What's Brewing

For most of history, coffee has been a luxury. It takes about a year from the moment we plant a seed to the moment we can brew it and enjoy it. That is a whole year of taking care of a plant, annually collecting beans, and ultimately processing them before roasting. There is no doubt that growing coffee is no small feat.  The industrial revolution opened the doors to cheaper ways to grow coffee. The quality of the beans suffered but it also made coffee more readily available for consumers. Nonetheless, industrialization divided the coffee industry in two. Specialty coffee...

By definition, a barista is someone who serves coffee; but what we understand nowadays as barista involves more than serving coffee. There are world-wide competitions bringing together some of the best in the world because we understand that it is a profession rooted in a professionalism and dedication comparable to that of Olympic athletes. Baristas study the beans, decide on how fine or coarse the grinding should be, then discern the type of brewing and its corresponding water to coffee ratio, and when you think it is all done, the serving in itself is an instagrammable show.  We can all serve...

The more you know, the more you realize how little you know. Coffee has been around for so long and it has made a significant impact in so many cultures that its legacy and importance is vast enough to keep us forever intrigued.  Here is a list of the 16 most fascinating facts about coffee. The darker the roast, the lower caffeine content.  Light roast coffee has a higher caffeine content, so if you are drinking coffee for energy purposes, pick the lighter over darker roasts.    Finns consume 27.5 pounds of coffee per year According to the International Coffee...

Good news my friends! If you’d like to become an avid coffee taster you neither need extensive academic education nor complicated equipment, all you need is practice. By taking your time to consciously pay attention to the different aromas and taste of coffee you will start to notice the sometimes subtle and sometimes not so subtle tones and flavors of coffee. It is a physical and mental exercise (some would add emotional to that list), and just like all exercises, you need as much practice and exposure as possible in order to get better and better at it.  People become...

Cubans sweet their espressos with raw sugar cane and yet, the sweetest coffee is still the Vietnamese coffee. I still remember the first time I tried it. I was at a Vietnamese restaurant with my dad and as I ordered it he said to me “You won’t sleep again.” He was right and it was worth it.  Coffee arrived in Vietnam in the 19th century. French missionaries introduced the bean to the Vietnamese fertile soil and coffee has been growing in the country ever since. Nonetheless, coffee was not an important crop until the 80s and 90s when it played...

Not too long ago, it was common practice to buy coffee beans raw and roast them at home. Why did we stop this? There’s many reasons; one of them is simply that as a society we have become more practical, and after WWII there was a boost on kitchen gadgets. Some have remained such as the microwave, the coffeemaker, the electric blender, and many others have gone extinct (or almost extinct) such as the electric can opener and the retractable stove. Practicality is truly the deal breaker here, because roasting coffee at home is no matter for the faint hearted....