We signed up to participate in a virtual coffee tasting via WGBH (one of our local NPR stations). We were sent a coffee tasting kit in the mail in preparation for the webinar. I set up our coffee tasting station as instructed, and we signed on at 11am. The talk was moderated by Brian O'Donovan (of A Celtic Sojourn) and we were instructed by Shannon, a licensed Q grader from Coffee Lab International’s School of Coffee in Waterbury, Vermont. (A "Q grader" is like a wine sommelier or beer cicerone for coffee, it's a licensing standard developed by the Coffee Quality Institute). We learned a ton of fun facts and had a delightful time.
I always wonder about how/why certain foods/recipes come into existence. For example, who thought to ferment the sugars from grain to make beer? That was probably an accident- someone left grain out in the elements, it got wet, naturally fermented from the yeast in the air, and created alcohol, and when people went to eat it, they realized that it tasted funny and made them feel different (at the time, they thought it was a gift from the gods). And who thought to use the bean inside the cherry of a coffee tree to make a caffeinated beverage? Apparently legend has it that a 9th century goat herder in Ethiopia named Kaldi noticed that after his goats chewed the red cherries of an unfamiliar tree, they were more active throughout the night. (They are now known as Kaldi's dancing goats.) He tried chewing the cherries too and got a burst of energy. That inspired people to look more into these mysterious cherries, and eventually the beverage known as coffee was born.
A coffee cherry is a very intricate little fruit. Surrounding the bean that we roast to make coffee are layers of silver skin, parchment, mucilage, pulp, and skin. Here's a cool picture/diagram of coffee from leaf to bean:
Coffee grows between the tropic of Cancer and the tropic of Capricorn. There are two main species of coffee plant: arabica and robusta. Arabica (about 70% of the world's coffee production) grows at higher altitudes, and is sweet, with higher acidity (aka brightness, liveliness), cleaner finish, and less body. Robusta grows at sea level and is bitter, with lower acidity, harsher/chalky finish, and heavy body. Here's a coffee family tree:
We were given three different types of coffee from the Vermont Coffee Company for sampling, 100% Arabica from Guatemala, Ethiopia, and Sumatra, and we were instructed to make our coffee using the "cupping method" which is used internationally for coffee tasting. I had never heard of it or done it before, so it was super cool to do. Basically, you add ground coffee to a cup and then add heated water (~200°F) and let it sit undisturbed for 4 minutes (2TB coffee for every 200mL of water). Then you use two spoons to break the crust, scrape it off the top layer of the cup. To sample, you use a spoon to take some liquid out and slurp it up (which oxygenates the sample, allowing for a better tasting experience).
We smelled and tasted each coffee, noting all the aromas and flavors from this flavor wheel.
The flavor of coffee, like the flavor of wine and beer, is affected by the environment in which it is produced (which is called "terroir"). For coffee, factors that affect flavor include: altitude, climate, soil, harvesting, and processing. For example, higher altitude coffees (Ethiopia, Kenya, Guatemala, etc) have flavors of fruit, spice, floral, berry, and wine; medium altitude coffees (Costa Rica, Sumatra) have flavors of citrus, vanilla, chocolate, and nut; lower altitudes of coffees (Hawaiian) have subtler, softer, and milder flavors.
Here are our tasting notes:
Guatemala: roasted cereal, nut, butter, plain/mild
Ethiopia: citrus fruit, floral, high acidity, like earl grey tea
Sumatra: roasted, earthy, herbal, chocolate
I liked the Sumatra best, Guatemala second, and Ethiopia third. Then we blended the three and that had a delightful flavor. I am beginning to learn that I enjoy medium altitude coffee with a dark roast.
The whole experience reminded me of my once love of beer, and I am excited about learning more about coffee and enjoying the tasting experience like I once enjoyed with beer.
Also, one more delightful thing to take note of: after the tasting, we hosted a delightful Sunday Board Game Night. As you may know, we used to host a Thursday night Board Game Night at our house, sometimes with 20 or more people in attendance. The pandemic obviously derailed that, and we pivoted to online games, including Jeo-Party every Thursday. A couple of months ago, a friend started hosting a Sunday night board game night, but he is no longer able to host, so we have taken over that responsibility. Last night we had 7 people in attendance. We started by playing Dixit, and then split up to play two games: Puerto Rico and Wingspan. It was almost just like "normal", and it was delightful.
With delight,
♥Jamie
