What's in the tin?

 In 2011, an acquaintance of mine found out about my new coffee business and we decided to revive a product which he had launched 10 years previously called "Geblikte Moer". The word "geblikte" is Afrikaans for "tinned" and "moer" in this sense is a play on words - in earlier days, moer was a reference to coffee brewed in a pot and was called "moer koffie".

We've kept the basic concept but have redesigned the tin, the three bags of coffee which it contains and the coffee is naturally Connoisseur Coffee.



http://www.gebliktemoer.co.za/

Frank Sinatra's "The Coffee Song" (1960)

Keep it fresh

So, you’ve bought your favourite blend or single origin coffee, opened the bag, released pleasant aromas into your kitchen and brewed a tasty cup. Now what? Well, to ensure that your coffee beans or grounds stay as fresh as possible, you need to ensure that you store them correctly.

No fancy equipment. No expensive storage containers. Just remember the four enemies of coffee you intend storing are:

• Moisture
• Heat
• Light
• Oxygen

Essentially you need to protect your coffee from these elements to ensure that it lasts longer. Keep your coffee in an airtight glass, ceramic or plastic container – this will keep the moisture and oxygen at bay. Storing in a cupboard away from all heat sources (ovens, direct sunlight) will also help keep its flavour and aroma.

Once you’ve opened the bag of coffee, it’s best to finish it within 14 days. Coffee has a limited shelf-life and is best consumed as fresh as possible. Coffee beans tend to lose their flavour slower than pre-ground coffee and you might consider investing in a coffee grinder which will allow you to grind as much coffee as you need when you need it.

Some brands and websites recommend storing coffee in the fridge or freezer to keep it fresh. There are a number of opinions on the matter but I believe it is not advisable. Removing coffee stored in the fridge or freezer causes condensation on the beans or grounds and as moisture is something you are trying to protect coffee from while storing it, this is exactly what you don’t need.

 To summarise, here is my advice:

 Keep your coffee fresher for longer - store in an airtight container and in a cool, dry place. Do not refrigerate. Use within 14 days after opening.

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Making decisions

As you like it

Everyone has their preferences and this is not limited to how they may enjoy their coffee. Not only the taste but their ritual of how they prepare their morning pick-me-up but also how they like it served and ultimately how they like to enhance its flavour to suit their taste.

Some of these preferences may make a coffee connoisseur squirm and want to retaliate with a barrage of educational facts and expert advice on how it SHOULD be done. And with good reason. There is a science to coffee (believe it or not). Research papers have been written on the subject and published in scientific journals with careful analysis to grind size, water quality, brew temperature, degree of roast and a plethora of other parameters that influence the taste of coffee. There are research papers on the science of milk and how it affects the taste of filter coffee and espresso based drinks. Important stuff - to the coffee industry. There is a place for this advice and it does make a difference – to the budding and expert connoisseur and those who wish to listen.

But it is important to remember (at least I have to remind myself) that everyone likes their coffee the way THEY like it.

My wife likes her coffee piping hot, so much so that I have to heat it further in the microwave oven after it has brewed. This is a big no-no in the coffee world - brewing temperature between 92 and 96°C and should not be reheated as this spoils the flavour. My Mother-in-law likes to make a pot of coffee which will sit on the hot-plate for hours before the final cup is consumed. Another no-no – coffee should be served fresh and consumed within 20 minutes after brewing after which it starts to get bitter (if left to warm on a hotplate). My father adds many spoons of sugar to his coffee (far more than he should for a number of reasons), adds a block of ice to it and will let it stand and come back to finish it off later. People may dose less or more coffee than is recommended, prefer chicory based “coffee” or couldn’t care less if their cappuccino is one third espresso, one third steamed milk and one third micro-foam - as long as it tastes good. I should be the last one to criticize because I was one of them. But now I know better...

There I go, wanting to educate and change the way people enjoy their coffee. And so I should because I believe that changing certain habits is good and should leave the person to whom I have dispensed this wisdom with a better cup of coffee. But I must concede that sometimes I need to let it be. I can make the coffee my way when I make it but when you make it you should make it to your taste. After all, it’s your cup of coffee.

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A voyage of discovery

I’ve always enjoyed coffee. I cannot remember the first time I tasted the drink but it has always been my preference. “Coffee or Tea?” would be the question at social gatherings or family occasions and my answer would most often be “Coffee, thanks. Milk and two sugars”.

My fondest memory of drinking coffee while growing up was when my mother used to bring me a cup of coffee in bed – usually accompanied by two rusks and good conversation. Or as children we used to serve my parents coffee in bed on a Saturday or Sunday morning. It was our way of spoiling them (and an excuse to get another rusk or two out of the deal). It was a time spent discussing life, ideas and bonding as a family.

It was only later, probably at one of the social gatherings or family occasions that I was served filter coffee. I still had no appreciation for the drink as such but my preference remained. My introduction to the espresso based cappuccino came when I started dating girls and going off to one of the local coffee shops. It was not so much the coffee that drew me to the coffee shop but rather the chance to spend some “alone time” with the girl I was dating (or hoping to date) at the time. Cappuccino was the regular order and soon became my drink of choice. This is the first time that I actively decided on what type of coffee drink I would like to consume. A decision and preference that remains when I visit a coffee shop today.

It was, however, only after I finished studying and lived in London for two years that my interest in coffee grew. It’s probably was not the coffee as much as the coffee shop that attracted me. It was my initiation into café culture – granted it was a Starbucks but it served as a good introduction to better things. I spent much time in the Starbucks close to the Tottenham Court Road Underground station (there were fewer Starbucks in London then) writing letters and post cards or reading a Terry Pratchett novel, occasionally looking up and watching the world go by.

In this time I travelled to Europe occasionally and here I was introduced to some of the European café culture. I loved the idea of sitting down, having a cup of coffee, reading a news paper, writing a letter or just watching the people go about their daily business.

On my return to South Africa, this culture of relaxing with a good cup of coffee and watching people continued and Johannesburg offered a number of places to do this in the company of good friends.

More recently, through a series of events, my interest has mushroomed. I had a desire to know more about the drink that so many people around the world consume daily. I have started on a coffee adventure – a voyage of discovery into the fascinating world of growing, roasting, grinding, brewing and enjoying a very complex drink. I now have a greater appreciation for the cup of coffee I was introduced to years ago.

Coffee has played a big part in my life. Not because of the number of cups I have consumed over the years but because of the memories that are attached to each one of them. I realise that the enjoyment is not only about the varied origins, tastes and aromas that each cup offers but more importantly the memories formed while enjoying another cup.

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The joy in making a morning brew

As my passion and interest in coffee grow, I have become more geeky in how I store, measure, grind, brew and drink my morning coffee. Or any of my daily brews – morning, noon or night.

Whenever I have the chance to talk about brewing coffee with my friends and customers, I share the importance of all the factors that will make their daily fix taste as wonderful as the roastmaster intended.

So how do you keep your coffee fresh? How do you keep the aromas as rich and exciting as the first day you opened the bag and made your first cup? And, most importantly, how do you get each brew of your favourite single origin or blend to taste the same every time you make a pot?

This is where the geeky part begins. But trust me, it’s not as hard as you may think and shouldn’t take you longer than being less geeky. And even if it does, the result is worth it. Every time.

Like most coffee consumers making coffee at home, I started with the instructions on the bag : 7g per cup* – or, as it is often translated, one tablespoon per cup. Herein lies the problem. Cups vary in sizes and most South Africans prefer a mug, which is larger than a cup. What about the tablespoon? Well there is the next problem. Tablespoons vary in size too. When referring to cups and tablespoons, we’re not referring to baking measures. Also, ignore those cup markings on your filter machine. There is no consistency and can change from one manufacturer to another.

So, using the terms “cup” and “tablespoon” can be very misleading and in my opinion would not result in the cup quality that the roastmaster was intending for you to taste, appreciate and love. What is the correct brew ration of coffee to water? I explain this in my blog post “How Much Coffee Makes Coffee” which you can read here. For now, forget about cups and tablespoons and those cup markings on your filter machine. Focus on quantity of water and weight of coffee.

It’s all about measurements. My morning brew of two mugs – which I have determined equals 500ml – requires 27-28g of ground coffee. I weigh the amount of beans on my digital kitchen scale, add them to my burr grinder (which is set to a setting that I know gives me the best extraction/brewing time of five minutes). While the grinder is busy, I measure half a litre of water and add it to my filter machine. I place the paper filter in my brew basket, add the freshly ground coffee and switch my machine on. At the same time I monitor the brewing time by using a digital kitchen timer to ensure that it stays as close to five minutes as possible.

Once the brew is done, I serve it. For my wife, I put it in a thermos which she can take to work. I, however, enjoy mine fresh from the pot. It may seem like too much effort. It may sound unnecessary. But try it and you will realise the difference. That coffee which you have been spooning into your coffee machine might just taste better than you can remember. I can assure you that that is the taste the roastmaster wanted you to appreciate.

In the next post, I’ll deal with storing your coffee – another important factor to ensure your coffee tastes fantastic, every time.

* The 7g refers to a cup measuring of only 127ml – using the standard 55g/L ratio

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