How to Read the Coffee Package?
We mostly prefer 250 grams (8 oz) coffee packs.
250 grams sounds just right and convenient. It's also a quarter of 1 kg, it's perfect. For someone who drinks 2 cups of coffee a day, this is a weight that can be consumed for ten days to two weeks, and you can just change it up without getting bored.
On the other hand, 250 g is not enough at all. Let's just say that you are the type of consumer who pays special attention to each cup, who likes to brew with different methods, play with the coffee, and you spend a considerable time on it. Coffee is not just a beverage for you; it's a hobby. You got your fancy gear; you like to brew for your friends and you love talking about coffee. Some would even say that you're obsessed with it.
So every ounce counts and you expect results from every brew. You are right to feel that way. Or, you can be the other type. You can be all like "I don't really want to get into different stuff, if I like a coffee, I stick to it. " kind of person. You need a recipe so fool proof, so pin point that it's going to be your go to recipe. No fuzz, no fuss. Also, coffee is expensive! There is not even one ounce of coffee to waste!
What a coffee brewer gotta do? How can we utilize the information that we are given while brewing? Why is this information on the coffee package and what does it tell us?
It's crucial to ask the right questions. Almost every question about brewing recipes are related to extraction. The flavor notes we perceive in the cup are directly related to coffee's potential and how much we extract from that coffee.
Country/Origin
It enables for one to predict the cup's flavor potential.
Roast Level
This may not necessarily be written on the package, but we can tell by color. Or you can just break a bean and evaluate its inner development. This information especially important in terms of determining grinding and brew water temperature. If it's a light roast, this means that there's a higher moisture content. So it might be difficult to extract. That's why you should opt for a finer grind setting and higher temperature for your water. On the other hand, if you have a dark roast, the moisture content within the bean will be much less. So course grind setting and lower temperatures for water would be best.
Process Method
Process method is the way coffee fruit is separated from its beans. The terms such as natural, washed and honey refer to process method. Process method directly affects moisture content within the coffee bean, and this is something we take into consideration while roasting coffee. It also has a major effect on how we grind coffee and water temperature we use during brew.
Natural process, or dry process, is the oldest process method and it involves drying the coffee cherries under the sun. This results a rather low moisture content within the bean compared to other methods. It is often preferred to use a courser grind setting, as a finer setting could cause smaller particles than intended thus creating a slow and over extracted brew. Since low moisture content makes coffee to extract more easily, lower water temperatures for brew water would yield better results.
Unlike natural process, washed coffees are thrown into a tank filled with water and spun at a fast rate (kind of like hamster wheel). Beans are separated from the cherry using water, and they spend less time under the sun than the naturally processed coffee so this process results a higher moisture content. Washed process beans are structurally harder and they are more difficult to extract than the naturally processed coffees due to moisture. Considering this fact, it would be wise to choose a finer grind setting and increase the surface area. In addition, using higher water temperatures will allow easier extraction.
Honey process is a go between the washed process and the natural process. Coffee cherries are thrown into the water tank, but they are not completely separated from the bean, which means there is still a layer of cherry. Thus, it could be difficult to guess the moisture content from one look, but we can draw grind and temperature information from the roast level. This way it is easier to create a reference recipe and improve.
Variety
This can be an optional information to consider. Coffee varieties offer a wide spectrum in terms of both quantity and quality. They can also be indicative of cup profile. For example, Geisha is a very rare variety which is both expensive and difficult to grow. In the cup, it can be expected to be floral and complex. It can be said that variety information gains even more importance when it is combined with both roast and process method.
Altitude
Perhaps, this piece of information is the most confusing one for the customer. In fact, it has been a sort of a controversial topic among roasters. Although some roasters consider altitude as major factor for cup profile as well as variety and process method, others argue that altitude information alone is not adequate for cup profile. It is true that as the altitude increases, the bean is more likely to develop certain aromatic elements to a considerable degree than at a lower altitude. However, this piece of information is inadequate without taking roasting and other parameters into consideration. Each coffee is different. In addition, one origin produces all types of coffees. When the information given is evaluated without judging the result in the cup, it does not go much further than generalization.
Roast date
There is no such thing as "fresh roasted coffee is the best." But perhaps the best coffee could be the one that is "degassed" and freshly brewed. Coffee releases co2 after roast. You might have heard it as "degassing". There is a high chance of tasting bitterness if you brew a coffee that is roasted mere minutes ago. In order to avoid anything that can create a bad rap about the coffee, we wait for degassing to be over. While coffee beans release approximately 50% of gas within the first six hours, every roaster has a different approach in terms of degassing. If you have your own degassing routine, this information might be useful. In general, coffee reaches its full potential between one week and ten days after roasting and it will be suitable for brewing.
Flavor Notes
This part of the package refers to the flavors perceived by the roaster or a Q-Grader (professional coffee taster), which the roastery may have on staff (a roaster can dream), after evaluating the cup of coffee. This is the ideal scenario, but between us, often the roasters are just copy-pasting the flavor notes that are on the green bean website. This practice is not exactly wrong, but it might be misleading for the consumer. Because green beans come a long way till they reach the roastery and there may be situations that can affect the storage quality, thus flavor notes can change. As far as the consumer concerned, when they can't get the "vanilla" as the package claims, it can be disappointing. Apart from the professional context, tasting coffee is subjective and it is shaped according to one's background, habits, and culture. The coffee that you brew is the ultimate reliable result, so rather than trying to get to the flavor notes on the package, just enjoy the cup of coffee as a whole.
Now that we know more about coffee, we can move on to brewing. It says on the package: Colombia, washed, caturra.. there is more: citrus, almond.. but no. There is something wrong with the cup, what could it be?
Simple answer, this coffee may not be for you. Well if you were to say, no I drink this coffee all the time, then I suggest you contact with the roaster. They're gonna blame the water that you use, saying that it's the wrong water. Or maybe not. Maybe they tell you how to approach and brew this coffee.
If you ever buy coffee from Tetra N Roastery and feel this way, and this article is no help, then you can reach out to me.
I'm Nida, and this is exactly what I do around here.
From Ankara with Love.