The freshly purchased coffee beans are eager to be renamed into a delicious cup of coffee. Time to make coffee! As a barista you want to make optimum use of the taste potential of the coffee bean. But you too know that making coffee involves more than pouring hot water over ground coffee beans. How do you prepare a cup of coffee that will make every coffee drinker feel hot?
In this blog we will discuss the factors that determine the aftertaste that people will get from your coffee. Of course we only discuss the factors that you as a barista can influence. Read along and improve your own coffee in all areas!
Make the coffee supplies
Device / tool for making coffee. Most baristas use an espresso machine.
Coffee grinder (manual or electric)
Boiler / kettle
Thermometer
Stopwatch
A flat scale (preferably a digital one)
Spoon or stir bar
Ingredients
Fresh coffee beans (see the following paragraph)
Preferably filtered water with many minerals.
Fresh milk (for cappuccino etc.)
The quality of the coffee bean
Of course the quality, or rather: the taste potential of the bean, plays an important role in the final result. But high-quality coffee beans give no guarantee. Ultimately, it depends on the barista whether the taste potential of the coffee beans is used to the maximum or not. That is why we do not want to dwell on the quality of the bean for too long, but rather give handles that enable you as a barista to get the most out of the coffee bean.
The barista has no influence on the quality of the coffee beans, but it does have on the purchasing policy of the coffee bar. Someone who wants to buy quality coffee beans must have knowledge about the different coffee beans and must recognize the best coffee beans from thousands. You can learn this by practicing, trying out different types of coffee and / or following barista courses.
In short: where should you pay attention when purchasing coffee beans?
Note the roasting date: the coffee is best 1 to 2 weeks after the roasting.
Note the fire profile: lightly roasted for filter coffee and darkly roasted for espresso.
Arabica coffee beans (gives no guarantee), mainly from Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, El Salvador and Costa Rica.
High-quality vacuum packed.
Coffee beans with a natural process: are hand-picked, carefully selected and dried in the sun.
The choice for the coffee making method
Until recently, the espresso machine was used the most by baristas worldwide. That is still the case, but more and more baristas are also starting to use other coffee making methods, such as the French press, chemex and drip coffee. With most of these brewing methods, the ground coffee is filtered, which influences the lead time (extraction). With paper filters it is important that they are rinsed first, otherwise the paper flavor is delivered to the coffee. Earlier we wrote an article about the different coffee making method. You can find it here (place a link).
The different brewing methods can be distinguished on the basis of the pressure with which the water flows through the ground coffee. The height of the pressure is important when selecting the coffee (type of coffee bean + roasting profile), determining the best grinding degree and ultimately has a major influence on the quality of the coffee. With brewing methods with a low pressure, it is better to opt for a coarse grinding degree and vice versa. This has to do with the extraction time, which we will tell more about later.
With an espresso machine, the pressure with which the water flows through the ground coffee is easy to adjust, but this is not the case with all other coffee making methods. The height of the pressure will therefore differ per brewing method. This is definitely something to delve into when you start working with different brewing methods than the espresso machine. In the remainder of this blog we only pay attention to the espresso machine, because most baristas work with this brewing method.
The quality of the coffee bean
Of course the quality, or rather: the taste potential of the bean, plays an important role in the final result. But high-quality coffee beans give no guarantee. Ultimately, it depends on the barista whether the taste potential of the coffee beans is used to the maximum or not. That is why we do not want to dwell on the quality of the bean for too long, but rather give handles that enable you as a barista to get the most out of the coffee bean.
The barista has no influence on the quality of the coffee beans, but it does have on the purchasing policy of the coffee bar. Someone who wants to buy quality coffee beans must have knowledge about the different coffee beans and must recognize the best coffee beans from thousands. You can learn this by practicing, trying out different types of coffee and / or following barista courses.
In short: where should you pay attention when purchasing coffee beans?
Note the roasting date: the coffee is best 1 to 2 weeks after the roasting.
Note the fire profile: lightly roasted for filter coffee and darkly roasted for espresso.
Arabica coffee beans (gives no guarantee), mainly from Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, El Salvador and Costa Rica.
High-quality vacuum packed.
Coffee beans with a natural process: are hand-picked, carefully selected and dried in the sun.
How do you set up your espresso machine?
There are a number of settings that you do not have to change over time. Although these institutions are generally known, many coffee makers are already missing out on this. These settings are constant and you do not have to change:
The pressure of an espresso machine (around 9 bar).
The amount of water for an espresso (between 25 and 35 ML).
Water temperature (between 88 and 93 degrees)
The amount of coffee (between 7.0 and 10.0 grams)
The force with which the coffee is pressed in the filter carrier (25 and 30 KG).
The extraction time of the coffee
The extraction time, also called the lead time, is the time that the water is in contact with the ground coffee. The duration of the extraction time lasts as long as the water runs through the ground coffee. During the extraction process, the substances from the ground coffee extract with the hot water and change the color, aroma and taste of the coffee. Other substances are released at the start of the extraction period than at the end of the extraction period. In the beginning mainly fresh, sour / sweet flavors and aromas come from the coffee. At the end of the extraction time, the bitter flavors and smells appear.
The extraction time or lead time depends on the amount of ground coffee, the amount of water, the filter and the grinding degree of the coffee beans. As we have just read, the amount of ground coffee and water is already fixed. The barista will therefore have to play with the grinding grade to get the perfect lead time of 25 to 30 seconds. That is why it is important that you have a stopwatch with which you can measure the lead time.
The grinding degree
The grinding degree is a variable factor that must be adjusted by the barista depending on the circumstances. The following rule always applies: the finer the coffee is ground, the shorter the extraction time will be. The humidity also plays an important role in setting the grinding degree. The meal must be adjusted if the humidity changes. The air humidity can change due to the steam development in cappuccinos, for example.
Fortunately, the grinding degree is easy to adjust. With the adjusting ring on the top of the machine you can easily adjust the grinding degree. A small tap can make the difference between a good and a bad cup of coffee.
Serving the coffee
You might not expect it soon, but the way the coffee is served also influences the taste experience of the coffee. The following points are important when serving coffee:
Hygiene is always paramount
The coffee is served in a clean cup. In addition, it is important that the top edge is not touched by the barista or the server.
The choice of head is important. 60 to 90 ML for an espresso and 150 to 235 ML for filter coffee.
Always pre-heat the head. Coffee drinkers like to drink from a warm cup.
Serve the coffee with a glass of water and a small spoon.
Finally, it is important that you keep the espresso machine and all other attributes you have used clean. This may seem obvious, but it can quickly come to the fore during rush hour (if you work in a coffee bar / restaurant). It is also important that you serve the coffee with a smile. A cup of coffee should be made with love and also served with love. A smile does more with the taste experience than you would have ever thought.