Coffee Beans - What's All the Fuss About?

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You may be surprised to learn that coffee beans actually come from the fruit of a bushy tree called the coffee plant. Once these beans are removed from the fruit, they are then dried thoroughly. A long and lengthy process then takes place before they can be roasted.

The coffee roast

Roasted coffee is very perishable and so must be treated accordingly. After the beans are harvested they go through a process where the raw form of the bean is heated in vast heated drums that rotate constantly to ensure heat is distributed evenly. It is at the end of this stage that the beans become the more familiar brittle and brown product that we as consumers can relate to. The physical and chemical transformation that the beans go through, when heated, is paramount to the resulting aroma, flavour and quality of the end product that we put into our cups.

The blend

An extensive knowledge and understanding is needed in order to blend coffee beans. It is an art, just like any other that takes time to perfect. The beans that make up a perfect cup of coffee can be compared to the grapes that go into forming a great tasting wine. They each have their own characteristics and personalities.

It is believed that only when the coffee beans are roasted with care that you can extract the best flavor from them. This is also the ideal stage to start the bending process and where a variety of tastes can be achieved. Adding flavors to the blend, such as sugar, chocolate, vanilla etc... can also transform the coffee into a totally different blend altogether. Each coffee producer has its own unique blending process which is overseen by its blending experts, a skilled team that ensure that each batch of coffee produced stays consistent year on year. Another factor that plays on the taste of coffee is the temperature that is used when roasting the beans and must also be kept monitored at all times.

The taste

Drinking coffee can be compared to drinking wine (without the alcohol of course), as they are both an acquired taste. A delicate palate is needed to distinguish the complexity of flavours that go into making each different coffee. And just as wines can be as unique as the regions of their origin, the same is true for coffee. For example, the Arabica coffee has a sharp taste to it, similar to a dry white wine, whereas the Robusta blend has bitter tones to it.

It's worth noting that there a many blends, flavors, tastes etc... of coffee out there and that there are a lot of people who take their coffee drink very seriously. However, don't let this deter you from trying out different coffees yourself. You never know, you might find one you really like and have fun along the way.