If you’re running a coffee roasting business, one of the best ways to drive company success is to brand yourself as a knowledgeable, artisanal coffee roaster with deeper goals than just making a living. You can do this by educating your customers about coffee; the more they learn, the more likely they’ll be willing to pay slightly higher prices for your top-quality product. Here are a few things you’ll want to help them understand:
- Bean Quality Is Complicated
Arabica is good and Robusta is bad, right? Actually, bean quality is quite a bit more complicated than that. It’s true that most Arabica beans will be higher in quality than most Robusta beans, but numerous factors about where and how beans are grown affect their flavor. That’s why customers should trust a small coffee roasting business to taste various coffees and offer them the best options.
- Coffee Roaster Machines Vary
The products from giant commercial coffee roaster machines and small batch coffee roaster machines will vary. Roasting in small batches allows a roaster to carefully match the “origin” flavor of the beans — meaning its individual characteristics — to a corresponding roasting profile. Larger roasting companies will often burn their beans slightly in order to get a more consistent flavor, something that small roasters don’t need to do.
- You’re Storing Your Beans Wrong
Many people pop their freshly bought beans in the freezer, assuming they’ll keep just like other frozen foods. But exposing beans to any extreme conditions (heat, light, cold, etc.) will degrade their flavor. This might not matter much with a giant canister of generic pre-ground coffee, but it’s no way to treat gourmet coffee beans.
- Hotter Water Isn’t Better
When making coffee with water heated in a kettle (whether that’s a French press, Chemex or Melitta filter method), the water shouldn’t be boiling, as this can bring out a bitter flavor in the coffee. The ideal temperature is right around 200 degrees; water boils at 212 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Decaf Doesn’t Have to Be a Dud
Diner decaf might be hard to swallow, but plenty of gourmet coffee roasters are taking on the challenge of delicious decaf blends for people who want to enjoy the flavor of coffee without a dose of caffeine. A new blend containing sleep-promoting natural ingredients (from a Canadian company) is even making its way to the U.S. this year.
What else would you like to share about coffee that you think people don’t know? Add your thoughts in the comments.
