If you are an avid coffee lover, then you probably know all the advantages of brewed coffee. Its varieties are incredibly many, they are classified according to such features as the botanical type of coffee tree, the region of its growth, production technology, processing of beans and additives.
Botanical look
Botanical species of coffee trees have more than a hundred names. But basically they are divided into 3 types: arabica, robusta and liberica, which are quite different from each other:
- Arabica So called Arabian coffee, whose grains are green with a bluish tint. The grain size is medium, the length is from 9 to 15 mm. This type of drink has a pleasant delicate taste and delicate aroma. The caffeine content is 0.6-1.5%, which is an average.
- Liberica (also Liberian coffee). Grains of dark red color and large size, length - from 20 to 27 mm. The drink has a rough taste, a sharp aroma, therefore this type is used mainly in the confectionery industry. The reason for all this is the caffeine content - 1.2-1.5% (moderate indicator).
- Robusta. Small coffee beans have different shades of yellow. When boiling, the taste and aroma are sharp, typical of coffee. There is a small "acidity", because caffeine in this form contains 1.8-3% (the highest rates).
It is interesting that in most cases we will not find coffee with a 100% content of arabica and robusta, but their mixture in different proportions almost completely filled the counters.
Region of growth
It is said that coffee is a mirror of the area in which it was grown. In this vein, one cannot fail to recall one popular French expression:
The main thing is the taste of the earth (gout de terroir).
The main regions of the "coffee belt" are considered Central America, South America, Asia, Australia and Oceania, Africa and the Caribbean. It is worth noting that the aromatic and taste properties of the drink differ not only in different regions, but also in different countries - they are influenced by too many factors: microclimate, weather conditions, elevation, processing methods and so on. Therefore, it is impossible to consider each country as a representative of its products within the framework of this article. This is clearly seen in this example: take South America - in each country of this continent, coffee will be unique. In Bolivia, it is of medium density, with chocolate and caramel notes, and in Ecuador - light density with moderate acidity and caramel, fruit and nut notes. The conclusion is this: grains from different plantations have a special, exceptional shade.
Production technology
Everything is much simpler here - according to the technology for the production of coffee, it is divided into raw and roasted:
- Raw (green) coffee is a drink for which grains have not been roasted. It is divided into a huge number of species, depending on the place of growth and care for it. The color of the grains varies from gray to blue-green. Some researchers claim that green coffee speeds up metabolism and controls weight, and also has activating properties.
- Roasted coffee (roasting levels: weak, medium, strong, super strong) reveals new notes of the already familiar drink.
Many quality characteristics of coffee depend on the degree of roasting:
- Low roasting means a high quality drink. Grains after roasting acquire a light brown color. The drink has a light wine note, a kind of sour taste, to soften which it is recommended to add milk or cream.
- With medium frying, the grains are processed for a long time, but are not brought to the release of oil. There are several varieties of such frying, each of which has its own name.
- Strong roasting gives a dark brown color to the coffee beans, on the surface of which protruding oils glisten. This method is also called Cuban, Spanish, French or just dark brown.
- Extremely strong roasting (continental or Italian way). Typically, packaging with such coffee is marked Espresso, that is, the drink will be very strong, with its inherent taste and aroma.
Grain Processing
Coffee can be beans or ground. We considered the types of coffee beans above, but it is worth saying about the grinding methods:
- Coarse grind - coarse grinding, in which particles of grains do not exceed a size of 0.8 mm. Mainly used in steam coffee makers. Without professional equipment with automation of all parameters, you can grind coffee for 10 seconds to achieve such a result.
- Medium grind - medium grinding. The most common grinding, which is designed for all types of equipment, both machine and manual. For a simple coffee grinder, the grinding time is approximately 13 seconds.
- Fine grind - fine grind. Designed for drip coffee makers and espresso brewing. To achieve this effect in a conventional coffee grinder, you need 20 seconds.
- Pulverized - ultra-fine, powdery grinding. Usually used for brewing Turkish coffee in Turks.
Additives
Coffee can be with or without additives. It’s enough to remember that high-quality coffee varieties do not aromatize, since their taste properties are unique as well. But cheap coffee varieties are aromatized with essential oils, so they are in great demand due to the taste of cream, chocolate, Irish whiskey, cherry, orange, nuts and so on. But no matter how tasty these samples may seem, they do not differ in useful properties.
We hope that this article will help you to be more selective in choosing this drink. After all, Avicenna spoke of coffee like this:
It strengthens the members, cleanses the skin and eliminates puffiness, and also gives the whole body a wonderful aroma ...