There’s nothing better than great coffee. There are a lot of coffee based decisions that can confuse a normal person. The flavors and brands to choose from are almost endless. Continue reading to discover some tips on how to simplify the process of brewing coffee.
To make a good coffee, always start with fresh beans. They should look kind of oily, and they should be potent. Try to avoid very dry beans, any grocery store beans, and any beans that have been exposed to air for a long time. Your best bet is to either roast beans yourself or buy them from a local roaster.
If you must add something creamy to your coffee, consider using real milk instead of whitener. Whitener is a frightening blend of ingredients you can’t pronounce, while milk of any sort – be it cream, homo, 2% or skim – provides protein, vitamin B12 and other great nutrients your body needs.
If you want great coffee at home you have a couple choices. You can invest in either an espresso machine, or one of the new single serve coffee makers. The espresso machine will require a bit of a learning curve as you learn to properly brew espresso and steam milk, but can be a great way to impress your friends.
For best coffee flavor, buy whole beans. Then, grind only the amount that you plan on using. You will find that your coffee has a stronger flavor. You will also use less product to make that fabulous taste. Additionally, you can create custom blends using different beans, so that you can impress your friends.
If you loved your coffee on ice, try cold-brewing your own coffee concentrated. There are many recipes available online; Most entail mixing a few cups of water into several ounces of ground coffee, allowing the mixture to sit overnight. When the grounds are strained out, you are left with a smooth, rich concentrate that can be diluted with milk or water and ice.
If you’re a fan of frothy milk on your coffee that you get in shops, it’s easy to mimic that at home, too. All you need to do is put it in a measuring cup or microwave-safe mug and heat it up until it steams. Put a whisk inside the mug and rub it back and forth quickly between your hands. Keep doing this until the milk is foamy. To achieve maximum froth, use either half and half or whole milk.
A great tip to remember if you’re after the best-tasting cup of coffee is not to let your coffee sit for an extended period of time. Coffee will only stay fresh for about ten minutes so you should be prepared to drink your coffee right after it’s been brewed.
Many discriminating coffee drinkers insist their coffee be fresh ground, and they buy whole beans to be ground just before they brew their coffee. The coffee grinders can be adjusted to make a fine ground coffee, or a coarser grind. Generally, the finer the grind, the stronger the coffee.
Coffee starts to lose flavor about six hours after it is initially roasted. This is why you should do everything you can to keep your coffee from getting a lot of air. When you store your coffee, use an airtight container so you can keep the quality of each cup at a high level.
It’s important to be on the lookout for the caffeine levels in your coffee. Not all coffee has equal amounts of caffeine. For instance, Robusta beans contain two times the coffee that Arabica does. Depending on the type of beans used and the amounts that were used, drip coffee can actually contain more caffeine than espresso. Make sure you keep yourself informed.
Wait until the entire pot of coffee has completed the brew cycle before consuming any of it. Some machines allow this option, but your coffee quality is going to suffer. It would be wiser to purchase one that includes a timer. If you do this, your coffee will be all ready when you get up in the morning.
Iced coffee isn’t as simply as making hot coffee and then adding ice. This will dilute the coffee. You should cool it down in the freezer first. Then, when they are frozen, simply take them out and allow them to melt.
Try a new variety or blend of coffee every week. This can be a great idea for a lot of reasons. You can try new tastes of course, and that helps you avoid getting bored with one flavor, but there is also an opportunity for you to buy a new favorite.
Be sure that your water for brewing reaches somewhere between 195 and 205 degrees. Many coffee makers aren’t that hot. Heating the water yourself will solve this common problem. A great addition to your arsenal would be a French press.
Keep coffee sealed if you want it to stay fresh. Being exposed to oxygen will have an impact on taste. The coffee will begin to taste stale. Have it in a sealed container so oxygen cannot get to it.
If you have cats that like to make a mess of your garden, sprinkle it with used coffee grounds. The smell is a natural repellant for cats. This will stop your cat from thinking that the flower bed you love so much would be better if used as a litter box.
Protect your coffee by putting it into an air-tight container. Keep it away from heat, light and air. This will help your coffee to stay fresh instead of turning rancid, and you will get a better tasting cup of coffee out of it too. Try an opaque container for best results.
As you can see by now, there are many coffee decisions to be made. Whether you opt for purchasing your coffee from a coffee shop or brewing it at home, the knowledge you have gained from this article is sure to help make the choice a lot easier. Hopefully, this article has helped you to make more sense of the choices you face.
