Do you think you know all there is to know about coffee? You better think twice. The piece below offers terrific advice for learning more about the world of coffee and for brewing the most delicious coffee ever.
Make sure that you make your coffee in water that you would have no problem drinking alone. This is important because the taste of the water will affect the way that it makes your coffee taste. If you live in an area where the water quality is not that great, use spring water to brew your coffee.
Use clean and fresh water when brewing your coffee. Starting with bad tasting water will result in bad tasting coffee. See what the water tastes like before putting it into a coffee maker, or make sure to use filtered water always.
If you want strong coffee that tastes great, a French Press is good for that. French presses get more flavorful coffee because the squeeze out extra oil from the coffee beans. Regular paper filter coffee machines tend to lose those oils within the filters.
Measure the water you put in your coffee machine carefully. Without enough water, the flavor will be overpowering. Contrarily, if you use too much water, the coffee will be weak and watery. A good general rule is for every cup you want to make, add 2 cups of water.
A great tip when brewing coffee is to always use the right water. You can’t just use any water when brewing coffee. If you’re using dirty tap water, you can probably expect an unpleasant tasting cup of coffee. Good water to use should have some minerals in it that will help to extract the best flavor.
When you are looking for a coffee grinder, do not purchase one that uses blades. Instead, look for one that has cone shaped or grinding burrs to reduce the beans. You will obtain a more consistent cut. Also, the flat blades have a tendency to overheat and can give your coffee a scorched flavor.
Don’t throw away your old coffee grounds. They can serve a wide variety of useful purposes in your home. They can help clean your dishes and get rid of backyard pests. In addition, they can be used as compost in your garden. Finally, they even have some beauty uses! It’s amazing what these old coffee grounds can do.
To brew the best cup of coffee, your water temperature needs to be just under the boiling point. At this temperature, the water will extract the maximum amount of flavor from your beans. If your coffee does not taste good in the morning, run a thermometer in the water to ensure that it is heating to the right temperature.
To keep your coffee beans fresh, put them in the freezer. While many people refrigerate their coffee, doing so allows the beans to absorb odors from foods inside your fridge. A better solution is to freeze the beans. One easy approach is to divide the beans into several smaller packages so you can simply remove a package as needed.
Drinking fair trade coffee will provide an excellent taste while helping out countries that are still developing. While it may cost a little more, you’ll know that the people picking the beans are making fair wages rather than “slave wages,” and you’ll also find the taste to be of better quality. You will also feel good about supporting those that are less fortunate than yourself.
Make sure your coffee pot is clean. In order to get the freshest tasting coffee you must be sure you are using a clean coffee pot. You can clean it by using a teaspoon of vinegar with a full coffee pot of water. Run your coffee pot as though you are making coffee.
Even if you do not have a coffee grinder at home, you can purchase whole beans and grind them at the supermarket. Most stores that sell whole bean coffee also have a machine that you can use to grind your coffee as you purchase it. This is a great way to choose the grind you prefer.
Purchase a coffee maker that brews into a thermal carafe or pot. If you are the type of person who likes to nurse your coffee, this allows you to enjoy hot coffee for as long as you want to spend drinking it. This also keeps the coffee tasting good and not losing its flavor.
Clean your coffee grinder with uncooked white rice. Add a couple of tablespoons of dry rice to your grinder and turn it on. When the rice is ground, empty the grinder and repeat until the rice no longer contains flecks of brown. The rice binds to the oils and coffee particles that cling to the grinder and can turn rancid.
Try sweetening your coffee with something other than sugar for one week. Then take a look in your canister to see just how much more sugar you have. This can be a real eye opener for how much of the sweet white powder you usually use. You will likely find ways to enjoy future coffee without risking diabetes so much.
Stay away from coffee beans that are pre-flavored. These kinds of beans will wreak havoc on your coffee maker, and are very hard to clean out. Over time, the various flavors accumulate, giving you very strange tasting brews. Consider various flavors, including cloves or more traditional vanilla. Bottles syrups also work.
Know your coffee lingo. Knowing the right words can mean the difference between an excellent cup of coffee you enjoy, and the kind of “slop” that is rumored to be served by your mechanic. Know the difference between Arabica and Robusta, and a latte and a cappuccino, and you’ll be able to better decide what you want.
As you can now see, you didn’t know as much about coffee as you thought you did. Now, you should have some great knowledge on brewing some delicious coffee. The next time you want a perfect cup of coffee use the information you have learned from this article.