Coffee Lab For Coffee Lovers

It’s Teacher Appreciation Day! To celebrate we are featuring two of our coffee masters!

Our coffee masters have spent years perfecting their crafts and are always excited to share their love of brewing with our amazing community.

If you have worked with them before, be sure to give them a few words of appreciation!

Craving to learn even more? Stay up to date with our Coffee Lab by joining our newsletter!

On our newsletter, we’ll release tips to make you a better barista. You will also be the first to know about our workshop offerings.

Visit our website and subscribe at the bottom of our page.

Milk Frothing 101: Here are 3 tips to help you on your brewing journey.

Tip #1: Use cold milk! It will give you more control over the frothing process.

Tip #2: Use a high quality stainless steel milk pitcher with the right size spout for pouring.

Tip #3: Always purge the steam wand. This removes any lingering water from affecting your milk or its froth!

Coffee in History: Origins of the Coffeehouse

Selling coffee has dated all the way back to about 1475 with the Turkish shop named Kiva Han.

It wasn’t until around 1529 that Europe popularized adding cream and sweeteners into coffee. Then the first coffeehouse in Britain was opened in 1652.

The establishment quickly became a place for scholars, academics, intellectuals, and creatives to gather and engage in discussions over cups of coffee.

It was then that coffeehouses became synonymous with exchanging of ideas and the pursuit of knowledge.

Lesson of the day!

We’re going to talk a little bit about coffee filters!

There are many filter options for coffee: paper, metal, cloth, and mesh. Paper filters provide a clean cup with a lighter body and crisp acidity. This is because the paper traps coffee grounds and oils.

Metal filters, on the other hand, allow more oils and fine particles to pass through. This gives the coffee more pronounced flavors and textures. Cloth and mesh both lie between the two.

In Colombian coffee culture, paper filters are most commonly used for pour-over methods like the Chemex or V60. This highlights the bright acidity and fruity notes of Colombian coffee.

Metal filters are also popular, particularly in devices like the AeroPress or French press. This in turn accentuates a richer body and chocolatey undertone.

For International Plant Appreciation, we are saying thanks to the coffee plant!

The coffee plant belongs to the genus Coffea. There are well over 100 species of Coffea, but the two most common species for coffee are Coffea canephora (more well known as Robusta) and Coffea Arabica, which is the more common plant used for Columbian coffee.

The coffee plant produces small, red or purple fruits called cherries. Inside each cherry are two seeds. These seeds are harvested, processed, and roasted to make what we all know as coffee beans.

Without this mighty plant, we wouldn’t have our daily cups of coffee. Thank you, Coffea Arabica!

Let’s talk about the flavor of different roast levels.

The aroma of coffee that most of us are accustomed to come from the roasting process. The amount of roast the coffee beans have will affect the taste, color, and smell.

A lighter roast allows the fruity notes to shine through. The darker the roast, the closer to the classic coffee smell it becomes.

If you want to remember the different ways certain coffee beans smell, try associating them with the color too.

As for tastes, you can try the Coffee Taster's Flavor Wheel.

It’s World Health Day! Let’s talk about coffee and our health!

Coffee is a great source of antioxidants. Chlorogenic acid and polyphenols can be found in coffee and can also help combat oxidative stress and reduce inflammation in the body. These antioxidants may also help protect against chronic diseases.

While moderate coffee consumption may offer these potential health benefits, excessive intake of coffee with added sugars, syrups, or high-fat creamers can negate these benefits.

As with any dietary choice, moderation is key, and individual responses to coffee can vary.

Let’s talk about grind size! ☕️ Coffee beans have a longer shelf life when kept as a whole bean, which is why mastering the grinding yourself is essential for any barista. Did you know the amount you grind your coffee beans will affect its flavor profile? Each size is essential in its own way.

The finer you grind your coffee beans, the quicker the flavor will steep into your water. This is why you need very fine grounds for espresso since the water passes through quickly. In a cold brew, however, the ground coffee sits with the water much longer and only requires course grounds.

So if you want a stronger, bitter flavor for an espresso, grind your beans finely.
For more details, visit our website: Link in Bio

Ready for the next level? Now that you know the basics of barismo and have learned about the different brewing methods, it's time to level up and apply that knowledge to the art of coffee making.

Join us for Level 3: Cold Beverages and Latte Art

What you’ll learn:

- Cold drinks with coffee
- Smoothies and Frappes
- Coffee drinks with liquor
- Learning how to make Latte Art!

For more details, visit our website: www.cfscoffeelab.com