Are you tired of your regular morning cup of Joe? Want to start your day with more flavor and pizzaz? Curious to explore coffee beans beyond Folgers and Maxwell House? If so, it's time to switch to gourmet coffee to enhance your morning ritual!
Gourmet food is defined as "food of the highest quality, perfectly prepared, and artfully presented." If you want a gourmet meal, you’d go to a Michelin-starred restaurant, but if you want gourmet coffee, you can easily make it at home. Unless you are or employ a personal chef, that gourmet meal will remain at the restaurant, however gourmet coffee can easily be made in the comfort of your own home with just a little knowledge and practice.
For gourmet coffee, start by focusing on the beans. Gourmet coffee beans can easily be purchased in a store or online from sites like RudiGourmand. The flavors and varieties are many. Gourmet beans such as Kona, Jamaican Blue Mountain, and Sumatra are among the most popular. Gourmet coffee can be slightly more expensive that the standard supermarket brands, but with coffee, you get what you pay for.
Gourmet Coffee Beans
Like wine, coffee beans are named after the region where they are grown. In the world of wine, there are the well-known Sonoma wines from California's Sonoma Valley. Kona beans from Kona, Hawaii, are the equivalent in the world of coffee.
Speaking of Kona, Kona coffee beans are grown in the Kona coffee belt on the western side of Hawaii's Big Island, in rich volcanic soil and a mild tropical climate. Kona coffee has a fantastic full, rich, and smooth flavor with little to no bitter aftertaste. Make sure that you purchase Kona beans rather than a Kona blend. A Kona blend can legally be labeled as Kona if it contains as little as 10% Kona beans.
There are many regions outside of the United States that produce amazing gourmet coffee beans such as Ethiopia, Colombia, Costa Rica and Indonesia. For importers/exporters of coffee shipping into the United States, check out RudiCoder’s PriorNotify. PriorNotify automates the FDA prior notify process, so coffee producers and retailers can spend more time growing coffee and developing their business.
Speaking of Kona, Kona coffee beans are grown in the Kona coffee belt on the western side of Hawaii's Big Island, in rich volcanic soil and a mild tropical climate. Kona coffee has a fantastic full, rich, and smooth flavor with little to no bitter aftertaste. Make sure that you purchase Kona beans rather than a Kona blend. A Kona blend can legally be labeled as Kona if it contains as little as 10% Kona beans.
There are many regions outside of the United States that produce amazing gourmet coffee beans such as Ethiopia, Colombia, Costa Rica and Indonesia. For importers/exporters of coffee shipping into the United States, check out RudiCoder’s PriorNotify. PriorNotify automates the FDA prior notify process, so coffee producers and retailers can spend more time growing coffee and developing their business.
Grinding Gourmet Coffee Beans
The next step is to grind your beans. When ground coffee is exposed to air, it starts to lose flavor. As such, you'll want to grind only enough to make your desired amount of coffee. Any leftover grinds should be stored in an airtight container.
To what level you grind your beans depends on which method you choose to make your coffee. The common level of coarseness is medium similar to that of table salt or pepper. When you grind your beans, pay close attention to not pulverize them into dust. If you over-grind beans, the heat and friction vaporize the oils that give coffee its distinct flavor.
Common Brewing Methods
Common ways to make hot coffee at home include coffeemaker, pour over, and French press.
For someone with a busy morning routine, coffeemaker coffee is the likely choice. Using medium coarsely ground coffee, add the grounds to the coffeemaker along with filling the water dispensing section. Turn on the maker, and voila, your coffee is brewing!
If you use a coffee maker, remember that a clean coffee maker makes a significant difference in the flavor of your coffee. Pour half vinegar and half water into your coffee maker at least once a month. Allow the mixture to go through the entire brewing process. Repeat the process, this time using only water to rinse it out. If the vinegar smell persists, repeat the process.
Pour over is perhaps the simplest way to brew coffee as the tools consists solely of a coffee cone and paper filter. Place the filter in the coffee cone, add several tablespoons of medium-finely ground coffee. As you pour hot water over the grounds in the filter, the coffee is made.
For a bolder flavor, try a French press. Using medium coarse grounds, the coffee particles are immersed in the water, then strained by the metal press. As you can imagine, this results in a robust flavor full of coffee bean oils and essence.
Common ways to make hot coffee at home include coffeemaker, pour over, and French press.
For someone with a busy morning routine, coffeemaker coffee is the likely choice. Using medium coarsely ground coffee, add the grounds to the coffeemaker along with filling the water dispensing section. Turn on the maker, and voila, your coffee is brewing!
If you use a coffee maker, remember that a clean coffee maker makes a significant difference in the flavor of your coffee. Pour half vinegar and half water into your coffee maker at least once a month. Allow the mixture to go through the entire brewing process. Repeat the process, this time using only water to rinse it out. If the vinegar smell persists, repeat the process.
Pour over is perhaps the simplest way to brew coffee as the tools consists solely of a coffee cone and paper filter. Place the filter in the coffee cone, add several tablespoons of medium-finely ground coffee. As you pour hot water over the grounds in the filter, the coffee is made.
For a bolder flavor, try a French press. Using medium coarse grounds, the coffee particles are immersed in the water, then strained by the metal press. As you can imagine, this results in a robust flavor full of coffee bean oils and essence.
Everyday coffee is fine for everyday situations. Be that as it may, why not treat yourself to something special? What better way to kick off your day other than with a special cup of coffee? Gourmet coffees will surely add a lot of flavor and joy to your day.