The Process Behind Coffee and the Traditional Ways to Drink it
If you want to know more about coffee and the traditional ways to make it, then you are in the right place! So many of us drink coffee. Some of us drink it every day, multiple times a day. Whether you make coffee at home or get it from a café, drink drip coffee or espresso, drink hot or drink iced coffee, there is a lot more that goes into your coffee than you may realize.
How coffee is made
Coffee beans grow on trees from plants of the genus Coffea. These beans grow in bright red bead looking fruits which are called cherries (these are not the same as regular cherries). The raw coffee beans are not the dark brown which you see when you make coffee but range from a dark green to a light brownish grey. The beans go through a roasting process before they can be used to make coffee.
Light roast: Light roast has the shortest time in the coffee roaster. Beans that are light roasted tend to have higher acidity and higher caffeine content. Light roasts also have a more subtle taste and a lighter color.
Medium roast: Medium roast is a more balanced roast. Beans from a medium roast are more flavorful and great for drip coffee. This is a popular roast option as it lies nicely between light and dark.
Dark roast: Dark roast has a deep brown color. These roasts are bold in flavor and lower in acidity and have a lower amount of caffeine. Despite the lower caffeine content, this roast tends to taste stronger due to the flavor.
Espresso: Espresso coffee beans are not necessarily roasted any different than normal coffee beans. Most of the time, coffee beans are only labeled as an “espresso blend” because they work well with the pouring technique that is called espresso. However, dark roast are usually a good option when it comes to espresso.
Traditional coffee drinks
Drip Coffee and Americanos: Drip coffee is what you may think of as a normal cup of coffee and is what most people have every morning. It is a large amount of ground beans with hot water run through them to make a pot of coffee. However, this type of coffee became popular in America after the americano. The americano is espresso with hot water added to it. It gets its name from the American soldiers in Italy in World War Two. Apparently, the soldiers were not used to the strong espresso that the Italians enjoyed and so they watered it down. This now gives us the everyday coffee we enjoy so much. Drip coffee can be chilled to make iced coffee and americanos can become iced by adding cold water to the espresso instead of hot.
Espresso: Espresso is practically the mother of all coffee and is popular around the world. Coming from Italy, this brewed coffee is made from running boiling hot water through a small amount of very finely ground coffee beans. This whole process takes roughly 30 seconds. Espresso is a small amount of strong concentrated coffee called a shot having roughly the same or more caffeine content as a cup of drip coffee. There are several drinks that are made with espresso.
Macchiatos: While you may have heard of this drink from Starbucks, they don’t make a traditional macchiato. Most cafes in America will simply make a latte and put the espresso on the top instead of mixed in; however, a traditional macchiato is simply a shot of espresso with a dollop of steam milk added to it.
Lattes: Lattes are a very popular coffee drink, especially in America. Lattes are made with one or more shots of espresso and a cup of steamed milk. Flavored syrups are commonly added to lattes. For example, a mocha is a latte with chocolate sauce in it. Iced lattes are made by adding regular cold milk and ice to espresso.
Cappuccinos: Cappuccinos are similar to lattes; however, cappuccinos are espresso with milk foam. Milk foam is made by aerating the milk when you steam in more. This means putting more air into the milk to make it lighter and foamier. These cannot be made iced and traditionally are not sweetened.
Cortados: Cortados are very similar to a latte; however, instead of a little espresso to a whole cup of milk, it has a ratio of half espresso and half milk. This makes for an espresso that is still milky while keeping its strong coffee flavor.
Cold brew: Cold brew is exactly what it sounds like. Cold brew is ground coffee that is brewed cold. This often makes for a smooth and strong cup of cold coffee.
There are still many more traditional ways to brew and drink coffee. Coffee has been around for a very long time and will always be a part of many peoples’ cultures. Hopefully this small amount of information on it is helpful to you and inspires you to learn more!
