That morning cup of joe is something million of Americans can’t live without. You might start asking yourself “what more is there to know about coffee”, but do you know what? With all the blends out there and all the different styles, there are some things about coffee you might not know. Here are some tips to make coffee even more palatable to you!
Keep your automatic coffee maker clean with white vinegar. Run a brewing cycle with one part water to one part white vinegar. After allowing the carafe to soak in the vinegar for a while, run a cycle with plain water to rinse the machine. Clean your coffee maker once every week or two to remove rancid coffee oils, mold and other contaminants.
Making a great cup of coffee really depends on your coffee maker. It does not have to be the most expensive model to produce a great cup of coffee, but it does have to brew the coffee properly. Look for a coffee maker who will extract all the best elements out of every single bean.
Remember that coffee is a very absorbent food. So, proper storage is essential. Keep your unused coffee in a place that is dry and cool where it is protected from both sunlight and heat. However, do not store it in your fridge or freezer. Also make sure the container is opaque and air-tight, to prevent coffee from absorbing flavor and aromas from other foods.
While your coffee is brewing, try soaking the coffee mugs in hot water. A cold mug will cool off your drink before you can even get it to your lips! When the coffee is ready, simply dry off the mugs and serve. This trick will keep it hot much longer.
Make sure you are patient whenever you are creating lattes. The best lattes are those that are created with due care. Be careful when pouring the milk, and use extreme caution when creating the design. Don’t just rush into it, and if you need some ideas on designs, check out Flickr.
When you are looking for a coffee grinder, do not purchase one that uses blades. Instead, look for one that has cone shaped or grinding burrs to reduce the beans. You will obtain a more consistent cut. Also, the flat blades have a tendency to overheat and can give your coffee a scorched flavor.
If you really want to try your hand at making a great cup of fresh roasted coffee, try roasting the beans yourself. There are a variety of ways to roast your own beans if you have access to green coffee. You can even put them on a cookie sheet in your oven to roast them yourself.
Make sure your coffee pot is clean. In order to get the freshest tasting coffee you must be sure you are using a clean coffee pot. You can clean it by using a teaspoon of vinegar with a full coffee pot of water. Run your coffee pot as though you are making coffee.
If you like the taste of coffee, but you avoid it due to it giving you the jitters, you should switch to a brand of coffee that does not contain caffeine. You will be able to drink as much coffee as you want without worrying about getting a huge caffeine rush.
Don’t just pour coffee over ice cubes when preparing iced coffee at your house. You will end up with watery, weak coffee. Instead, put brewed coffee into ice cube trays and freeze them. This will allow the iced coffee cubes to keep your coffee from becoming too watered down.
Experiment with varying levels of grind for your coffee. Finely ground coffee often results in a strong flavor, but you can weaken flavor with a more coarse grind. The best time to grind is right before you actually brew. Grinding earlier than that can result in stale tasting coffee once brewed later.
Most coffee drinkers prefer a mild cup of coffee over any other strength. Roast your beans for around 7 minutes, or until they double in size and pop. This will make you a wonderfully mild and smooth cup of coffee. This is perfect for iced coffees and other coffee drinks.
The size of your coffee grounds has a lot to do with the way your coffee tastes. A finer coffee grind will mean that more surface area of the bean is exposed to water while a coarser grind will mean less. No matter which grind you prefer, an even grind particle size is very important for a great cup of coffee.
Try pre-wetting coffee filters. This helps heat glass and ceramic brewers, along with rinsing away extra flavors that dry paper filters may transfer into your cup. Start by opening up the filter, then placing it in your cone brewer with a pitcher or coffee mug underneath. Finish by pouring some near-boiling water through it in order to wet all of the sides.
Protect your coffee by putting it into an air-tight container. Keep it away from heat, light and air. This will help your coffee to stay fresh instead of turning rancid, and you will get a better tasting cup of coffee out of it too. Try an opaque container for best results.
When making iced coffee, be sure to plan ahead. There are many recipes that call for hot coffee to make iced coffee, but you will have frostier coffee if it is thoroughly chilled first. Avoid leaving it out too long. You just need it out long enough to be at room temperature. After that, place it in the fridge to cool.
Those who like to brew their own coffee would be wise to grind their own coffee beans as well. Not only should you grind your own beans, but only grind what you need to make your next pot. Freshly ground beans have been proven to result in better tasting coffee.
Now that you’ve read this article, you should know a lot more about this extremely popular drink. Take the tips in this article and use them to help you get even more enjoyment out of the drink you love so much. In fact, share the information with others and they will appreciate it!
