Most coffee beans are grown in sub-tropical climates all over the world. The altitude and region can make a world of difference in the taste of your coffee. The higher grown the coffee plant the better flavored coffee bean you'll get. The fruit of the coffee plant can only be picked when it is perfectly ripe, not too early and not too late. What this means is a year round supply of ripe coffee beans giving you the best quality and most flavorful coffee all the time. It is a well known fact that Kona produces some of the best coffee in the world. The Mauna Loa region on the west side of the big island is where the Island's coffee plant flourishes. With the early morning sunshine, shade in the afternoon, and sufficient amounts of rainfall, growing conditions for the coffee beans are nearly perfect. Also, the volcanic soil and high altitude give this Kona arabica coffee plant everything it needs to thrive. All of these conditions are contributing factors in making this gourmet Hawaiian coffee world-renowned. Once harvested, either by hand or machine, the picked beans are then dried and sorted. The green beans can now be shipped to the roasters or roasted immediately in preparation for your consumption. To optimize flavor and freshness have the beans roasted when you buy if possible. This is because once they have been roasted the flavor and aroma will deteriorate very quickly. However, vacuum sealing and freezer storage can slow down this process to some degree, giving you 6-8 weeks at the most to enjoy a real full flavored cup of coffee. Although you can buy beans cheap at the nearest grocery store, you will probably think twice once you have tasted a cup of coffee brewed with freshly roasted beans! Sorry to say, but the coffee brands on the shelf just don't stand a chance. By the time it reaches the store shelf a huge portion of the flavor is already lost. So for genuine gourmet flavored beans be particular who you buy from. There are several reputable merchants online that will roast the beans when you place your order and have them shipped to you in a matter of days. This is probably the best way to buy if you don't have a local shop that can roast the beans on the premises. This way you are assured authentic flavored coffee at its freshest. RELATED ARTICLES Specialty Gourmet Coffee Specialty gourmet coffee is a very hot commodity in today's market. The consumption of gourmet coffee has steadily grown with consumers enjoying the more sophisticated tastes of gourmet coffee beans. Coffee - Nectar of the gods About 850 A.D it is said that a lone shepherd and his flock came across a strange and mysterious plant growing upon a secluded and forgotten hillside. Before he could stop them some of his herd had began to gnaw away at this unusual berry. After about fifteen minutes or so the herder started to notice that his sheep were behaving in an odd manner. Not only were they unusually alert but they also appeared to be extremely hyperactive. Now being a little weary and extremely tired the shepherd decided to try the berries and see if the end results would be the same for him as they had been for his flock. To his pleasant surprise the shepherd began to feel wide awake and he too became very alert. After a few hours had passed along came a wandering monk who,after being informed of the plants amazing qualities proceeded to scold the poor shepherd and lecture him on his foolish indulgence. After he had finished telling the shepherd just what a sinner he had been the monk set upon his journey but not before he had added a little something to his backpack and supplies. How To Clean A Coffee Maker Ever wonder how to clean a coffee maker the right way? Drip coffee makers need to be cleaned at least once a month to keep your coffee tasting good. Starbucks Product Review Have you had the pleasure of tasting Starbucks new less fattening frappachino? It is a blended coffee drink with quite a reputation for helping you keep the weight off and the extra pounds that Starbucks groupies are complaining about who drink the regular version. Have you tried this new well publicized drink to help you from becoming so fat? The average frappachino drinker appears to be about 20 to 30 pounds over weight by my observations of those in the long lines. Shouldn't you try the newer less fattening drink with the same kick of caffeine but less sugar and chemicals? Well we did. Now we can honestly say, it sucks. It is horrible, watery and a few of the people we talked to said it made them puke. Others simply politely said, "I didn't really like it" along with a sour face of disgust. Kenya Coffee History In Kenya coffee production dates back several hundred years. Coffee was originally discovered in Ethiopia, Kenya's neighbor to the north. Unfortunately, just as in other coffee growing regions of the world, the coffee trade in Kenya triggered heated and bloody battles over the prime growing lands. The Arabs, who monopolized the coffee trade for several hundred years, killed and enslaved many thousand Kenyans and put them to work in coffee production both in Kenya coffee fields and on Arabian coffee plantations. The History Of Coffee Coffee - THE Drink of Choice How to Make Restaurant Quality Coffee At Home Have you ever wondered how restaurants get their coffee to taste so good? Choosing A Coffee Maker - Tips On Finding The Right Features Choosing a good coffee maker is not a decision to be taken for granted. If you are going to spend money on your favorite coffee, you will want to make sure the coffee maker you choose is of good quality and has the features you want. The majority of coffee makers are generally quite good and you will notice no difference in the taste of your coffee from one brand to another. There are some basic features to look for when choosing a coffee maker and some luxury features that may give you a better tasting cup of coffee Coffee is a commodity At Starbucks they obviously need coffee. To insure that they get the coffee at a good price, Starbucks has chosen to buy the coffee fields, rather than pay an advanced contract price for the coffee beans. Just think it's Starbucks was buying coffee from Cuba, and that hurricane that came through Cuba two months ago destroyed all the coffee beans, in this case Starbucks cannot sell you your Latte. That would really piss you off. Starbucks knows that if they piss you off; you may never come back again. Also if Starbucks kept raising and lowering the price of coffee they sell in the store you might get upset. But since the coffee is a commodity, the price would fluctuate. And Starbucks knows since they buy so much coffee, that they would have to guarantee they have the coffee, and then they would have to pay a premium price for the contract for coffee. Those Elusive Coffee Beans! With the spread of various coffee beans into our lives, it can be more and more difficult to discern what you're buying at the market. And that's not surprising given the sheer numbers game. The Coffee Culture in the USA It wasn't until I moved to the US that I started drinking coffee regularly and became what they call in the Netherlands a 'koffieleut', which translates literally into 'coffee socialite.' Although the average European drinks more coffee per year than the average American, the cultural importance and its effects on the average European seems to me smaller than that on the average American. After all, coffee is a cultural obsession in the United States. Coffees of India India produces two fine coffees, but even among coffee devotees ? at least in America ? they remain relatively unknown and un-drunk. That's too bad. They deserve to be extolled for the romance attached to them, if nothing else; happily, they also taste pretty good as well. Coffee Roasting: Learning the Fundamental Art of Making Coffee Can be Fun Coffee roasting from light to very dark, is an art form in itself. Green beans have none of the flavor we are all accustomed to. Coffee roasting brings out the vibrant flavor from the coffee bean. It is true that before roasting, the 'green' bean contains all the complex acids, protein and caffeine, but just a yukky green-like taste that doesn't resemble coffee. How to Make a Great Tasting Cup of Coffee - Its Not Rocket Science There is good coffee and absolutely abysmal coffee. Both may start with the same elements, but one cup can taste completely different to another. Freshness is the key to great tasting coffee. Here is the play by play smackdown of how to create a fantastic tasting cup of coffee. Coffee Breaks - Do They Create Stress? The American custom of taking break during the working hours. Thus coffee breaks began in the early 20th century. At the end of the 19th century, the American workplace was a dreadful place for a break. What Makes Hawaiian Coffee So Special? Coffee was first introduced to the Islands by Chief Boki, the Governor of Oahu, in 1825. He acquired coffee plants in Rio de Janeiro while aboard a British warship, the H.M.S. Blonde. These first coffee plants were planted in Manoa Valley, on Oahu, where they flourished. From this original planting, coffee trees were introduced to locations around the Islands, including the now famous Kona Coast. The Best Cup of Drip Coffee Possible With a "good" cup of coffee costing almost as much as a good sandwich these days, more and more people are taking to making their coffee at home from an "old fashioned" drip coffee machine. With the influence of Starbucks and the others out there, people are demanding a better cup of coffee all of the time. This article should help you make the best cup of drip coffee possible. Does Coffee Make You Fat or Help with Diabetes? Who the heck knows? Gourmet Coffee Beans You can be a coffee lover without knowing much about coffee beans, but learning a little bit about the different types of coffee can help you get the perfect cup every time. There are many types of gourmet coffee beans. The way they have been grown in processed has a huge effect on their taste. Here's a little bit of information for getting the best from your gourmet coffee beans. Ethiopian Coffee Ethiopia is the birthplace of coffee, yet it is not a country that comes to mind when the average consumer thinks of coffee. The South American countries are much more synonymous with coffee production but coffee did not come to these countries until the early 1700's, nearly a thousand years after it was discovered. As legend has it, Ethiopian coffee was originally discovered around 600 A.D. by a young boy tending goats. It is not known when the name coffee was applied to the strange plants but an interesting legend places it around 900 A.D.
Coffee Tea Cup