Tips for preparing coffee
At Sirius Coffee, we call all our followers and coffee consumers #coffeeholics, as a reference to all those who love and are passionate about everything related to coffee consumption, preparation, and tasting.
Those of us who enjoy a cup in the morning, or at noon, perhaps after eating, and many at night while working on a project in the early hours of the morning.
Each of us can create our own personal brewing ritual. From Sirius Coffee, we tell you that we don't believe in strict rules or norms that cannot be modified when it comes to coffee preparation and consumption. We could say that we promote the democratization of coffee preparation and consumption.
What does this mean? Well, in some countries and environments, brewing habits can be very different from another country, region, or continent, and why not try them all and decide which one we like? Even better, why not create our own brewing method and show it to the world? Again, we invite you to explore current methods and innovate. In an article that will be published on this blog and which we are still preparing, we will discuss the most common brewing methods and equipment.
In recent weeks, many of our new #coffeeholics or those just starting their exploration in the world of coffee have been asking us through various communication channels about the main tips and recommendations for enjoying any of our Sirius Coffee varieties.
In response to these concerns, we have compiled the main suggestions that apply to most extraction equipment. It doesn't matter if you are completely new and about to brew your first coffee or if you already have a couple of pieces of equipment; everyone is welcome to exchange opinions and comments on their experiences so that together we can enrich the conversation, encouraging more people in our community to enjoy this beverage, a product of our beautiful Earth.
Some basic recommendations are:
Use bottled water, not filtered, not tap, not boiled.
Grind the coffee preferably at the moment of preparation. Do not use ground coffee that has been exposed to ambient aromas for a long time (say, more than 6 months stored with spices or exposed to heat or sun).
If buying ground coffee, ask for it according to the equipment you will use for best results. Seal it well, preferably in a glass container isolated from spices or substances that could contaminate its aroma and properties.
Depending on the machine (automatic or semi-automatic), calibrate grind, time, temperature, and pressure. For manual methods like French press, Italian press, V60, Chemex, among others, experiment to your liking with the water steeping times on the beans, for example, ranges between 3 and 4 minutes.
The amount of coffee per cup will again depend on the type of equipment. For example, an espresso can take between 8-12 grams of coffee per cup, while a French press might take between 16-18 grams due to the size and amount of water poured.
How much is that in tablespoons? Well, a large heaped tablespoon is approximately 5.5 grams, while a heaped sugar spoon is approximately 3.5 grams.
We invite you to experiment a bit with the grind and grams of coffee per method, identify which one you like best, and that will be the best possible formula.
To get to know the differences in each variety, we suggest making the exact same preparation with different beans, so your palate can identify differences in aroma, taste, and aftertaste.
Start by opening the bag and smelling the beans; this will send a preliminary signal to your brain about what you are about to ingest. Then, after grinding the beans, smell again and you will perceive more notes. Try to identify as many as you can. Finally, taste the freshly brewed coffee, feel it on your palate, the edges of your tongue, swallow, exhale, and think about the sensations and flavors it leaves you with seconds later.
The acidity of each one is different; you perceive it on the edges or sides of your tongue, some have less, others a little more.
Another important tip is that even if you drink coffee with an accompaniment, do this exercise before adding any sweetener, milk, or cream. After the exercise, you can finish preparing it as you prefer to drink it.
We hope these tips are useful. Be patient, take the time necessary to prepare it, and the most important advice from the entire Sirius Coffee team… enjoy it!
