How we serve coffee

Americano: A single shot of espresso with about 7 ounces of hot water added

Hammerhead (A Shot in the Dark): A shot of espresso served in a coffee cup and filled with drip coffee

Caffe Latte: Single shot of espresso with steamed milk at approximately a 3:1 ratio of milk to coffee

Cappuccino: Traditionally made with equal parts espresso, steamed milk and frothy milk.

Dry Cappuccino: An espresso drink made with a tiny bit of foam and no steamed milk.

Mocha: Most often a Cappuccino or a Caffe Latte with chocolate syrup added.

Espresso Con Panna: A shot espresso with whipped cream.

Double Shot: Two shots of espresso added to the other ingredients included in the drink of your choice

Cafe Macchiato: A shot of espresso or in a demitasse (small espresso cup) topped with steamed milk. Ratio of approximately 80/20 and often served with a teaspoon of sugar mixed in.

Cafe Breva: More or less like a cappuccino made with half and half rather than whole milk.

Frappe: Originally a cold espresso, it has more recently been prepared putting 1-2 teaspoons of instant coffee with sugar, water and ice. The brew is placed in a long glass with ice, and milk if you like, turning it into a big coffee milkshake.

Instant coffee (or soluble coffee): freeze-dried coffee turned into soluble powder or coffee granules.

Irish coffee: A coffee spiked with Irish whiskey, with cream on top.

Turkish Coffee (also known as Greek Coffee): Made by boiling finely ground coffee and water together to form a muddy, thick coffee mix. It’s often made in what’s known as an Ibrik, a long-handled, open, brass or copper pot. It is then poured, unfiltered, into tiny Demitasse cups, with the fine grounds included. It’s then left to settle for a while before serving, with sugar and spices often added to the cup.

Kopi Tubruk: An Indonesian-style coffee that is very similar to Turkish and Greek , it’s very thick, but the coarse coffee grounds are actually boiled together with a solid piece of sugar. The islands of Java and Bali tend to drink this brew.

Melya: A coffee mixed with 1 teaspoon of unsweetened powdered cocoa and drizzled honey. Sometimes served with cream.

Lungo: is an extra long pull that allows somewhere around twice as much water as normal to pass through the coffee grounds usually used for a single shot of espresso.

Ristretto: The opposite of a Lungo, the name of this variety of coffee means ‘restricted’, which means, less water is pushed through the coffee grounds than normal, even though the shot would take the same amount of time as normal for the coffee maker to pull.

Vietnamese style coffee: A drink made by dripping hot water though a metal mesh, with the intense brew then poured over ice and sweetened, condensed milk. This process uses a lot more coffee grounds and is thus a lot slower than most kinds of brewing.

White coffee: A black coffee with milk added.

http://www.talkaboutcoffee.com

Kopi Luwak the most expensive coffee in the world does exist, and those who drink the expensive coffee insist that it is made from coffee beans eaten, partly digested and then excreted by the Common palm civet, a weasel-like animal.
“Kopi” the Indonesian word for coffee along with “luwak” is local name of this animal which eats the raw red coffee beans. The civet digests the soft outer part of the coffee cherry, but does not digest the inner beans and excretes them.
Apparently the internal digestion ends up adds a unique flavor to the beans, removing the bitter flavor, and then beans are then picked up by locals and sold. The most expensive coffee beans can cost up to $600 a pound, and up to $50 per cup, if you can get over the fact that you are drinking such a strange brew.

http://www.most-expensive.net

Decaffeinated Coffee – production process

European Process
This process involves soaking the beans in water and then “washing” them in methylene chloride to absorb the caffeine from the bean. After this, the beans are rinsed clean of the chemicals, dried and shipped to the coffee roasters. The advantage of this method is that it provides decaf coffee with more flavor.

Swiss Water Process
This process uses no chemicals, but rather hot water and steam to remove the caffeine from the coffee. The “life” of the bean is taken into the water, and then the water solution put through activated charcoal filters to remove the caffeine. Once the caffeine is removed, these same beans are then put back into the decaffeinated solution to re-absorb everything except the caffeine. The beans are then dried and shipped to the roasters. The disadvantage is that the water processing removes more than just the caffeine. Some of the oils from the coffee bean are removed as well, making it less flavorful.

http://www.chilipaper.com

Sorts of coffee beans

There are about 60 sorts of coffee beans but the most significant could be considered the ones below:

Kona
– compared to Robusta and Arabica in the commercial world, Kona is much smaller yet very expensive
– grows in the country of Hawaii
– has a very high demand worldwide due to its powerful aroma
– is rarely blended with other kinds of drink flavorings

Robusta-covers 40% of the coffee production in the whole world
– it has a very high resistance to weather and disease
– can be blended with other coffee blends because of its strong flavor giving every coffee a “kick”
– does not vary in flavors compared to Arabica
– was discovered while growing naturally in an area now called as the “Democratic Republic of Congo”

Arabica
– covers 60% of the coffee production in the whole world
– very vulnerable to pests, disease and frost which makes it expensive
– can be used on its wholesome form as well as it can be used as a base with Robusta for coffee blends
– Arabica coffee beans still vary accordingly to the region where they are grown and used
– produces a superior grade of coffee known as the gourmet coffee because it contains half of the Robusta caffeine as well as more aromatic properties and desirable flavorings

Robusta countries:
Nigeria, Cameroon, Gabon, Democratic Republic of Congo, Uganda, Angola, Madagascar, Sri Lanka, Sumatra, Java, Bali, Timor, Borneo, Vietnam, and Celebes.

Arabica countries:
Columbia, Venezuela, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Paraguay, Guyana, Suriname, French Guiana, Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, Cuba, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, Jamaica, Hawaii, Yemen, Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Zambia, and Papua New Guinea.

Combination countries:
Brazil and India.

http://www.coffee-makers-et-cetera.com

The history of coffee and tea

Coffee
-earliest reference from the Arabian bunn or bunchum (first planting and cultivation took place in Arabia)
-coffee tree originated in the province of Kaffa, Ethiopia around 500 A.D. where used to grow wild and Ethiopians brought seeds to Arabia during their occupation of Yemen in the early 6th century
-the Arabs monopolized coffee beans and prohibited their exportation by striping the outer layer of the coffee beans for about 300 years
-1453 the Ottoman Turks introduced coffee to Constantinopole, the capital of the Empire
-1475 Kiva Han, the world’s first coffee shop and in the same year the Ottoman Empire enacted the law to make legal for a woman to divorce her husband if he did not provide her with a daily quota of coffee
-1600 coffee is introduced to the West by Italian traders
-1607 Captain John Smith helps introduce coffee to North America
-1645 the first coffeehouse opens in Italy
-1668 New York City abandons beer as its official morning drink, replacing it instead with coffee
-1672 Paris opens its first coffeehouse
-1690 The Dutch become the first to transport and cultivate coffee commercially
-1727 the Brazilian industry gets its start when Lieutenant Colonel Francisco de Melo Palheta is sent by the Portuguese government to arbitrate a border dispute between the French and the Dutch
-according to The Boston Tea Party, drinking coffee becomes a patriotic duty
-1901 the first soluble “instant” coffee is invented by a Japanese – American chemist
-1920 coffee sales boom when Prohibition goes into effect in U.S.A.
-1946 in Italy, the espresso machine is perfected and cappuccino is named after its color’s resemblance to the robes of the monks of the Capuchin order.

The Coffee Culture

Tea
-appeared first in China under the emperor Shen Nung (2737 – 2697 B.C.)
-around 1600 the English tried to established trade with China but they were rejected repeatedly
-1610 Dutch traders brought Chinese tea to Europe from Macao and they also brought green tea from Japan
-after it was considered a medicinal elixir, in 1635 a German called Simon Paulli came to say that the tea is a drink which hasten the death of the consumers and he was opposing by the Dutch physician Nikolas Dirx in 1641 tea finally reached England in 1658 and it was first served and sold publicly at Thomas Garway’s coffeehouse in London’s Exchange Alley.
-1730 Chinese green tea and blended teas are sold at auctions
-1773 a boat with tea sails to Boston but the colonists refuse to allow the tea, symbol of British oppression, to be unloaded and several colonists dressed as Mohawk Indians secretly board the ship at night to unload the 342 chests of green tea into the water
-1904 American iced tea is invented at the St Louis World’s Fair
-1908 the tea bag is born as an accident, the tea importer Thomas Sullivan, in order to reduce expenses of sending tea in tins to his customers decides to send them samples in silk bags as gifts but the customer, not knowing what to do with them, place them in their teapots, adding hot water.
-1953 Tetley Tea Company introduces the paper tea bag to the mass British market.

The Tea Book by D.L. Campbell

Slow food

The Slow Food movement began in 1986 as a protest against fast food – in particular, the opening of a McDonald’s in Rome. The father of the movement, Carlo Petrini, was determined to wage an intellectual war against fast food and the rushed lifestyle that corresponds with this way of eating.

http://www.medhunters.com

Slow Food is necessarily regional, promoting and protecting local produce. Its aim: “To counteract fast food and fast life, the disappearance of local food traditions and people’s dwindling interest in the food they eat, where it comes from, how it tastes and how food choices affect the rest of the world.”

http://www.slowlysheturned.net

Types of vegetarians

1) Semi vegetarians – These ‘vegetarians’ eat all types of foods in their diet – including meat. However these individuals limit the amount of animal products they consume.

2) Lacto vegetarian – Individuals in this group are a step up from the semi vegetarians. They avoid all animal products except for dairy products in their diet.

3) Lacto-ovo vegetarians – This type of vegetarian diet excludes all meat except for dairy and eggs. Not too different from the previous type.

4) Vegans – These are the ‘hard-core” vegetarians who avoid all animal products in their diet, such as meats, dairy products, and eggs. The vegan diet rely on lentils, beans, soy products etc..

http://www.healthycookingrecipes.com

Religions and some food requirements

Hinduism
Most Hindus do not eat meat (strict Hindus are vegetarians) and none eat beef since the cow is sacred to them. Janam Ashtami celebrates the birth of Krishna, in August, Holi is the festival which celebrates the end of winter and arrival of spring.

http://www.butlersguild.com

Buddhism
Unlike Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism, Buddhism has less rigid dietary laws defining what people can eat and with whom they can dine.
The special foods used in the annual cycle of Buddhist holidays and festivals differ by country. Food is both a marker of religious affiliation and a marker of ethnic identity. It is therefore impossible to identify foods as specifically Buddhist.

http://www.enotes.com

Islam
This religion has various food restrictions according to their own dietary laws, which are Halaal. Muslim celebrate the birth of Mohammed at the end of February or early in March. During the holy month of Ramadan, Muslims are not allowed to eat from dawn to sunset. However young children, pregnant women and the sick are often exempted. As similar to other religions, it would be advisable to enquire as to what restrictions the guest has.
Carnivorous animals are not permitted.
All pork and pork products are totally forbidden.
Sea animals which do not have fins or scales are considered undesirable by some Muslims.
Alcohol in any form is not permitted.
Permissible meat other than pork can be eaten only if it is prepared in the correct way (Halaal).
These products should be avoided by all Muslims, Lard, gelatine, Rennet, Whey, Vanilla extract.
(some vanilla extracts have over 50% alcohol)
Utensils should be separate for Muslims. There should be no contamination of Halaal and non Halaal.

http://www.butlersguild.com

Judaism
The Jewish diet is referred to as kosher. The ancient rules specify that Jews may eat virtually all the vegetables. When it comes to meat, four-footed animals must have hoofs and ruminant digestion (cows), sea food must have scales and fins, and only a few birds (chicken, ducks) are permitted. When the animals are slaughtered, they must be drained of all their blood immediately. The Jewish diet requires that meat and milk products may never be consumed together at one meal and even the dishes use for these two categories be washed and stored separately.

Pocket Guide to World Religions by W. Corduan

Christianity
Foods that the Bible lists as good to eat:
Barley—Ruth 2:23
Bread—Luke 22:19
Butter—Isaiah 7:22
Corn—Ruth 2:14; I Samuel 17:17
Cheese—I Samuel 17:18
Dates—Genesis 3:2
Eggs—Job 6:6
Figs—Numbers 13:23; I Samuel 25:18
Fruits(All)—Genesis 1:29
Herbs (Leafy Plants) and Vegetables—Genesis 1:29
Honey—Deuteronomy 8:8
Meats—(Beef, Fish,Lamb,Poultry,Venison) Deuteronomy 14; Leviticus 11
Milk—Isaiah 7:21-22
Nuts—Genesis 43:11
Olives and Olive Oil—Leviticus 2:4; Deuteronomy 8:8
Salt—Leviticus 2:13
Wheat (Bread, Cereal, Pasta)—Psalm 81:16

The following are some different kinds of fasts:

• Juice Fast: Abstaining from solid food and only drinking fruit juices and water
• Traditional Fast: Abstaining from food and all drinks except water
• Partial fast: Fasting from sun up to sun down, or from the time you get up until dinner
• One-day fast: Fasting from bed time of day one until breakfast of day three
• Three-day fast: Self explanatory
• One-Week fast: A full week of no food and only water
• Daniel Fast: Fasting for three weeks
• Wesley Fast: Fasting on Wednesday and Friday; a tradition practice by John Wesley and many in the early church
• 40 days fast: before Easter, Christmas and St. Mary

http://www.bible.com