-down, disappointing cup. Sadness. To learn more link here
Best brewing practices
Want to know the secret to brewing the best cup of coffee? Experiment and find out what pleases your taste buds most! We would love to say there is one perfect way to brew or one best way to brew a particular bean but last we checked, our opinion was just that – an opinion, not a fact. There are many time-tested, wonderful methods you can use to brew a magnificent cup of coffee. Below is a summary of the most common brew methods broken down into brew types: filtration, immersion, and pressure. To learn more link here
