Personally, I love coffee. I like it hot in the morning and iced in the afternoon. Lunches or dinners out that end with a cup are particularly satisfying. It seems that adults in the United States and Canada consume vast amounts of the brewed bean, but Finland boasts the worlds highest coffee consumption. Finnish and Swedish researchers even found that people in midlife that drank coffee helped lower their risk for dementia and Alzheimer’s in later life.
When it comes to the actual taste of your coffee, it’s really all in the beans. The less time the beans are roasted, the less depth of flavor and intensity the final product will have. European or French roast coffees roast slightly longer than the American brews, while a ‘dark’ brew roasts to bring out the beans natural sugars and oils. It has more body and actual looks darker in your cup as a result of the sugars caramelizing. Dark brews are a favorite of mine. When preparing beans for espresso, they are cooked to the point of burning and are allowed to smoke. Dark roast coffees usually are smoother than their lighter companions, but the lighter roasts contain more caffeine. The prolonged roasting time of espresso beans actually subtracts a lot of their caffeine punch. A cup of regular coffee has more caffeine than a shot of espresso, contrary to popular belief.
If at all possible, get your coffee directly from a local roaster and grind the beans right before brewing. A few years ago I purchased a new coffee maker and I had certain criteria for my new kitchen companion, including a grind and brew option and automatic shut off so that I wouldn’t find myself in the car on a road trip wondering if I turned off the coffee maker. Have you been there? It’s not fun.
Even though being a coffee connoisseur can get a bad rap, this delicious beverage does have health and beauty benefits galore. Used coffee grounds make a great body scrub – it’s easy to find recipes on line. Coffee can help reduce your risk for non-melanoma skin cancers and can help lower breast cancer risk in premenopausal women. So drink up and don’t feel bad when you say yes to that second cup. See, even dark roast coffee has a silver lining!
Photo credit © Barol16 | Dreamstime.com
Posted by: Paul Krake on August 10, 2009 at 6:30 pm
Fun Article! I love coffee as well and had the privilege of being trained as a Barrista by illy. What a fantastic education but now I am ruined for any other coffee than illy! But oh it’s worth it
Posted by: Mike Adams on August 18, 2009 at 5:00 pm
You should try some “Trauma Mama Coffee” (Wild Rum & Caramel)!!!
Who better to find great coffee than a paramedic!!!
-Mike