Arabica Coffee Plant

Arabica coffee gets its name from Arabia.  Legend has it that around 500-600 A.D. a goat herder on the Arabian peninsula named Kaldi observed his goats eating a berry and their behavior became very lively.  He decided to try the berry as well and felt the same energy as his goats.

Scientific evidence proves otherwise.   Kaffa, now known as Ethiopia, is where coffee beans were first grown and then transported to Yemen.  It could be that the word coffee came from the word Kaffa.  Believing the coffee came from Arabia it became known as Arabica.

With more than forty species of plants in the Coffea genus only two are viable to make coffee, Coffea Arabica and Coffea canephora the later known as Robusta.  Arabica is the better quality of the two.

Kaldi and the Dancing Goat

Robusta tends to be bitter, has less body and a musty flavor.  It is higher in caffeine.  In France the coffee blend is 55 percent Arabica and 45 percent Robusta.  Italians add in 10 percent Robusta to get a better crema head on espresso.

Eighty percent of all coffee produced in the world is Arabica.   It prefers a higher elevation and drier climate than Robusta to grow.  South America has ideal conditions for growing Arabica coffee beans at 3,000 to 6,500 feet.  The higher elevation causes a slower plant maturity giving it time to develop the oils that give it the distinct aromatic flavor people love.

Within the C. Arabica species there are three varieties; Typica, Bourbon and Caturra.  The sub-species have been bred to adapt to specific growing regions and to be resistant to disease and insects of those areas.  There are subtle differences in taste, acidity and body.

C. Arabica is self-pollinating unlike C. Robusta and perhaps why it is more a prolific producer throughout the world.  Theoretically it does better at high elevations where bees are scarce and not active where as C. Robusta prefers a hotter climate where the bees are abundant.

Technorati Tags: Arabica coffee, coffee, Types of coffee beans

Peter J. Schlumbohm, Ph.D

As you might have guessed, the Chemex was invented by a chemist.  In 1941 Peter J. Schlumbohm, Ph.D was inspired to create the Chemex coffee maker.

Born in 1896 in Germany, a graduate of the University of Berlin, he moved to New York City in 1936.  A prolific inventor he holds over 3,000 patents.  Fusing a glass funnel and an Erlenmeyer flask he modified them to include an air channel and a pouring spout. This displaced air from the dripping water bypassing the filter paper.

The famous “bellybutton” bubble mark shows the halfway mark of the bottom of the coffee pot.  Made of borosilicate glass the Chemex is laboratory grade and heat proof.

Simple and elegant, the Chemex only requires a filter, coffee and hot water.  You can accessorize with a wire grid for electric stovetops, a glass cover to keep the coffee warm, a long handled brush to clean, and a wooden collar to safely grip.

In 1956 the Chemex was selected by the Illinois Institute of Technology as one of the best-designed items in modern times.  It is in permanent collections in MOMA, New York City, the Smithsonian, the Philadelphia Museum and the Corning Museum, NY.  It has been recognized as an outstanding example of American Design.

Simple, elegant and a great cup of coffee can be enjoyed with the Chemex.

Technorati Tags: chemex, coffee, coffee maker

Melitta

German housewife Melitta Bentz from Dresden thought there was a better way.  And in 1908 it occurred to her one day, “Why not use paper to filter out what I don’t want in my coffee?” 

Inspired, she took a brass coffee pot and poked a few holes in the bottom and lined it with blotting paper from her son’s notebook and voila the Melitta coffee filter was born.

The result was a filtered cup of coffee minus the grounds and the bitterness.  She knew her invention was brilliant and applied for a patent in Berlin which was granted on July 8, 1908.   It was called “Filter Top Device lined with Filter Paper”.  Not too catchy but the 35-year old created the Melitta Bentz Company knowing she was on to something.

Consequent improvements came onto the market.   The cone-shape developed in the 1930’s which had a larger filtration area and ribbed lining.  With environmental issues at hand the natural brown filter was born in 1989.  The white filter remained popular and in 1992 a new bleaching method was developed using an oxygen-cleansed filter paper. 

In 1997 Flavor Pores™ was developed with microfine pores offering a tastier cup of coffee and released in 1999 to North America. The Safety Crimp was added for extra durability in 2002 insuring easy disposal and no breakage during brewing.

Bamboo filters were released in 2007 for the Natural Food client base made of 60 percent bamboo fiber.  This same year the patented Flavor Enhancing Micro Perforations improved upon Flavor Pores with a more efficient extraction technique.

Just goes to show how a woman brewing a cup of coffee in 1908 could become the leader in coffee filters today with a little imagination and a desire to make a better cup of coffee.

Technorati Tags: coffee, filters, Melitta

Nescafe

One of the best ways of preserving the taste of coffee is the Freeze-Dried Coffee method.  More of the volatile oils remain in the product giving it that “real” cup of brewed coffee flavor.

Invented in 1901 by a Japanese scientist by the name of Satori Kato it was later marketed around 1920 by George C.L. Washington.  Nescafe was developed 18 years later in 1938, the first name brand on the market.

Post WWII America saw the advent of instant coffee and since then freeze-drying has grown in popularity as it is a higher-quality product and more expensive.

The method of making freeze-dried coffee involves brewing large vats of coffee and placing them through evaporators making highly concentrated liquid. 

To preserve the aroma and flavor “foaming” gases are infused through the coffee removing oxygen.  The wet coffee granules are then rapidly frozen and placed in a drying chamber on metal trays. 

The frozen coffee is ground into particles and the ice crystals are then removed by sublimation meaning transference from a solid state to a gaseous state without the liquification phase.  A vacuum is created in the chamber is warmed, usually by radiation. 

The frozen water in the coffee granules expands to ten times its size and is removed as vapor from the chamber.  Volatile aromas are sprayed on the coffee granules.

The product is then packaged in a low-humidity, low-oxygen environment to maintain its integrity.  The process is environmentally friendly.

The advantage of freeze-dried coffee is that it is portable and can be taken anywhere and mixed with hot water gives you a nice fresh tasting cup of coffee.

Technorati Tags: coffee, Freeze-Dried Coffee, types of coffee

Percolator

The first documented percolator coffee pot was invented in the 18^th century, not in one place but in different parts of the world.  Coffee had become a popular drink and people wanted to find a way to make it easier to brew a good cup.

The first known inventor of the percolator was by none other than a New Englander by the name of Benjamin Thompson (1753-1814).  A physicist and inventor he served in the Loyalist forces as a Colonel during the American Revolution.  In 1784 he was knighted by King George III.  He later relocated to Bavaria becoming a government servant where he was appointed Bavarian Army Minister and was thereafter known as Count Rumford of the Holy Roman Empire.  There is no exact date of his percolator invention.

A bit later in France there is record of a percolator being created in 1818 by a metal smith by the name of Laurens.

In England a few years later in 1840 James Napier created the vacuum pot which was comprised of two glass globes. The bottom one boiled the water and the vapor would rise into the upper globe brewing the coffee.  When removed from the heat, the lower globe cooled and the vacuum created pulled the brewed coffee down into it.

In America cowboys would make coffee by boiling water and the grounds together and letting the grounds settle to the bottom.  Later people began to put the coffee in a cloth bag to keep the grounds from mixing in the water.

James H. Mason patented the first percolator in the United States in 1865.  His device incorporated a basket on top of a hollow stem where the grounds were placed inside of a pot of water.  Boiling water would travel up through the hollow tube and drip down over the grounds, “percolating” them back into the pot.

This method of coffee brewing gave way to the “drip” coffeemaker and in 1972 Mr. Coffee hit the market.  Designed by Vince Marotta and endorsed by Joe DiMaggio it became a best seller. 

But if you are out camping there is no beating the good old percolator; its portable, needs no electricity and produces a great cup of coffee over the camp stove on those brisk chilly mornings outdoors – the old-fashioned way.

Technorati Tags: coffee, methods of brewing coffee, Percolator Coffee Pot

Illy Cup

Born to a Hungarian-Italian chocolate maker Francesco Illy, Ernesto was destined to perfect the cup of coffee.  Francesco, an officer in WWI, came to Italy and created the famous Illy brand in 1933.

Ernesto majored in Chemistry at the University of Bologna and spent his entire life creating the perfect cup of coffee for the average coffee drinker.  He took over the company in 1956 and created a high-tech manufacturing process for espresso coffee.

Referred to as the Bell Labs of coffee in Trieste, Ernesto Illy built a laboratory equipped with sophisticated instrumentation like infrared emission pyrometers, flame ionization detectors and gas chromatographs.

In 1999 the Universita del Caffe was established in Naples and then moved to Trieste to promote and disseminate the culture of quality coffee.  Using a wide array of courses people from managers to restaurant owners, bartenders, hotel managers, and coffee growers to consumers learn all about coffee.

The Universita del Caffee has branches in Brazil, India, China, South Korea, Egypt, the Netherlands, France, Germany, Croatia, Great Britain, the U.S., Greece, Turkey, the Czech Republic and Malaysia, with over 10,000 people attending courses each year.

The rules for a perfect espresso using Illy coffee

* Water temperature should be 90°-95°C

* Coffee in cup temperature should be 80°-85°C

* Dosage should be 6-7 grams per espresso cup

* Volume in cup should be 30 ml

* Time extraction should be 25-30 seconds.

“Fine espresso paints the tongue”, he was quoted to have said of his favorite beverage of which he indeed made perfect.  Ernesto Illy passed away on February 3, 2008, his dream fulfilled.

Technorati Tags: coffee, espresso, Illy

Lavazza

February 18, 2010 – Lavazza is synonymous with great Italian coffee; Emilio Lavazza entered the family business founded by his grandfather in 1955.  In 1971 Mr. Lavazza became CEO of Luigi Lavazza SpA. 

Starting out delivering coffee door-to-door to restaurants around Turin where his grandfather ran a grocery store in 1895, he took over as chairman in 1979 until 2008.  

After WWII Lavazza became a national brand.  An innovator, in 1970 Mr. Lavazza had the idea of vacuum-sealing packages for export, something nearly all coffee companies do today.  

In Turin at a coffee laboratory Lavazza developed coffee capsules for single cup brewing, another idea he pioneered.  He also developed technical innovations in roasting and vending. 

Signor Emilio as he was affectionately referred to by his employees was a believer in advertising and television and invested heavily bringing the Turin-based firm into new markets in other countries.  

In the 1960’s he developed the characters Carmencita and Caballero in a popular Italian television ad campaign.  He later went on to feature Luciano Pavarotti and movie star Nino Manfredi in award-winning ads.  Always on the cutting edge, the company produces an annual calendar with shots by Annie Leibovitz and Helmut Newton. 

Because of this belief in advertising Lavazza has 48 percent of the Italian retail coffee market and operations in countries like India and Brazil.  Brewed in more than 90 countries, it is the sixth largest coffee roaster of green coffee.   Sales are forecast at more than 1.1 billion euros or USD $1.5 billion in 2009. 

In 1991 Mr Lavazza was knighted and since has been known as the “King of Coffee” in Italy.  He lived all of his life in Turin, home of such famous families as Fiat’s Agnelli and Nutella’s Ferrero.  The company is still privately held and the fourth generation is in place to take the helm. 

A very private man, Mr. Lavazza was quoted in a rare interview in 2003 to say his passions were fishing, jazz and collecting toy soldiers.  He also loved murder mysteries and authored two of them himself.

Technorati Tags: coffee, Lavazza

Turkish Coffee

Until 1554 to 1555 coffeehouses did not exist nor did coffee for that matter.  In the city of Constantinople a man by the name of Hakam from Aleppo and a woman by the name of Sems from Damascus came to the city and started the craze, so it is said, of Turkish Coffee.  The Turkish word for breakfast , kahvalti means before coffee.

One of the best things about Turkish Coffee, besides the thick sweet end result, is the vessel it is made in.  They are ornate and beautiful and referred to as kanaka.  Typically the way it is made is with any kind of finely ground coffee, cardamom, cold water and sugar. 

You’ll  need a pot which is usually copper with a wooden handle and a teaspoon to stir and measure with.  In the old country it was made on a wood fire or a tray filled with sand placed on the fire.  When the sand was hot the coffee pot was placed in the sand for better heat transference.

Using sand could get messy in the house so we’ll avoid that step.  For each cup of coffee add one to two teaspoons of sugar.  In Turkey there are four stages of sweetness; sade meaning no sugar, az sekerli little sugar or half a teaspoon, orta sekerli medium or one teaspoon, and cok sekerli a lot of sugar or one and a half or two teaspoons. 

Place the coffee, water and sugar into a pot, stir them slowly and bring to a boil on medium high heat to extract the flavor and then don’t stir anymore.  Just as the coffee comes to a boil remove from the heat.  Keep off the heat for a short time and repeat the boil two more times.  Getting a thick layer of foam is the desired effect and considered an art.  Pour slowly and lift the pot high as the pouring continues, it’s the dramatic ritual that makes the coffee all the more enjoyable. 

The coffee is served with a chocolate stick and a glass of cold water to freshen the taste buds. The thick sludge at the bottom of cup is not drunk; this is where the fortune-telling comes in.  The cup is turned over into the saucer to cool and then the patterns of the grounds are read.

Technorati Tags: brew styles, coffee, Turkish Coffee

Coffee Beans

 Soils enriched by volcanic ash making them slightly acidic, rich in organic matter provide the ideal growing conditions for Costa Rican Coffee.  Coffee plants thrive in the climate and soil of Costa Rica, the root systems can easily spread and the humidity is retained facilitating oxygenation.

Seventy percent of the country’s coffee is produced in the mountains at altitudes from 3,000 to 5,500 feet above sea level in temperatures ranging from 63 to 73 degrees Fahrenheit.  Sunlight is reliable and precipitation conditions are perfect.  These conditions make for a high-quality and reliable coffee crop.  Costa Rica is the only country banning the production of any coffee other than Arabica.

It is said that coffee was brought to Costa Rica during the 1800’s and that father Felix Velarde was the first Costa Rican coffee grower recorded in 1816.  He bequeathed the seeds to his neighbors and in 1820 100 pounds of coffee were exported to Panama, the first recorded export.

With export flourishing influences of Europe became commonplace in Costa Rica, life revolved around harvesting and trade with the Europeans who brought railroads, printing presses, postal service, the first university, and the National Theater.  Designed after the Paris Opera House it is one of the regions greatest architectural treasures located in the capital of San Jose.  It was financed from coffee taxes. 

Through the 19^th century coffee export grew and this crop became an important part of life to the people of Costa Rica.  Per capita consumption of coffee is the highest of all coffee-producing countries in the world.

Technorati Tags: Arabica, coffee, Costa Rican Coffee

Espresso

A nice creamy cup of espresso begins by forcing hot water through finely ground coffee.  It may then be used as a base for many specialty coffee drinks or enjoyed as is with a lemon rind to rim your cup.

Espresso has more caffeine per typical 30ml (1 fluid ounce) cup than other beverages.  Compared to a 6 ounce cup of drip coffee it has about half of the caffeine.

In Italy espresso bars provided a place for socialization with the advent of growing urbanized areas.  Local authorities controlled the price of espresso with the understanding that it would be consumed standing, hence the “stand-up” café.

Due to the equipment that was needed to make espresso they were only available in cafes or restaurants with the machines.  The domestic espresso machine was popularized in the 1970’s but was still large, expensive and required a bit of know-how to use them.  In recent years the espresso machine has evolved through the introduction of the coffee pod concept.

The origin of the word is debatable but it has been said it means “pressed out” or similar to the English word express meaning a quick coffee. 

Express can also mean to squeeze the flavor from, espres can refer to the speed of a train and espresso can mean especially for someone. 

The first espresso machines the Bezzera and Pavoni from 1906 took 45 seconds to make a cup of espresso, one cup at a time, “just for you”.

Technorati Tags: Cafe, coffee, espresso