Coffee
is the second most traded commodity in the world coming
only after oil. It was averaging a global turnover
of about US$10 billion annually before the collapse
of the economic clauses of the I.C.O. agreement on
3rd July 1989.
It
is also recognised as the most traded commodity internationally
from a social point of view.
All
operations involved in coffee trade from seedling
to cup are many and varied. The ultimate result is
a cup of coffee on somebody's table at the consumer's
end somewhere on the globe.
Whatever
care that has gone into the consignment right from
the farmer, the handling agents, the shippers, the
transporters and the processors etc. etc., if the
brewing is not done correctly then the efforts of
many, many people go down the drain as the consumer
shall comment "this is a bad cup of coffee".
What a waste!
It
is imperative therefore that brewing guidelines be
followed as much as possible especially when handling
high quality coffee, like Gibs coffee, to ensure that
the consumer appreciates the effort that has brought
his cup of quality coffee to the table.
That
is the only way to guarantee repeat business to the
cafeteria and hence increased consumption of quality
coffee world wide.
The
quality of brewed coffee, particularly when served
in public places, is affected by many factors— from
quality of the green coffee beans, to processing practices
and brewing procedures. When brewing coffee, it is
important to follow basic rules-as selecting the correct
particle size for the brewing method used, provided
that quality of the water used for brewing is of the
recommended standard, and using the correct ratio
of coffee to water.
It
also important to avoid holding brewed coffee on a
hot plate for long periods of time, re-heating brewed
coffee, pouring freshly brewed coffee on top of old
coffee or using ground coffee already extracted.
Several
studies have investigated the effect of some of the
above factors on the final quality of a cup of coffee.
Segall and Proctor (1967) for example investigated
the influence of temperature and holding time. They
used one, three, six and twenty four hour intervals
finding that hedonic responses were significantly
inferior at the shortest interval (one hour) for the
four temperatures tested (63° C, 73° C, 83°Cand93°C).
Pangborn
(1982) carried research on coffee beverages held
at 600C or 80° C for up to 3 hours.
She reported significant changes in visual attributes
such as colour, surface characteristics and turbidity
such as coffee strength, bitterness, burnt and overall
hedonic response.
In
the sensory evaluation of coffee as with many other
products, the old traditional usage of expert oriented
hedonic questionnaires is being replaced by more objective
assessments of quality related parameters using profiling
techniques.
Some
recommended brewing methods
1.
In an ordinary ear then ware jug—(The jug method) An excellent
and simple method.
a) Place
the required quantity of freshly ground coffee (four
heaped dessert spoons per pint of water) into previously
warmed jug.
b) Pour
on freshly boiling water and stir thoroughly with
a wooden spoon.
c) Keeping
the jug warm, allow the coffee to stand for six minutes
to brew and settle.
d) Skim
the froth from top, if required decant into another
jug through a fine mesh strainer or serve directly
from the original jug, again through a strainer taking
care not to disturb the grounds which have settled
at the bottom of the jug.
e) Add
milk (hot but not boiling), cream or sugar to taste,
if necessary, otherwise an excellent brew taken neat.
2.
By means of a percolator
a) Remove
lid and container.
b) Pour
necessary quantity of fresh cold water into the foot
of the percolator.
c) Fit
lid firmly.
d) Place
on heat.
e) When
water boils, reduce heat to allow the coffee to percolate
gently for six to eight minutes.
f) Remove
from heat and serve.
3.
By means of a dripolator
a) Boiling
water from the above passes through the ground coffee.
b) The
liquid then percolating through a cloth, paper or metal
strainer drips into the container below.
c) Serve
as required.
How
to store Gibs coffee
As
roasted coffee soon looses its aroma and flavour, it
is best to buy it freshly roasted and put it in an air
tight jar or tin with a grease proof paper lining. Store
in a cool place preferably store ground and/or roasted
coffee beans in the fridge.
The
use of a small coffee grinding mill will be found of
great value, as by this means the coffee can be obtained
as roasted beans and ground only when required, thus
ensuring absolute freshness.
Proprietary
brands purchased in vacuum packed tins will be found
to be absolutely fresh on opening but will rapidly loose
their aroma and become stale if the lid is not firmly
replaced after use.
Common
mistakes in brewing coffee
Provided that the coffee used is of good quality and
correctly roasted in the first instance, the mistakes
most usual in preparation may be summed up as follows:
1. The
use of too little coffee, making a weak and insipid
brew; or the use of too much coffee, resulting in bitterness.
2. The
milk should be hot, not boiling or boiled.
3. Failure
to wait long enough (6 minutes) for the coffee grounds
to settle, or bad straining. Both these faults cause
coffee in the cup to be thick and muddy and very unpleasant
to taste. Well-made coffee should be as clear as a glass
of wine.
4. The
use of water that has not been brought thoroughly to
the boil causing weakness.
5.
Allowing the coffee to boil. This is
an error that should be carefully avoided. Coffee boiled
is coffee spoiled.
6. Omitting
to keep a lid on the pot or vessel in which the coffee
is being made, thus allowing the valuable aroma, i.e.
the strength to be wasted in the air.
7. The
use of stale coffee. Stale coffee should never be mixed
with fresh. Ground coffee goes stale in a day or two;
roasted berry keeps longer.
8. Use
no additives. Good quality freshly roasted coffee has
a delicate flavour—do not spoil it.
having more fun with coffee
|
