BASIC COFFEE KNOWLEDGE

Since you clicked on this page, I believe that you may be interested in coffee, right? As a member of the beverage club, I will introduce basic coffee knowledge that I have learned in this club in the following contents: various kinds of coffee beans, the process of making latte art in heart shape.

What was your first cup of coffee? Is it instant coffee with the sweet taste of the mixture of coffee and creamer, special coffee that is sold by chain coffee shops, or original coffee that is self-roasted by professionals? These are three different types of coffee that brought sensations in different periods of time. For now, more and more people start to be interested in coffee and want to know more knowledge about it, just like me. No matter what reason you want to know more about coffee, welcome to this wonderful world, and let’s learn together!

First, I would like to introduce two kinds of coffee beans which are the most commonly seen ones: Arabica and Robusta.

-Arabica: expensive, soft, low- caffeine, planted in high altitude places, and the line in the middle of beans are in a “s” shape. Arabica’s caffeine is low, it’s about 0.9-1.2%. However, its content of fat is 60% more than Robusta and the content of sugar is twice more than Robusta. So, Arabica tastes sweeter, softer, and with acidity like plum fruit.

-Robusta: cheap, bitter, high-caffeine, planted in low altitude places, round beans. Robusta’s caffeine is high, its caffeine is about 1.6~2.4%, its contents of fat and sugar are quite low, so the taste of Robusta is more bitter, its beans grow a lot and fast.

The coffee tastes are not only controlled by the kind of coffee beans but also controlled by where beans are planted. I will introduce the two kinds that I have drank in the club, which are from Brazil and Ethiopia.

--Brazil: Coffee products of supermarkets are from Brazil. According to the general taste that I found online: coffee beans from Brazil have a strong mouthfeel, with chocolate of your end taste. However, in my opinion, when I drink beans from Brazil, it is clean, light, and watery. You won’t feel that it is a heavy taste that stays in your mouth for a long time. I think that it is suitable for people who want to give coffee the first try.

--Ethiopia: the origin of coffee, high variety of coffee kinds. Usually described to have a taste of syrup. In my own experience, coffee beans from Ethiopia have more acidity and bitterness. You can know instantly from smelling to its aroma. When I drink it, it gives me a heavy taste on my tongue. Therefore, coffee beans from Ethiopia are more suitable for people who like the strong taste or enjoy the acidity and bitterness of coffee.

Secondly, I would like to introduce the process of making latte art in a heart shape. The types of equipment that I used for latte art in the club are an espresso machine, a steel cup, and a coffee cup. The materials I used are coffee powder and milk.

When everything is prepared, you can start your latte art! First, use 16 grams of coffee powder to cook espresso with an espresso machine in your coffee cup. Then, you need to make milk foam. It is an important point that decides whether your latte art will succeed or not. You pour some milk into your steel cup and then put the steam wand in it for about 1 to 2 cm deep. The position of the steam wand should be at the left or the right of the center. After everything is set, open the steam wand and slowly move down the steel cup until you hear some sizzle sounds, which represents the air is in the cup. When you feel that the air is enough in the cup (depends on the height of milk foam), you should move your steel cup up. Lastly, when the temperature is enough high. You can turn your steam wand off and your milk foam is done. This may not seem difficult, but how to catch good timing is very difficult. You should have enough experience to determine the temperature and the degree of the intake of the air. Even I can’t make a good milk foam right now!

After you finish your espresso and milk foam, it’s your time to make your latte art! The steps of making a heart shape latte art are difficult to describe in words. Watch the short clip and you will know clearly.