How You Can Have A Remarkable Cup Of Gourmet Coffee

For a truly wonderful cup of gourmet coffee, there are several important preparation and storage tips you should adhere to. The flavor of roasted coffee can easily be affected by its environment. Factors including sunlight, moisture, oxidation and odors can quickly modify the inherent taste and flavor of the coffee bean. Therefore, a good place to store your coffee is within a glass or ceramic container that includes a tight seal. Ceramic containers work very well because they keep out sunlight. Stay away from using any metal or plastic storage containers due to the fact that they have a tendency to retain the odors from the previous contents thereby potentially effecting the flavor. You also want to stay away from freezing your coffee beans. The essential oils in the beans when frozen tend to move to the surface which could become stuck within your coffee bean grinder and then possibly get lost in the coffee making process.

The best coffee is definitely the coffee that is ground right before use. There are two kinds of gourmet grinders in the marketplace: burr and blade grinders. The burr grinders with their conical shape are more effective because the beans are funneled into the burrs, which generates less heat. The coffee taste can be altered with too much heat.

It does come down to a matter of taste, whether you prefer stronger and richer or lighter and smoother, when it comes to exactly how much coffee to use for brewing. Most coffee purveyors suggest two tablespoons of ground coffee for every six ounces of water. A bolder, deeper coffee demands less water, say four to five ounces for the two tablespoons of ground coffee beans. To see where your taste lies, test out several ratios.

When it comes to the coffee making process, the coffee machine itself plays a vital part. It is extremely important to regularly clean and service your coffee maker. Bear in mind, if you are using it daily, it will most likely be the most used appliance in the house and should always remain clean. Using a full pot of water with one cup of white vinegar, once a month run this through the machine. This helps clean it from the inside. Once this has been run through the coffee brewer without using the filter, it will be necessary to run three pots of cold water through as well to remove all the left over vinegar and to ensure it has been thoroughly rinsed out. Newer coffee brewers will serve a dual purpose, that of a coffee maker and also of a coffee carafe. Given it keeps the coffee in your pot hot, this is a nice feature where the coffee is always warm yet does not get too hot whereas to burn. The best temperature for brewing is suggested to be between 195 and 205 degrees and it really should take about 5 minutes for the cycle.

Several levels of development take place when roasting gourmet coffee. The foremost is the raw, green unroasted bean. Seeds pulped from the coffee are dried and skinned. Next, the coffee beans are put into a roaster which transfers heat to the beans and they begin to pale. As they continue to dehydrate, they will begin to yellow but the bean has not yet started to expand. This will all result in the bean's first crack where they will take on a fragrance, similar to hay. When a 345 degree temperature is met, the beans will turn a brownish color and smell much like toasted bread would. At 370 degrees, the beans are expanding and a visible crack can be seen as the bean begins to open. The brown color of the bean darkens until you hear the sound of something similar to corn popping. The coffee bean has cracked! The bean will be ready to ground very soon and a fantastic cup of gourmet coffee can be savored.