COFFEE Q&A (Part 1)

 

It is almost December now! When I first started writing this article, it was the long National Day weekend of 2021, a few hours in which I invested time reading old articles that I have written be it for this coffee blog, the blog of Dutch Colony (www.dutchcolony.sg) and even some of the articles written for Perfect Daily Grind. In between these, I entertained a few enquiries that came in via Facebook DMs from the group; "iamabaristasg.com - A Coffee Blog" 

It then occurs to me that many of these 'Q&A' are mixed messages about coffee that are quite common and because everyone of us in coffee have a different 'start-time' and also at different stages of our exploration, these questions keep coming in. With the time I had that day, I invested in blogging here, a series of questions i have received thus far with replies to the questions. They may not be the best answers but i assure you that it will be reliable and as we progresses into time, some of them may not be as relevant anymore but at whatever  junction of time you are reading this, feel free to write to me at barista.in.sg@gmail.com should any of these questions (or answers) below require any edits or revisions.

(As i typed a few of them out, I then realised the topics are broad and I was going back and froth to  Q&A that had the same relevancy and/or similar topic. As such, I have further categorised them as sub-topics.)

Caffeine:

Q: Which method of preparation have more caffeine? Espresso or Filtered?

A: Filtered has more caffeine. Caffeine are extracted out when coffee is in contact with water during brewing. The longer the contact time of water to coffee (4 minutes french press vs 30 seconds extraction in espresso), the more caffeine are withdrawn. Do not be confused with the intensity of the beverage, indeed slurping an espresso gives one a different sensation to slurping a brew from a french press (coffee plunger) but high intensity of flavours is not equal to high caffeine level!

Q: Is is true dark roast contain more caffeine?

A: Not true. While a darker roast at time gives you the intensity of a much bolder flavour, bold (or bitter) does not really translate as more caffeine. In fact quantity of caffeine in coffee (beans) is almost equal and static in varying roast degrees. As darker roast experienced more weight loss due to water being removed during roasting, weighing a dose of 15gm of dark roasted coffee will yield more beans count than a lighter roast. This will result in 'more caffeine' in the same weight of the dark roast as compared to the light ones.

Freshness:

Q: How long does coffee keep fresh in an unopened bag?

A: Coffee does not expire but it lose its freshness gradually and  recommendation is to start using it a week after the roast date and consume all of it within 1 month. 

Q: How long does coffee keep fresh in an opened bag?

A: When coffee bags are open and the balance are kept in the same bag, the balance coffee are likely exposed to enemies of coffees like heat, oxygen, moisture and light (even odour) which will accelerate the staling process. Again gradually it loses its freshness faster and recommendations is to consume all the balance within 1 week.

Grind/Ground:

Q: Can grounded coffees keep fresh if kept in a air-tight container.

A: Any coffee that is grounded should be consumed immediately. Volatile compounds are released as coffee grinds away, some of them making up the aromatics that we love in coffee which will then translate into flavours when water is introduced during extraction or brewing. No matter how air tight the container is, these volatile compounds will escape. Flushing with nitrogen can drive away oxygen that causes staling and prolonged the freshness.

Q: There are so many different types of filter and method of brewing. How do I know which grind size is appropriate for the various methods?

A: Application of this rule of thumb always works for me, each time all the time;  The longer the duration of brew, the coarser the grind size and the shorter the duration of brew, the finer the grind size. Example, you will grind very coarse for a 4 minutes plunger brewing method and grind finer for a 30 seconds espresso extraction. 

(.... I will continue refining this article either by adding it on or introducing the part 2. Meanwhile enjoy this and if you like to contribute to this Q&A list, email me at barista.in.sg@gmail.com)