Coffee House History: Seattle’s Best
My local mall gives me a basic choice of 3 coffee houses(or is it shops in a mall?) -The Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, Starbucks (duh), and Seattles Best. And the one I always inadvertantly pick is Seattles Best. Yes, the coffee is much more my “cup of tea”, and there dont seem to be too many noisy teenagers as there are in Starbucks or bored housewives as the Bean…..
Seattle’s Best
Seattle hasn’t always been the center of the coffee universe, in fact the city once served as much bad coffee as the rest of the country. That changed in the early 70’s when a group of passionate coffee lovers started a revolution.
The founders of Seattle’s Best were some of these early coffee pioneers, and in the beginning the coffee was roasted in an old peanut roaster down on the Seattle waterfront. These guys used the finest beans and roasted to achieve a bold and full flavored cup that was also smooth and mellow.
In those days, the Northwest was such a hotbed of competing coffee styles that a local restaurant held a taste-off to crown “the best cup of coffee in Seattle.” Much to the founders delight, their little coffee company took first place.
To celebrate the occasion, they officially re-named the company “Seattle’s Best Coffee” and the rest is coffee history. Today, the coffee revolution has spread across America and now good coffee is fashionable everywhere. There are many great coffees roasted in Seattle, but only one offers the bold flavor and smooth taste that is Seattle’s Best.
Coffee grade: Above Average
Good Points: Breve superb, great organic beans, yummy macaroons
Bad Points: Counter foodoften tasteless ,vanilla latte cloyingly sweet
Espresso
Most people are familiar with coffee. If you ask them to describe it, they’ll probably describe their cup of coffee as putting a teaspoonful or sachet of coffee powder and sugar in their favorite mug and mixing it with water and milk. Others may describe their coffee as freshly brewed referring to coffee made by drip using their coffee makers. This is the most familiar way most people make their brew.
Many have heard the term espresso. They may have seen it on the boards or menus but not knowing what it was, have never tried it. Little do they realize that they may already have had some with their favorite cappuccino or other mix they bought in the coffeeshop. You are not a true coffee lover it is said unless you have tried espresso.
Espresso was first made in Italy. It is formally called Caffe Espresso. Unlike in any other part in the world, espresso is not just a beverage. In fact in Italy they make time to drink their espresso. This is one brew that is an experience, not just a drink.
Espresso is drunk in shots and is usually served in glasses. It is a rich tasting brew that has a great aroma. Hard to explain its taste but it is rather like dark chocolate though definitely not the same.
Espresso is made with hot (not boiling) water being pressured through ground coffee beans. It has a distinctive reddish-brown color and a delicious aroma. It should also have crema – the tan colored foam found on top of every good shot of espresso. If it has no crema, it is a bad shot. Have it replaced immediately.
Of Flavored Coffee
I have nothing against flavored coffee. I actually like to have a cup of hazelnut coffee every now and then. Nothing really beats good old plain coffee in my eyes, though. Oh, I am sure the purists will scoff at my because I use a lot of cream and a bit of sugar on my coffee but at least it is plain unflavored coffee.
Why am talking about plain and flavored coffee? I read this feature in one of the New York Time blogs about how utterly ridiculous the world of coffee is becoming due to flavored coffee. The blogger shares his sentiments:
Maybe I shouldn’t pick on Green Mountain Coffee — they do fair trade, they work with Paul Newman, and so on — but this flavored coffee business has gotten completely out of hand.
These shots are from a gas station in Hatfield, Mass., and when I see these things — blueberry-, eggnog-, whatever-flavored coffee — I just have to laugh. And the descriptions! Here’s Cinnamon Cream Swirl: “The warm flavor of freshly baked cinnamon buns, dotted with butter, and swirled with sweet, creamy icing.”
I get his point. Flavored coffee is great sometimes but most of the time, if it is the taste of coffee that you really want, then plain is the way to go. Then again, this is just me talking. I am sure that there are many others who would disagree. Each to his own, no?
How about you, what do you think of the proliferation of flavored coffee?
Photo courtesy of y_katsuuu
Coffee Aroma A Wake Up Call?
How many times have you woken up to the smell of good coffee? How did that make you feel? According to some Japanese researchers, the mere aroma of coffee may be enough to give you the jolt that you need to wake up. Fancy that – you don’t even have to drink coffee, just smell it and you’re awake!
They conducted the research on 30 rats, which they kept awake for 24 hours. After that, the exposed half of the rats to coffee – well at least the smell of roasting coffee. The result was that those rats which were exposed to the smell of roasting coffee were able to return to a non-sleep deprived state and were less stressed as well. Of course, this is not to say that the exact effects can be observed in humans. Still, we all know how similarly rats and humans react to many things.
In any case, how is this going to be useful to us? Hmm I can think of a couple of ways…if my partner wants to sleep in and I want to wake him up without having to argue, I’ll roast some coffee beans right under his nose. That should wake him up, shouldn’t it? Oh, and the Japanese researchers were saying that maybe, the smell of roasting coffee can be piped into factories to keep the workers up all night. Maybe the same thing can be used for office workers who seem to love taking naps at work? NOOOOO…
Photo courtesy of Tim
Easter and Coffee
Is there such a thing as Easter coffee? I don’t really know but what I am sure of is the memory I have as a high school girl living with my parents. Every year, when Easter came around, we would wake up at 4:30 in the morning so that we could attend the Sunrise Service at our local church. Me, the perennial night owl, waking up before the sun is way up in the sky? Well, yeah. I had no choice and actually, I got to enjoy it. Besides, it was not like I had to do it everyday.
One of the best things about it was the part after the service – when everyone would have breakfast together and the aroma of coffee would permeate the air. Even right now, I can still smell that aroma…as you can imagine we were just a small group, yes I grew up in a little town.
Going down memory lane like this, I realize that it is more than coffee that I am thinking about. It is about memories that resurface with such a strength at the oddest moments. Here I was, thinking of what to post for today when suddenly, out of nowhere, the smell of the coffee beside me brings back a rush of memories. Interesting, huh?
How about you? What kinds of memories do you associate with your brew?
Alternative Uses for Coffee
Did you know that coffee is not only for drinking but can also be used for a variety of other purposes as well? I am sure that some of you already have an inkling of what I am talking about but humor me and hear what I have to say.
The other day I was at one of my regular hang outs – the smoking lounge in our building. Unfortunately, our office building is a non-smoking one and employees can only smoke in the indoor café on the 11th floor. They serve coffee – which is not so good, to be honest – and some snacks and light meals. What I normally do there, though, is simply sit down and have a smoke.
Anyway, I noticed that their ash trays were filled with a thick layer of damp grainy substance. To my surprise, it was used coffee grains! I asked them about it and they said it makes for a good way to put the cigarettes out and keep the smell down to a minimum. I was not really convinced but I thought it was a neat idea.
I also read about using used coffee grains as a deodorizer. I don’t remember exactly where I read it but the author said to dry the used grains and then place them in small sachets or envelopes. You can then put these in drawers and cabinets and they can add a different character with regards to smell. I tried it and was it wonderful!
Do you have your own alternative ideas?
Vietnamese Coffee
The other week, a friend of mine went to Vietnam for a weekend trip. Every one of my close friends go on trips, I look forward to their coming back because they normally bring presents. Not necessarily big expensive gifts but unique tokens of their destination. This time, she brought us some Vietnamese coffee.
She knows I am crazy about coffee – most any kind of coffee, in fact. When she presented the bag of beans to us, she was all excited about it. She was raving on and on about the aroma and how it would drive us coffeholics crazy. Skeptic me, I just said yes, ok, thank you, I’ll try it later, I’m busy – or something to that effect.
Of course, she couldn’t be stopped and went on to grind the beans. I had a short whiff and I was in love. I have never heard of Vietnamese coffee before then. I didn’t even know that they had a special kind of coffee beans. The smell was awesome – thick and strong yet creamy and sweet at the same time. I believe they call it mocha coffee beans.
The way it is brewed is quite particular as well. They have this tin strainer like things that you place the grinds in. You then need to place some hot water and the cover the tin and wait for the coffee to “brew.” The special thing about Vietnamese coffee is that they use condensed milk instead of sugar. The result is a very sweet and creamy concoction.
In this characteristic lies the coffee’s success and failure at the same time. If you are in the mood for something really sweet then you’d love Vietnamese coffee. On the other hand, if you prefer it black then I suggest you skip it.
As for me, I just had a huge tall glass with lots of ice.
Preserving the Quality of Coffee Beans
The quality of coffee beans depends on how people would store them and be sensitive to the various forces that would allow it to lose its fine quality after harvesting. A good thing to note is that exposing these beans to open air contributes to losing its actual quality. This is why it has been a practice to keep coffee in tightly sealed containers so that people can consume them at any time they would wish.
Storing them as well in cold temperatures, help retain its level of freshness. Freezing them is a good practice especially for coffee beans that are not immediately consumed and are meant for storing. This allows people to consume them at any time they wish wherever they are.
It should also be good to note not to place them beside aromatic food such as garlic and onions. Coffee beans absorb odors and once placed beside high aromatic elements, chances are that the coffee beans would solicit their smell.
Technorati Tags: coffee, storage, aroma, quality
How People Brew Their Coffee
There are various ways to which coffee drinkers all over the world prepare their favorite hot coffee drink. Some would use the traditional autodrip where the proper coffee machine maker will spell the difference between a good coffee brew and plain coffee as acceptable.
There is also the known use of percolating where continuous brewing of ground coffee beans are placed in boiling water which becomes the boiling coffee brew those coffee lovers would usually order in food establishments and coffee shops.
The Turkish or Greek manner of preparation entails boiling the finely grounded coffee beans that are brewed. In this type of preparation, sugar can be added once boiled or not, depending on the preference of the one making the actual brew.
Finally there is also the concentrated way of brewing where coffee preparation calls for large amounts of coffee brewed into small amounts of water brewed to make concentrated coffee. People who would want to drink a cup simply have to add some hot water to enjoy their coffee drink which can be hot or cold.
Technorati Tags: coffee, caffeine, coffee preparation, coffee beans
Choosing Between Espresso and Infused Coffee Brewing
For the coffee veterans, the manner of preparation of their brewed coffee means a lot. Brewed coffee is entirely different compared to the usual concoction that people consume from the manufactured coffee powder anyone can buy in the nearby stores and supermarkets. Espresso and infusion of quality roasted coffee beans offers a more delightful experience for the top tasting coffee that every coffee addict is looking for.
The beauty of espresso is that aside from it regular preparation, it can be combined with other drink such as latte and cappuccino. Espresso preparation pressures the heated water through the coffee grounds and producing the said espresso brewed coffee drink.
Infusion is where the coffee grounds are saturated with fine water to produce the soluble flavors that brewed coffee preparation has today. Infusion caters more to the standard manner of preparation where coffee maker machines are used to produce the quality coffee drink in most homes and some establishments as demanded by the avid coffee drinker today.
Technorati Tags: espresso, infusion, coffee, coffee preparation
