Friday, October 23, 2009

Flash Fiction Friday-the perfect cup

As promised here is part two of brewing a perfect cup. If you prefer, you can scroll down to the Flash Fiction Friday is follows this lesson. This is the bag we store our coffee in. Notice the knob, it lets all the air out and keeps the coffee fresher. we do not freeze our beans as that dries them out and tends to make the coffee taste bad.
Here you can see it is a ziplock top, and the fresh roasted coffee on the inside. I love the smell as I open these bags. I would love to share that with you but alas computer technology only goes so far.
So for the perfect cup of coffee it takes 6 grams of beans per cup so we measure 56 grams per pot.
We used to pour 72 grams then realized the math was off, my math could be off too as Wes is the coffee man and knows exactly how much per cup is needed. I just know for our pot 56 is the magic number, and that is grams not ounces.
Our burr coffee grinder is in the shop. we are having it serviced as the teeth broke a while back so we are stuck with this horrible grinder because you cannot get a good grind from one of these 10.00 jobs. You can easily over grind and end up with espresso. Did you know that espresso is not a roast. If any commercial roaster tries to tell you so, they are wrong, espresso is a grind not a roast, people who roast their coffee darker are just burning it. Our big grinder has different settings, there is a drip, a French and Espresso grind on the grinder. The roast always stays the same.
Here we have the coffee in the filter and ready to start brewing. We have several different types of coffee brewers, and non of them from walmart. This particular model we find brews the best.
This is a Technovorm from Switzerland. This coffee pot heats the water to 200 degrees. Your average coffee pots in the store, all coffee pots only heat the water to about 180. The difference in the heat, the hotter water is for proper flavor extraction. It makes a more robust flavor and more aromatic as well.
This is a shot of the steam and the water actually brewing the coffee. See the froth on top of the beans!! When commercial roasters over cook the beans to make them all shiny, the oils are removed and actually make the beans lighter, and you get no froth when brewing.
I ran out of coffee and bought some Starbucks beans once, when i measured them to 56 grams it was a lot more coffee in the grinder then normal. The coffee was alright I think the pot brewing it hotter made the difference, but i was amazed to see that I needed more coffee to measure up what my beans are. weird huh.
So here is my coffee being poured after the perfect brew. And here is my Flash Fiction Friday, in case you thought i used too many words, I was just waiting until after the lesson. So every Friday compose a story of 55 words, no more, no less and report to the g-man!!


"You reach for the bag and measure
out the beans. Carefully pour them into
the grinder, hear the roar.
Fill the filter and pour in the water,
watch the steam...
Soon the air is filled with the
tantalizing aroma. Your senses excited
as you awaken your heart and
savor that first sip...
Coffee Anyone?"

Here ya go G-man!! Part one was on Thursdays post and here is part two, like I said I am spoiled with excellent coffee!!!
Do you take yours black or with cream and sugar? And for those of you who are waiting, we will be playing pay it forward in December again as we did last year. For those who choose from that post coming in December, this will be one of the gifts I will be putting in the care packages!! So stay tuned for that post if you would like to taste the freshness of the coffee!! Oh I almost forgot, see my urn? It does not sit on a hot plate at all. These urns run a little more then the ones in store but here is the kicker they are insulated with a steel wall inside which keeps your coffee hot for about 10 hours, so no need to burn coffee on a plate anymore. The urns that this model came with actually had glass in between the walls to insulate the coffee, but we found the problem with that was if the glass cracked, all the heat escapes from the urn and cold coffee in no time, we replaced those with these which have steal liners inside. So the coffee stays perfectly warm and does not keep cooking like your normal coffee pots. So I will leave you with todays thought;"Wisdom is, and starts with, the humility to accept the fact that you
don't have all the right answers, and the courage to learn to ask the right questions. "- Anonymous


32 comments:

anthonynorth said...

My, this was inviting. And me a tea drinker :-)
Excellent.

Tall Kay said...

I'll take mine black, thank you! I'll be here in December, for sure! I want what you got! Very alluring 55! Thanks so much for these coffee lessons.

Shadow said...

cream, no sugar, thank you! a perfectly aromatic 55. have a super weekend girl!

Andrea said...

I take my coffee with Flavored stevia liquid (usually english toffee) and organic creamer. Yes, I know I am a weird one....even trying to make coffee healthier.

Blessings, andrea

The neverending battle of child's opiate addiction said...

I read your 55 while I sipped on my first cup of coffee this morning but somehow I am sure your lovely brew tastes miles better! I don't know about the pay it forward but count me in for December.

big Jenn said...

Ahhh a true coffee addict! A girl after my own heart! I'll take mine black.Please don't pollute that delicious, fresh cup of carefully krafted brew with anything!

Thanks for the follow too! jeNN

Susan at Stony River said...

Boy, do I want a cup of coffee at your house now!! The 55 was a lovely 'chaser' for it too. LOL

Dulçe ♥ said...

Am having right now my afternoon coffee ( nearly 17.00) and its taste is much much better today, thank YOU!
Great 55 dear friend!

Busy Bee Suz said...

Oh, I bet it is delicious on a nice cold morning. Love your urn...so you drink coffee all day long?
Great 55!!
Have a nice weekend with your family!
Suz

Brian Miller said...

mmmm...always up for a steaming cup...i couls not live without coffee so your 55 pulls at my heart. smiles.

mine is up!

Anonymous said...

I can't take coffee at all. Literally. But I love the smell.

Syd said...

Great post and so informative. I may have to try this.

Nice of you to do the Pay It Forward gift thing. I had fun doing it last year.

Maude Lynn said...

Black, please!

Anonymous said...

I can smell it now. Beautifully done my friend. I don't drink coffee but love the smell and can just picture it brewing :) Have a great weekend :)

James Goodman said...

Hell yeah! I'll take a cup. I love good coffee. A very nice 55. Thanks for commenting on mine...

Chic Mama said...

Wow, you take your coffee seriously. I thought I made a big deal using my machine each day. I love the smell of coffee. :0)
I read it's your daughter's birthday next week, I hope you get the gift all sorted okay. x

steveroni said...

All the coffee I can get, any way I can get it. That's how I'll have MY brew!

PEACE: "Say It With Coffee"

GooooD post!

Jayme Malvagio said...

AHA! excellent 55 nestled between the fantastic trappings of a truly great cup of coffee. It's enough to make me want to go brew a fresh pot. :)

One Prayer Girl said...

Coffee is my one remaining addiction. I adore the smell, the taste, the awake feeling it gives.

Love your 55 - the whole post.

PG

Lulda Casadaga said...

Good to the last drop with this 55!
My grandmother lived in Hoboken, NJ and when we would visit her all you could smell was coffee...you see there was a Maxwell House plant right around the corner from where she lived!

Now, I don't mean to be a stickler, but shouldn't you change your gram measurements from 56 to
55!!!! :D
Have a freshly brewed weekend...

Angela said...

Mmmmm, I live for coffee! I like mine with vanilla creamer, but I also like it black. Never decaf!!!!

Hope you've had a great week, and congrats on the 3 lbs. That is awesome:)

Enjoy the weekend!

♥ Boomer ♥ said...

Oh, yes, yes, yes!!! Perfect cup of 55!!!!

Gin said...

Man you better watch out or Mr. Steveroni will be sitting on your doorstep mug in-hand one of these mornings!

G-Man said...

Very few things on Earth is better than a great cup of Joe!
Excellent 55 CC....
You Rock All of Kansas!!
(And most of Mizzoo too)
Have a Glorious Week-End...G

Larry said...

Very nice second part for the 55 thanks for stopping bye. I appreciate every comment I get hope the best for you. Keep posting.
Thanks Again
Larry Moon My 55's below


Goodbye

Jess Mistress of Mischief said...

Mmmmmmmmmm coffee....mmmm coffee....

MMMMMMMMMM COFFEE


I am a cream and splenda girl myself.

I know what you mean by the frothing, when I was in the Netherlands they brewed a coffee with coffee froth and it was DELICIOUS very different from the american standard that was when my love affair began... then there was the turkish, the french press, the...

Well I worked in a small coffee shop for a while and it was ... well an excellent way to feed my addiction.

Cliff said...

So now I know where to get the perfect cup of coffee if I'm ever in Kansas.

Have a fantastic weekend!

forever lost said...

Well there IS NOTHING like a great cup of coffee especially in the morning. Do NOT talk to me till I have had my first cup! We are baby coffee experts. and I do love the grinder in our pot, it blows the grounds down into the basket.

Do you have a favorite bean? Right now we are on a really tight budget (hours cut in half) but I love Dancing Goats which here at Whole foods is 11.00 a pound, today we are drinking "Eight O'Clock" at 4.00 a pound and yes we can tell a humongous difference.

great 55 Min is up too!

Nessa said...

You are coffee gods. Amazing.

Silly Saturday #4 - Purdie Pyrate's Halloween

Eaton Bennett aka Berenice Albrecht said...

Mm mmmmm, I love my coffee black, no sugar and very strong. Excellent 55, I can almost smell the aroma of your coffee! Thanks for visiting and commenting on my 55! :))

Mona said...

Ah! My friend Charles would Love this one. He is a coffee addict since he was four years old! :)

Ms Hen's said...

I want to visit you for a cup... wished I could hop a plan and get a cup.. sounds divine..