The Coffee Cup

So you need a cup of coffee to get started in the morning, and you are probably quite happy to drink whatever brews the cappuccino machines in the office are dispensing. If it’s hot, it smells like coffee and it gives you the necessary head rush to start the day, that’s all you need.

So it may surprise you to realize exactly how many different types and origin of coffee is out there. Some people spend their whole career in coffee tasting to find the perfect blend of beans to create just the right flavor. These professional tasters called cuppers and really know their coffee.

centered on the equator, a band 25 degrees north and south house in seventy countries in which coffee beans are grown. From South America and the Caribbean, Africa and the Middle East to give this band around the center of the world just the right conditions for coffee plantations that flourish. Each country, each region and sometimes within the same country, producing beans with their own unique characteristics to produce distinctive flavors.

The two main regions of coffee beans are Arabica and Robusta. Robusta is the stronger of the two, with twice as much caffeine. The Arabica beans have more flavor and a pleasant aroma, making them suitable for superior blends.

Arabica beans in two categories. The higher-quality gentle, cultivated in over three thousand feet, perfect height for coffee growth. Brazil, not unexpectedly, a product of Brazil, is grown in large quantities, at lower altitudes, many of the large plantations in the area.

When seeking the perfect coffee, the majority chooses ready roasted beans, even if it is possible to buy the soft, green beans and roast them yourself. There are a number of categories of roast, from light or cinnamon toast, which is strong and sour, to the dark roast or city, a less bitter sweet category, often used for espresso. In between are the medium or American roast, which is used for everyday drinking, and very popular.

Two other varieties of European roast is rich French toast, and the very dark Italian roast, used in specialty espresso. Both are dark roasts and brews as follows is less acidic and sweeter than your average cup. The longer the roasting process makes the sugar in the beans caramelize and much of the bitterness of caffeine in order to burn off.

So the next time you come for a cup of the strong stuff to wake you up in the morning, take a minute to find out what’s happening in your coffee maker. Maybe think about what you really want a coffee and spend some time looking for your perfect steak.

Image taken on 2008-10-04 16:02:55 by ♥ he@rt ♥.