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Published: September 18, 2006
Have you grown tired of the watered-down coffee you grab from the diner on your way to work every morning? Maybe your taste buds are wary of the vacuum-packed freeze-dried crystals trying to pass as coffee. Well, my beleaguered friend, it is high time for you to step into the Willy Wonka-like world of specialty and gourmet coffee.
What is so special about specialty coffee anyway?
The Specialty Coffee Association of America says specialty coffee has no defects and has a distinctive flavor. This gourmet coffee's high-quality beans are roasted by artisans who treat the roasting process as a craft.
Specialty coffee starts with the origin of the coffee bean; when, where and how the plant was cultivated all combine to determine the flavor of the resulting brew. The specialty of coffee can be further defined in the roasting phase. Only fresh beans of the highest quality will lead to a highly aromatic brew. If there is little to no aroma, then the coveted title of specialty or gourmet coffee no longer applies.
But specialty coffee is really an umbrella term referring to many types of coffee, including: organic coffee, Fair Trade coffee, Kopi Luwak coffee and gourmet coffee.
There are many who hold organic coffee in the highest regard because of its superior taste quality compared to chemically processed coffee. Farmers who grow organic coffee employ sustainable growing methods, such as natural predators and fertilizers, compost, mulch, and nitrogen-fixing shade trees. The beans are grown without unnatural herbicides or anything else deemed synthetic or artificial.
In addition to its superior taste quality, organic coffee is good for the environment as it keeps water clean and does not contaminate soil. However, it does take a few years before farmers will reap any profits from growing organic coffee because of its high susceptibility to insects, mold and disease.
Somewhat related to organic coffee is Fair Trade coffee. After the collapse of the International Coffee Agreement of 1975-89, the price of coffee plummeted from $3 to $.43 per pound. Coffee companies and coffee lovers may not have suffered from this collapse, but coffee farmers did. Max Havelaar – a Dutch coffee brand – started the idea of Fair Trade to make sure farmers always get fair prices for their coffee, no matter what the market price may be. Coffee farmers are obligated to use organic methods, but they do have to use sustainable growing practices to participate in Fair Trade.
The process of cultivating Kopi Luwak gourmet coffee is similar to honey, with prices like caviar. At $300 to $600 per pound, it is true delicacy for the coffee connoisseur.
The Kopi Luwak blend is actually coffee beans digested (and then excreted) by the Luwak, an eight- to ten-pound jungle cat. Supposedly the digestive enzymes of the cat add a distinctly earth or musty flavor, and the digestive process itself reduces proteins, resulting in a brew with less acid. Of course, the beans are thoroughly cleansed before being roasted, ground and brewed.
Perhaps you got brave and decided to try the Kopi Luwak blend but it left a funny taste in your mouth. Try a cup of gourmet coffee. The flavors of gourmet coffee, like any other specialty coffee, are determined by many things. This includes the region in which it was grown, bean variety and ultimately how it is roasted, ground and brewed. There are actually people whose job is to distinguish the fragrance, body and taste of gourmet coffee. These people are known as cuppers and they have a rather enviable job.
The cupping process is similar to wine tasting. The cupper takes the cup to his mouth, inhales the intoxicating aroma, sips or slurps a bit into his mouth and then spits it into a bucket.
Mmmm, tastes like cat crap.
Sources:
Coffee. Wikipedia 15 September 2006.
Specialty Coffee Factoids Specialty Coffee Association of America. 15 September 2006.
The Coffee Bean Queen. 15 September 2006.
What is so special about specialty coffee anyway?
The Specialty Coffee Association of America says specialty coffee has no defects and has a distinctive flavor. This gourmet coffee's high-quality beans are roasted by artisans who treat the roasting process as a craft.
Specialty coffee starts with the origin of the coffee bean; when, where and how the plant was cultivated all combine to determine the flavor of the resulting brew. The specialty of coffee can be further defined in the roasting phase. Only fresh beans of the highest quality will lead to a highly aromatic brew. If there is little to no aroma, then the coveted title of specialty or gourmet coffee no longer applies.
But specialty coffee is really an umbrella term referring to many types of coffee, including: organic coffee, Fair Trade coffee, Kopi Luwak coffee and gourmet coffee.
There are many who hold organic coffee in the highest regard because of its superior taste quality compared to chemically processed coffee. Farmers who grow organic coffee employ sustainable growing methods, such as natural predators and fertilizers, compost, mulch, and nitrogen-fixing shade trees. The beans are grown without unnatural herbicides or anything else deemed synthetic or artificial.
In addition to its superior taste quality, organic coffee is good for the environment as it keeps water clean and does not contaminate soil. However, it does take a few years before farmers will reap any profits from growing organic coffee because of its high susceptibility to insects, mold and disease.
Somewhat related to organic coffee is Fair Trade coffee. After the collapse of the International Coffee Agreement of 1975-89, the price of coffee plummeted from $3 to $.43 per pound. Coffee companies and coffee lovers may not have suffered from this collapse, but coffee farmers did. Max Havelaar – a Dutch coffee brand – started the idea of Fair Trade to make sure farmers always get fair prices for their coffee, no matter what the market price may be. Coffee farmers are obligated to use organic methods, but they do have to use sustainable growing practices to participate in Fair Trade.
The process of cultivating Kopi Luwak gourmet coffee is similar to honey, with prices like caviar. At $300 to $600 per pound, it is true delicacy for the coffee connoisseur.
The Kopi Luwak blend is actually coffee beans digested (and then excreted) by the Luwak, an eight- to ten-pound jungle cat. Supposedly the digestive enzymes of the cat add a distinctly earth or musty flavor, and the digestive process itself reduces proteins, resulting in a brew with less acid. Of course, the beans are thoroughly cleansed before being roasted, ground and brewed.
Perhaps you got brave and decided to try the Kopi Luwak blend but it left a funny taste in your mouth. Try a cup of gourmet coffee. The flavors of gourmet coffee, like any other specialty coffee, are determined by many things. This includes the region in which it was grown, bean variety and ultimately how it is roasted, ground and brewed. There are actually people whose job is to distinguish the fragrance, body and taste of gourmet coffee. These people are known as cuppers and they have a rather enviable job.
The cupping process is similar to wine tasting. The cupper takes the cup to his mouth, inhales the intoxicating aroma, sips or slurps a bit into his mouth and then spits it into a bucket.
Mmmm, tastes like cat crap.
Sources:
Coffee. Wikipedia 15 September 2006.
Specialty Coffee Factoids Specialty Coffee Association of America. 15 September 2006.
The Coffee Bean Queen. 15 September 2006.
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