Coffee Brew Methods- Different Types

• Auto drip is the most widely used coffee brew method. In this method, coffee is prepared by heating small quantities of water obtained from the reservoir and then this hot water is poured over the grounded coffee present in the filter basket. This process ensures the dripping of coffee into a pot present on the hot plate. In these auto drip machines cylindrical or flat bottomed filter basket is present. Most advanced forms of machines have gold filters in them. These filter are easy to clean and is long lasting.
• Indian filter coffee is prepared by an apparatus that is made of stainless steel. It is made of two compartments, upper compartment is made of holes. There is a piercing disc with handle and lid. Grounded coffee is added on to the upper compartment and coffee is covered by using pressing disc. Now pour hot water over the disk. Coffee does not drip down immediately, this is mainly because of the presence of chicory that holds water to a much longer time. This coffee is potent when compared to other drip varieties. To the so obtained decotion, milk and sugar is added and served.
• Espresso is a strongest tasting coffee with distinctive flavor. It is prepared by using hot water that is forced under pressure through a matrix of finely grounded coffee. It forms a basis for many different types of coffee drinks.
• French press is prepared in a narrow cylinder consisting of nylon mesh filter with a plunger. Coffee is added into the cylinder along with boiling water and left for sometime. Then the plunger is pushed, this causes the retainment of grounds within the filter and coffee is poured out.

Green Beans Coffee- Roasting
Roasting: It is the most important step in coffee processing. Coffee can be home roasted also. Roasting process determines the taste of the final brew. Roasting causes a change in the chemical and physical properties of the bean. There is a decrease in the weight of the bean due to loss of moisture and the bean becomes less dense. Density influences the beans strength. Roasting process actually starts when the temperature is about 200 degrees.

What Actually Happens During Roasting
Due to the presence of intense heat, starches get converted to simple sugars and beans tend to turn to brown color. Sucrose generally disappears and acids, aromatic acids weaken thereby causing the change of flavor. Certain other oils such as caffeol develop and these oils are responsible for the taste of the coffee.

Grading Coffee Roasts
Green beans after roasting are graded as light, medium and dark roasts. Darker roasts generally have less content of fiber and more sugar. Light roasts have higher levels of caffeine content in it and strong flavor due to aromatic oils.

Green Coffee Beans- Brewing
Once roasting has been been carried out, beans are grounded and brewed. Brewing is of different types.

• Coffee brewing by boiling is one of the oldest method. In this process, water is added to coffee powder and boiled for an instant. It produces coffee with a foamy layer on the surface. Sediments generally remain at the bottom.
• Automatic coffee makers and percolators help to brew coffee under gravity. In this method, water flows into the coffee filter containing coffee powder. The water carries all the oils as it seeps down and is finally collected into a pot.

Grind Characteristics
Coarse: Here the coffee particles are distinct and almost like kosher salt.
Medium: Particles appear like coarse sand.
Fine: It is smooth to touch and finer than table salt.
Extra fine: Particles are finer than sugar.
Turkish: It is powdered and almost like flour.

Different Types of Grinders
Burr Grinding: In this procedure conical grinding elements or wheels are used to crush beans using frictional heat. Process of crushing ensures the release of oils from beans, which are extracted through hot water. Burr grinders are of two types conical burr grinders and disk type grinders.

Conical burr grinders: In these grinders, steel burrs are used to grind effectively. They rotate at a very low speed and help to preserve maximum aroma. These grinders clog less.

Disk Type Grinders: They rotate faster and are cheap. It is best suitable for home use and small amounts of coffee is grounded in it.

Roller Grinding: In this process beans are grounded between corrugated rollers. Use of rollers ensures even grind size and heat produced in this method is less.

Chopping: It is done by use of blades rotating at a very high speed. Device is long lasting and cheap, but grinding produces particles of different sizes.

Tips

• As soon as the coffee beans are ground the oils in it are exposed to air. Exposure of these oils causes their deterioration and loss of flavor.
• Different brewing methods require different grind characteristics.
• Some important factors have to be taken into consideration while choosing a grinder. Safety, noise and ease of cleaning are some of the most important factors.

Coffee Processing- Methods
Dry method

• It is one of the simplest and oldest method and makes use of less machinery. Firstly, cherries are cleaned and sorted out to separate the overripe, unripe and damaged cherries. This is done by a process called as winnowing. This procedure is performed using a sieve.
• Once all the above mentioned procedure has been carried out, the beans are spread in the sun on large brick or concrete patios. Cherries are turned by hand regularly to promote even drying. It takes about 4 weeks for the cherries to loose 12.5% moisture content. In case of large scale plantations, machine drying is done after they have been dried in sun for few days. This ensures faster drying.
• Drying is the most vital step during processing. If over dried it leads to the cracking of beans. Cracked beans are not desirable and are considered as defective. If proper drying is not done moisture is retained on the surface of the beans. Due to retention of water on the beans it is prone to fungal infections. Drying is followed by grinding process.

Wet Method

• This method makes use of water and specific equipments. In this method, quality of beans are well preserved. It ensures good quality coffee. As in the case of dry method, cleaning and sorting of cherries is done in this method to remove unripe beans and dirt. Cleaning of beans is done in a tank with flowing water.
• Now, pulp is removed from it. One of the major difference between wet and dry method is, in wet method pulp is removed before drying. Machines are used for pulping. These machines separate flesh to one side and the cherries with mucilaginous covering on the other side.
• Now the beans are subjected to fermentation to break down the mucilage layer surrounding them. It takes about 36 hours for fermentation process. Factors such as enzyme concentration, thickness of mucilage also affects the fermentation process. Once the fermentation has been carried out, the beans are washed and subjected to drying. Drying may be under sun or by use of a dryer.

Processing Coffee- Procedure
procedure involves six steps:

Pulping: pulping involves the removal of pulp and skin and it should be carried out within 24 hours. At this stage, unripe berries should be removed as they lower the quality of coffee. Pulping can be done in two ways. The first method is to squeeze each berry by hand. The second method involves the addition of beans into a bucket and tampering them using a piece of wood. This procedure helps in the removal of skin.

After this is carried out, water is added to the bucket and stirred. Pour out the skins present in water. This procedure is repeated until all the beans are free from skin and pulp. Any floating beans if present should be removed

Fermentation: Fermentation procedure involves the breakdown of slippery layer of the beans. The beans are placed in a plastic bucket and water is added to it. It is kept for about 18 to 48 hours. Once fermentation has been completed a handful of beans are taken and washed. If they appear clean and less slippery, then it is a indication that fermentation has been carried out successfully. Now the remaining beans are taken and washed throughly with clean water. Repeat this procedure until water is clear. Three washes can be helpful.

Drying: The easiest method is sun drying. Home food dehydrator will also help. In case of sun drying, beans should be stirred three to four times in a day. The coffee bean should turn to straw color. Now, dryness of coffee bean is checked by removing the parchment of beans. If properly dried, bean should be grayish blue color and hard to break.

Hulling: This step involves removal of parchment layer. This is done by use of a blender with plastic blades. Blending should be done at a low speed to prevent damage to seeds. The lighter parchment is blown using a hair dryer.

Roasting: Roasting is done to improve flavor and aroma. Several changes occur during roasting. Changes include size increment, color change and loss of moisture. This step is carried out in a oven or popcorn machine. After this, the beans are cooled as quickly as possible.

Grinding: Coffee beans are grinded in a blender until it is finely ground.

Therefore, processing coffee will be a successful if all the steps are perfectly carried out.

In the past, wooden or marble mortars with a crusher were utilized for grinding coffee. After wards diverse types of crank and drawer coffee grinders arrived on the scene followed by modern-day electric ones.

Convenient types

• The earlier types of coffee grinders are considered more convenient in comparison to the modern-day electric grinders, since in the earlier types coffee is crushed by the wheel through which the beans pass and are not minced.
• But this is the case with the different electric-blade coffee-grinders which, among other things heat the coffee, thus roasting it more which in turn makes it lose some of its flavor.
• The intensity of grinding required has to be decided by the type of coffee-maker employed.

Basic techniques

• There are four fundamental techniques of brewing coffee: boiling, steeping, percolating and filtering.
• Coffee specialists regard filtering as the most excellent technique of removing the soluble concentrations of ground coffee.
• The coffee is enclosed in a paper or cloth filter.
• Exceedingly hot, but not steaming, water is emptied over the grounds and permitted to run into a container where it will not get in touch with the grounds again.
• For ideal coffee, earthenware or glass containers should be utilized, because getting in touch with metal decreases the quality of the drink.

Making a good cup of coffee is rather trouble-free; one is merely mixing ground beans with water until the brew is potable. The differences in method are, nonetheless, endless and the quality is reliant on sure-handed knowledge. There are, on the other hand, numerous rules that one can utilize in nearly any technique of brewing coffee. If an individual sticks to these rules he or she will make certain that a good cup of coffee is prepared always.

Clean equipment

• One should make certain that any equipment one is utilizing is properly cleaned.
• Leftover remains, oils in addition to grounds will result in odd flavors in one’s brew.
• Preferably, one should clean one’s coffee maker painstakingly no less than once a week with a concoction of water and vinegar to eliminate the oils.

One should purchase and begin with fresh, superior coffee beans. Regardless of how good the coffee is, if it is musty it will be extremely dull.

A cup of coffee contains 98% water and poor water quality signifies bad coffee. It is vital that one should utilize fresh, clean water to make one’s coffee.

One should at all times grind one’s coffee, if feasible, just prior to brewing. This will provide a fresh flavor and prevent bitter or musty flavors in the coffee.

One should make certain that the grind of the coffee that one is utilizing corresponds with one’s technique and taste.

One ought to utilize the proper quantity of coffee. The most general blunder frequently made is the inadequate use of coffee. This results in a thin cup that is short of strength of flavor, and does not possess the unique traits that aids in making every coffee distinctive. An appropriate way to make a cup of coffee is the utilization of 2 level tablespoons for every 6oz cup of coffee.

Motivation

• The greatest motivation for home roasting is that it gives an opportunity to exercise total control over the degree of freshness of one’s coffee.
• Obtaining coffee at its freshest actually makes an enormous discrepancy in the attribute of the cup one will drink.
• It is certain that the initial batch of coffee that one will roast in one’s home will be tastier than the coffee roasted commercially.
• The majority of people get the scope to take pleasure in one kind of coffee at a time since coffee is generally bought in sufficient quantities for home use.
• Roasting one’s own coffee will enable one to purchase several diverse types and blends of green coffee. Green coffee is exceedingly trouble-free to store, and given that one can roast small quantities, one can factually attempt a new, fresh roast every day.

Roasting coffee is uncomplicated than one can probably envision. It has been contrasted to boiling water or toasting bread. One can simply purchase a small quantity of green beans and trace only some, ordinary household items. As soon as one has his or her provisions, one can obtain fresh roasted coffee within 5-15 minutes, conditional on the roasting technique and roast inclination.

Green, unroasted, coffee beans are commonly half as expensive in comparison to the identical type of roasted bean. If an individual is an enthusiastic coffee drinker, he or she can actually save money by roasting one’s own.

Wonderful hobby

• Roasting coffee is a wonderful hobby to derive pleasure in.
• With the vast diversity of coffees obtainable, crop variations and roasting intensity, an individual can devote a lifetime in the search of coffee knowledge.
• With home roasting as one’s pastime, one can delve into the artistry of producing new coffee blends, planning roasting equipment or alteration.

There are numerous techniques of roasting coffee, varying from roasting in domestic appliances prepared specially for this use, to plain pan roasting.

Simple techniques

• The majority of the techniques are exceedingly uncomplicated and the results are exceptional.
• Most of the techniques do not require much investment, time or endeavor.
• This is particularly correct of the Air Roasting process also known as fluid bed roasting in which the coffee is cooked in a hot stream of air.
• The Hearthware Home Roasters in addition to the Freshroast Home Roaster utilize this technique along with Caffe Rosto, and to a certain extent the Zach & Dani’s Roaster.
• It is moreover the similar principle of the electric hot air Popcorn Popper and it is the reason why certain individuals use these machines for roasting coffee.
• Other kinds of roasting comprise radiant drum roasting akin to the Hot Top Drum Roaster as well as the Alpenrost Home Roaster.

Purpose

• The purpose of both techniques is to eliminate the green beans from the cherries.
• The majority of coffee cherries have two dome-shaped beans, with the flat surfaces in front of each other.
• Certain cherries have simply a solitary bean, known as pea berry, which is more round-shaped.

Washed technique

• The washed technique of processing is the most widespread with Arabica coffees.
• There are two major mechanisms to the washed technique of processing.
• There is the “wet mill,” which eliminates the fruit from the bean, and the “dry mill,” which categorizes the coffee for export.
• When coffee is collected at the wet mill, it is weighed and dropped into an enormous tank of water by the workers.
• Every cherry that is green, rotten, or diseased will hover on the top together with any twigs as well as leaves.
• The good cherries, in contrast, will go downwards.
• These good cherries will subsequently be shifted from the tank to be pounded by machines, which factually “pop” the beans from the cherries by pressing them lightly.
• The seeds, covered with fruit or mucilage, are dispatched to a composting heap, where they turn out to be a vital component of the soil regeneration procedure.

The second tank is entrusted with the task of eliminating the intractable mucilage from the seeds, generally through fermentation. Fermentation permits the enzymes of the mucilage to break them down.

At this juncture, the beans from the fermentation tanks are poured into long canals thus they can be washed and cleaned. Again, tiny walls in the canals will permit the “floaters” to go by and the quality beans to descend.

Subsequent to rinsing, workers pour the coffee on top of huge dying patios for drying in the sun. When the beans are dried, they are covered by tough shells known as parchment. When dried suitably, the desired green beans contract within the parchment, thus finishing the wet procedure.

Dry technique

• The dry technique also known as the natural method is the oldest, uncomplicated and needs not much equipment.
• The method entails drying the entire cherry.
• The three fundamental steps are cleaning, drying as well as hulling.

Initially, the harvested cherries are generally sorted and cleaned, to divide the green, overripe and damaged cherries and to eliminate dirt, soil, twigs as well as leaves. This can be achieved by winnowing, which is usually completed by hand, by means of a large sieve. Any useless cherries or additional material not winnowed away can be singled out out from the top of the sieve.

The coffee cherries are dried in the sun, either on huge concrete or brick patios or on matting increased to waist level on trestles. When the cherries dry, they are raked or turned by hand to make certain that the drying takes place uniformly.

The dried cherries are stocked in bulk in specific silos until they are dispatched to the mill where hulling, categorization, and bagging occur.

Early showers ahead of the monsoon, known as the blossom showers are necessary for the coffee blossoms to develop. Sprinkler irrigation systems are employed for supplementing blossom showers. Drip irrigation systems utilizing electrically controlled motors, diesel pump sets are employed for producing coffee as well as intercrops. Power sprayers are employed for checking the growth of fungi in Arabica. Tractors are employed for moving harvested coffee, timber as well as for tilling paddy fields.

Preservation of coffee entails frequent weeding, trimming of coffee plants, fertilizer use. Coffee needs shade to mature suitably. Excessive sunlight can be damaging to the plant. The trees planted for the purpose of providing shade, in addition to supplying timber, are also utilized for cultivating black pepper. Occasionally cocoa trees are planted as well. Additional crops are inter-planted together with coffee. Intercrops that are widespread include orange, pepper and cardamom. The crop that gives the best returns is Cardamom.
Harvesting techniques

Harvesting is totally reliant on labor. The laborers are employed on a temporary basis but come somewhat from dissimilar categories of floating populations. The entire work has to be completed by hand and is exceptionally prolonged. All the berries have to be pulled out prior to the end of the season or else they are unfit for use. Because of this, most of the plantations are willing to pay higher wages to lure the laborers. Occasionally the wages that are paid is equivalent to the price of the harvested crop.

Processing plays an important role in separating the green beans from the cherries. There are two kinds of processing procedures: Natural and Washed. Natural technique includes the dry technique. Washed technique is famous for Arabia coffees. Even in washed technique there are two different mechanisms that can be employed to process the coffee beans. If you want to go for a not-much-complicated technique natural processing is the best way to choose. And that is apparently the oldest method of processing coffee.

Though all this makes it appear that coffee making is a complicated method, once learnt it is not so difficult. The case is similar to roasting the coffee beans. Coffee roasting at home is neither tricky nor bothersome; and the only thing ludicrous is opting for less than the finest coffee achievable. The greatest motivation for home roasting is that it gives an opportunity to exercise total control over the degree of freshness of one’s coffee. Or else it can also be ones hobby.

Grinding and brewing is the last process through which the beans have to go through. If you get the basic things right it doesn’t matter if you add a little twisters to make the coffee taste better.