For coffee lovers!

How to brew great coffee at Home??

There are 4 critical things to brewing great coffee. They are

1) Proportion

Accurate measurement is the most important step in brewing good coffee. As a general rule, use 10 grams (2 rounded tablespoons) of ground coffee for each 6 ounces of water (0.17 liters).

2) Grind

It is important to use the right grind for your coffee maker. The length of brewing cycle and type of machine will determine the approximate grind. Too fine a grind or too long a brew time will make the coffee bitterness due to over-extraction. Too coarse a grind or too less brew time produces watery coffee.

3) Water

Coffee flavour is greatly influenced by the water that is used. If tap water has any unpleasant taste, it will be transferred to the coffee, so use of filtered or purified cold water heated to just off boil(195-205 F/91-96 C) is recommended.

4) Freshness

For best results, make your coffee fresh each time you serve it. Coffee can be kept warm over a burner for about 20 minutes before the flavour is affected. The principle cause of flavor loss after brewing is continuous heating. Once brewed, coffee held in uncovered, heated containers (a glass pot on a warming burner like in most gas stations!!) will retain optimal freshness for no longer than 20 to 30 minutes. Continuous heat will break apart the organic materials, and the coffee will develop a sour or bitter taste with smoky overtones. Heat will evaporate the water, condensing and cooking the flavoring compounds that remain.

Thermal containers are a better way to hold coffee. They are insulated and airtight, preventing evaporation, and will retain the aromatic compounds of the coffee. Because the coffee is not subjected to continuous heating, the coffee can be held for as long as 45 minutes before flavor characteristics will begin to change and dissipate. If your brewing equipment cannot brew directly into a thermal pot, immediately transfer the brewed coffee to a thermal container.

How do I know this? well folks for the benefit perpetually broke coffee lovers like me who cant afford frequent visits to the nearby Starbucks cafe, i just tipped a starbucks waitress 10 bucks and convinced her to let me know the secret of starbucks coffee!! So all tipe mentioned above comes from the world's best coffee makers!!

As for me I just finished a grande cup of Starbucks coffee - Guatemala blend! Blew a freaking $11.60 hole in my wallet (Including the $10 tip to the waitress!!)

to know more about history of coffee goto
http://www.starbucks.com/ourcoffees/coffee_edu2.asp?category%5Fname=History+of+Coffee

To know more about coffee growing regions goto
http://www.starbucks.com/ourcoffees/coffee_edu4.asp?category%5Fname=Growing+Regions

And also to know more about brewing great coffee you could visit
http://www.virtualcoffee.com

Hope this helps...signing off then!!