Sometimes it's good to come up with an easy to remember phrase so here is my attempt at one for one for one of my passions. Coffee.
It's widely acknowledged that one of the best investments in getting decent fresh coffee is a decent grinder and I'd like to dig a little deeper on why.
For many of us we see coffee beans and assume as I did for many years that once roasted they were akin to lentils or beans. But it reality once roasted it takes several hours to days to release the Co2 generated from roasting in a process known as de-gassing. This combined with the fact that good freshly roasted beans only retain their freshness and peak full flavour for around two weeks from roasting. Or 15 days (one five) because coffee beans are not static.
Then we move onto the grind process. As soon as beans are exposed to air they start to oxidise just as anyone who has left wine to breathe for too many will attest. That lovely fresh full flavoured wine you opened the day before will progressively start to taste like vinegar if left to the open air. So once the beans have ground it's best to use within 15 (one five) minutes. Or just grind what you're going to use.
As it turns out this also applies to green beans which are best if roasted within 18 months... or 1.5 years (one five).
And here comes my biggest frustration with how commercial mainstream coffee has been treated for years. No one in their right mind would mix an artisan made small batch vineyard of superb grapes and mix it up into a larger generic non-descript vat. And yet in Colombia where I come from most coffee farms tend to be small family owned and unlike Brazil the production is still very artisanal.
So here are some of my slightly snobby coffee mantras:
- 15 minutes - Only grind what you're going to use. Avoid pre-ground coffee. Who knows how long that coffee has been sitting on the shelf since roasting. It's generic anyway. You can find decent bur or conical hand grinders such as the KIN Grinder P range for £36 and half decent electric ones for £50.
- 15 days - If it doesn't have a roasting date I just don't buy it these days. It also pushed me the find and experience different coffee.
- 1.5 years - I'm fortunate to be able to have lived in Colombia or travel to Colombia frequently enough and while visiting independent coffee shops with their own roasting facilities I've managed to bag - pun intended - some really decent green beans. So every 6 months or so I dip into some artisanal home roasting with my https://zenroast.co. It takes some practice but I've very much enjoyed getting into the analog manual craft of roasting my own beans once in a while. All you need is a large metal sift and patience.
To me these are just natural limits and rhythms which I find bring joy and as I only have at least one decent coffee a day I have no issues spending 10 minutes to make it.
These days there's almost no excuse for terrible coffee at home and I'm willing to compare how much I spend vs. how much others spend on high street coffee. From Toastao, Costa, Nero or Starbucks I know I'm getting better daily bang for my money every morning.
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