Coffee truly is among life’s great pleasures for countless individuals the world over. However, thorough coffee know-how and expertise is not something possessed by everyone. By reviewing the information below, it is possible to gain the coffee fluency necessary to maximize just about anyone’s enjoyment of this extremely ubiquitous beverage.
Here is a great trick to try if you use softened or distilled water to brew your coffee. Just add a small pinch of salt to the pot after brewing. This may sound crazy, but the salt will add a lot of extra flavor to the coffee! Believe it or not!
It is very important to properly clean your coffee making equipment. If you do not clean the equipment frequently, the taste of your coffee may suffer. You do not have to clean the equipment fully after ever use, but if you start to notice a slight odor or buildup of any kind, it should be fully cleaned.
If you are after that perfect cup of coffee, you owe it to yourself to buy a French press. This device will release more of the oil. Traditional coffee machines contain paper filters that remove the oils during brewing.
One way to keep coffee fresh is by buying whole bean coffee and only grinding as much as you plan on drinking at the time. Most coffee loses its flavor because people make more than they plan on drinking. Light, humidity, air, and oxygen can quickly decrease the flavor and aroma of your coffee by damaging its oils.
Bulk coffee beans need to be protected from various elements. Upon exposure to heat or light, fresh beans lose their flavor, and they tend to absorb extraneous flavors. That is why you should keep beans in a dark, air-tight container.
You should never reheat coffee, as it will just burn the beverage and taste far worse than being cold. Instead, know when you will have your coffee for more than 20 minutes. Have an insulated mug or a thermal carafe handy for these occasions to retain the original heat and warmth.
Purchase fair trade coffee, and you can help out third-world countries. While it does cost a little more, it usually has a nicer flavor. You will also help out farms in developing countries.
To cut down on acidic coffee, pull out that salt shaker. You can use just a pinch of salt in your coffee grounds when brewing to curb the acidity of the brew. Be careful not to overdo it. Too much salt will obviously change the overall taste of the brew.
Before you decide on a drive-thru establishment that you want to purchase from each morning, try them all to get an idea of the one you like the most. The last thing that you will want to do is settle for a mediocre coffee, if there is a place that you would enjoy better.
Avoid buying coffee beans from bins where several of the beans are visibly broken. Chances are these beans are either old and dry or have been exposed to heat or light. All of these conditions allow the rich flavor of fresh beans to seap out. A bin full of fresh beans should also have a very strong aroma.
If you are grinding your own coffee, the medium grind is preferable for regular purposes. It works great for the home drip brewer. It should be around the consistency of common table salt when you are done. Practice with your own machine until you learn what produces flavors you prefer.
Although it can be difficult to create drip coffee, you can make it better. One limitation of drip coffee models is that they can take a while to heat up. However, you can remedy this problem with a couple of easy steps. First, run a single pot of water through the machine in order to heat it up. Once this is done, pour the water in for brewing. That’s it. You can save a lot of time and money doing this instead of going to a nearby coffee shop.
If you are a regular coffee drinker, and it is an important part of your day, consider expanding your knowledge and learning more about how to brew a better cup. Look for freshly roasted beans, available in most supermarkets these days, in the specialty coffee aisle. Grind the whole beans yourself at the store, then consume them within a few days, in order to get the best flavors.
Use cold water only if you use a drip coffee machine. Do not put hot water into these types of coffee machines. The machine itself will heat the water. If your water is hot to begin with, it will burn the grounds. This leads to poor tasting coffee and can be a safety issue as well.
Proper measuring of the coffee grounds is necessary to produce the perfect cup of coffee. Measure two-level tablespoons of ground coffee for each cup of coffee you are brewing. A “cup” of coffee contains six ounces of water. If your coffee maker came with a scoop, check to see that it holds two tablespoons before using it.
If you have extra coffee, make ice cubes out of it. When melted, these coffee cubes will create iced coffee that doesn’t taste watered down. You can also use these cubes to cool hot coffee or to put them into cocktails.
Don’t believe the hype drinking coffee. Unless you have a medical condition that suggests otherwise, a cup of coffee each day is not bad for you. It may even be a good thing. Consult your doctor if you’re not sure if coffee consumption is something you should be engaging in.
There is no denying the important role coffee plays in the lives of an astounding number of people. Coffee novices and long-time fans alike can benefit from a bit of additional learning on the subject. The piece above hopefully provided just the sort of information necessary to enhance anyone’s coffee drinking experience.
