The French Press: History and Method

As Mark and I have been using our French Press more and more, I thought I would do some studying on this brew method.

While some(most likely French people) insist it was a Frenchman who developed the pot, which we know as the French Press, it was actually Attillo Callimani, from Milan, Italy, who was awarded the first patent for it in 1929.  The Italians call this process, cafetiere. Over the years various designers and companies have toyed with the look of the plunger pot, Bodum, a Dutch company is credited with really mainstreaming the popularity of the French Press.

Making coffee in a French Press is pretty easy. Grind the coffee coarsely. You don't want a fine grind, or grounds get through the filter. Heat the water to about 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Pour about 1/3 of the pot with water to let the coffee bloom, then slowly add the rest of the water. Once the water is in the pot, let the coffee seep for about 4 minutes. Once the time is up, push down on the plunger, and the grounds will remain on the bottom of the pot, and you have coffee - VOILA!

One pot for us makes two cups of coffee. What I like is there is almost no coffee wasted, unlike a pot, where you may throw out what you don't drink. Mark and I make each have two cups, and there is no waste.

From a flavor standpoint, I find this method and the Chemex, really allow you to get the full flavor of a coffee. A drip maker could have calcium deposits, and other other minerals, as well as old coffee residue(if you aren't cleaning it regularly), which can alter the taste of the coffee. These methods allow water and coffee to mix and blend, and bring out the full flavor.

If you haven't tried this method, I highly recommend it.

Charlie

Santa Petrona Review: Dark Matter

This last week I was in Chicago, and I got to visit some new places for coffee, as well as trying a new coffee from an old friend. I have never been to the Star Lounge, where Dark Matter Coffee is served. I braved the cold and snow, and ventured to the Ukranian Village neighborhood where the Star Lounge is located. I was glad I did.

The Star Lounge is a coffee bar, which if you didn't know better, was a local bar. The atmosphere was like walking into Cheers, where if you are a regular, everyone knows your name(and coffee drink).  In addition to the bar, there's an area where you can get your "to go" items, as well as buying a bag of beans.

After spending a few minutes looking at the various types of coffee available, I chose El Salvador: Santa Petrona. According to Dark Matter this coffee comes from Finka Santa Petrona, the "holy grail of coffee farms in El Salvador." It is a Bourbon coffee, which went through a natural process.

For those not clear, a natural process is when the the coffee berries are dried with the seed inside. The beans are dried, much like a grape to a raisin. Natural processed coffees tend to heavier feel and intense flavors. Speaking of flavors, on the bag, the flavors listed are "Strawberry Shortcake, Raspberry and Vanilla.

This morning I opened the bag, and made a French Press pot of this coffee. When I opened the bag, I smelled a strong nutty aroma. As I drank the coffee, the nutty flavor was the predominant flavor. I'll be honest, I didn't taste what Dark Matter described on the bag. I got almost a hazelnut flavor. It was a smooth coffee, definitely a lighter roast. I think the light roast fooled me, because I wasn't expecting the intense flavor.

This is a mellow coffee, as far as the strength. This is a love tap, 1 on our scale of 1-10. If you want to ease into the morning, this is the coffee. If you want an afternoon coffee, to remind you there is work to do, it would be fine for that.

Did I like the coffee? I was ok with the coffee. I am not a nut flavored kind of guy, so this coffee didn't strike me was something I would get on a regular basis. Still it was a good cup of a coffee, and if you want to try something different, I would recommend this.

Charlie

The Issue of Fair Trade

Fair Trade coffee is a controversial topic in the coffee world. In the 1990s, the fair trade movement took root, as a way to pay coffee growers a fairer price for their coffees, and provide better opportunities for farming communities. The 10 principles of fair trade are:

Creating opportunities for economically disadvantaged producers
Transparency and accountability
Fair trading practices
Payment of a fair price
Ensuring no child or enforced labor
Commitment to non-discrimination
Ensuring good working conditions
Providing capacity building
Promoting fair trade
Respect for the environment

On the surface there is nothing too controversial about this, but the issue these days is the quality of coffee. Coffee companies like Starbucks do wonderful things to promote fair trade, and they are the largest fair trade coffee provider, but with coffee prices at all time lows, are farmers really being paid for the quality of coffee they are producing?

The following video produced by Vocativ, a digital news service, points out that better prices for coffee are being paid for those who produce better quality coffee.

The video raises some interesting questions. Is fair trade worth it anymore? With so many coffee companies dealing in direct trade, is there any concern that the economic progress made from fair trade practices will backslide?

What are your thoughts?

Charlie

Bridgeport Coffee House Review

Chicago has very distinctive neighborhoods. I have been a northsider during my time in Chicago. Mark's family is on the South Side in Bridgeport. The North Side has trendy places to eat and drink. The South Side, other than Hyde Park is more working class. Bridgeport, where we are is the area the Daley's have called home for decades.

Walking into the Bridgeport Coffee House, you encounter a long wooden bar, a tiled floor and a white  ornate, metallic ceiling. This is not a fancy atmosphere, but it is a comfortable and inviting one. The staff is friendly and happy to see you. A yuppie can feel good sipping a latte here, just as the guy headed to his street maintenance job will feel good grabbing a cup of joe to go.

 So what am I drinking? I purposely didn't ask, and then I scanned to website to see if I could figure it out. What I noticed was a strong, almost chocolate like flavor. This would indicate the Papua New Guinea according to the coffees they roast. When I got my second cup....I was right. Woo Hoo I called it.

This is a rich cup of coffee. Yes I taste the chocolate, but there is also spicy flavor to it. Perfect for a cold winter's day. On the strength scale (1 being a love tap and 10 being a Cher slapping you to "snap out of it!", this is a 9. This coffee packs a punch, and would wake you up after a New Year's Eve Party hangover. I like this coffee a lot. Normally coffees from S.E. Asia and the Pacific have an earthiness I don't care for, but this is not bothering me.

We'll be taking some coffee home with us that is for sure. I encourage my Chicago friends to venture down to the South Side to try this coffee. I think they will be pleased. As for the rest of you, here is their website -

http://www.bridgeportcoffeecompany.com

Charlie

Drink the Folgers!

Folgere isn't a coffee you would expect me to talk about. I dare say, most of you would be stunned that I have had some. I am visiting Mark's family for the New Year, and this is what they have in the house. Mark's mother frequently feels bad that she serves this to me. I make it very clear, that I am happy with any coffee she serves.

True, I don't like Folgers. In fact, I don't like any pre-packaged ground coffee. Freshness is not part of this coffee. As a result the coffee tastes stale. Of course when you make stale coffee, in a drip coffee maker, and let it sit, well, most of you know what that does to the coffee. I think a good gift would be a French Press for her. At least then the Folgers has a fighting chance to be ok.

The main point of this post though is to talk about etiquette. When you are served coffee, politely take it. Don't be a snob. Your host/hostess may like the coffee, and you are being rude if you are thumbing your nose at their coffee. I don't want anyone host/hostess to apologize for the coffee they serve. If all you do is nurse a cup of coffee, do, but don't you dare make someone feel bad for making coffee.

Not everyone has a home roaster. Not everyone can get a nice bag of fresh roasted coffee. Some people are just glad to be able to have Folgers in the house. So be nice.

If you want to gift your host/hostess with some nice fresh coffee, do so. I would caution though, do it in a non-snobby way, or the recipient may think you are giving them coffee, so you won't have to drink what they normally serve. Again....be nice.

Ok....lesson over.

Charlie

Coffees of the Year

On the last day of 2013, I wanted to share the coffees I thought were outstanding this last year.  I had a lot of coffee this year. Some was great, some was pretty bad. Still each cup I sipped was an adventure in coffee tasting.

One of the highlights of the year was encountering JJ Coffee Roasters at CoffeeCon -

http://javarunnerscoffeejourney.blogspot.com/2013/05/home-roasting-with-jj-coffee-roasters.html

Jim and Jon gave me a Colombian which at the time I said, "I smelled a nice smokey aroma. I felt, and Mark agreed, that there was a mocha flavor to it." It had a dark cherry taste, which Colombian coffee should have.

Dark Matter Coffee - Earlybird is a coffee we got from Dark Matter Coffee. For me Dark Matter Coffee emerged as the coffee find of the year.

The Earlybird is a combination of Sulawesi and El Salvadorian coffees, with a velvety smoothness to it. Since this coffee, I have had their Unicorn Blood, and their November Rain coffees. These roasters have it dialed in, and are making great coffee.

I Have A Bean- I Have A Bean could easily be the charity coffee of the year, but it is so much more than that. Pete Leonard founded the company to do two things: 1) Roast amazing coffee, 2) give convicted felons a second chance. He has done this in spades.

Pete sent me an Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Adato FTO which was terrific. This coffee has a very good tea-like flavor to it, and has nut, malt and honey notes in it. Loved this coffee.

Honorable Mention

Bee Coffee Roasters - the Indianapolis roaster is doing something special in the Circle City. They are creating not only excellent coffee, but are turning a Starbucks/Dunkin Donuts town, into specialty roaster city. This year they opened a downtown Indianapolis location, and are poised to elevate the coffee quality in this city. BJ and Andy are 110% dedicated to roasting amazing coffee, and in time, they will catch on, and be THE coffee for Indianapolis.

Their Central American coffees have been particularly note worthy. They are giving them a really nice medium roast, and have yet to have a bad cup of coffee.

2013 comes to an end, and so does the first year of my coffee journey. 2014 looks to be more another great coffee year. I hope you will continue to follow my journey.

Charlie

The Journey This Week

I am off to Chicago this week, and one of the things I am going to do, is visit, and try new coffee places, as well as re-visit old favorites. Some of the places I will be:

Halfwit Coffee
Bow Truss Coffee
Metropolis Coffee
Dark Matter Coffee
Inteligentsia

If I find some more, I will check them out. This is going to be fun.

Charlie