LATTE ART 101

Latte art is the final step in producing an excellent drink - and it’s the most visible. In this video, we’ll talk you through and demonstrate how to do some basic pours.

MILK STEAMING 101

We make a lot of drinks - and a lot of those drinks are mostly milk. In this video we’ll talk you through the science of how to steam good milk, and some tangible ways to make it more delicious.

ESPRESSO 101

We like to say that espresso is 70% science, and 30% art. We can help you with both starting with this video on the basics of how to pull espresso shots. We’ll talk you through how to dial in espresso, and then you can watch alongside us as we dial in real time.

FARM TO CUP

The story of coffee is long and complex - here we try to break it down for you as we explore the journey coffee takes to get to your cup.

TASTING 101

I’ve often told people that I taste things for a living, usually in jest. But the thing is: we really do taste and identify flavors as a part of our job. People are coming to us for coffee as experts, and their questions about flavor and tasting notes shouldn’t be brushed off. Your palate is already more highly trained than most of the public; as hands and fingers are to a classical pianist, so are our palates to us. And yet, of all of our five senses, the sense of taste is perhaps least understood both scientifically and for us as coffee professionals.

There’s a lot of misinformation around our sense of taste and how we perceive flavor (which is different than taste, involving our sense of smell and touch as well). For example, you were probably all taught the “tongue map” in school, or maybe even by me or another trainer. You know the one; where you taste salty and sweet on the tip of your tongue and bitter in the back. Here’s the big reveal though: that map is mostly nonsense. I say mostly because there is a bit of research suggesting there are higher concentrations of taste buds that pick up salty and sweet on the tip of your tongue for example, but they’re not solely found there. You can prove this to yourself with something really bitter like an aspirin or some dark chocolate. Hold it on the tip or the middle of your tongue and see if it doesn’t taste bitter. Another bit of falsehood we probably all believe is that humans don’t have a good sense of smell. The exact number isn’t known, but high estimates are in the billions regarding how many distinct smells the human nose can identify. For comparison the human eye, one of the most developed organs in nature, can only distinguish between around ten million colors. We’re particularly well suited for retro nasal olfaction - that is, to smell things that travel back up through your nasal cavity when you swallow.

What we don’t have is language centered around identifying smells. We have lots of different words for “red:” maroon, dark red, light red, very light red, pink, rouge burgundy… But what language to you use to distinguish between a smoked pork smell and a smoked brisket smell? Or between a lemon and a lime? That’s where tasting thoughtfully and often comes in. What we’re trying to do is create a dictionary of sense memories that we can call to mind instantly. Tasting and identifying a single spice/fruit/etc. is difficult, but picking that flavor out of hundreds of others mixed is nearly impossible. That’s why we try to commit the smell and taste of cinnamon, for example, to memory: so that when we taste cinnamon in coffee, we can call stout immediately without having to think about tit. Don’t just think “cinnamon;” think spicy, sweet, aromatic, warming, cookies, Christmas. Having these associations will make it easier to identify in the future. The goal is that kind of memorization, not necessarily the skill of identifying at the drop of a hat. It’s also helpful to taste things side by side, whether it’s coffee, fruit, cheese, beer - or anything really. Notice which is the most acidic versus which is the least, which has a stronger aroma of strawberry, which is the most bitter, etc. We call this “comparitive tasting.”

Tasting thoughtfully can be a frustrating pursuit, but i’ve found it to be one of the greatest sources of enrichment and even joy in my life. Here are just a few quick pointers for developing your sense memory and getting the most out of your coffee - really anything your eat or drink.

1. Taste (and smell) EVERYTHING. Never turn down the opportunity to taste something new.

2. Even taste (and smell) the things you don’t like. For example, don’t skip on mushrooms - there’s a world of delicious flavor there. Who knows? You might even become a fan.

3. Taste with friends. Host whiskey tastings (a personal favorite pastime of mine), wine tastings, coffee flights, charcuterie boards, chocolate - anything you can find three or more of can make for a great tasting. Talk about it out loud as you taste.

4. Remember to speak the name of what you’re tasting out loud and associate it with a few descriptors and memories. This will help connect the neural pathways and create those coveted sense memories.

This is going to sound cheesy, but remember to have fun. How crazy is it that we get to do this for a living? Now get out there and taste everything you can.

DECAF 101

We often say around Deeper Roots that decaf drinkers are the truest form of coffee lovers: they’re not in it for the caffeine, they’re just in it for the love of the game. We take our decaf pretty seriously, but how does a plant that naturally produces caffeine become decaffeinated? There are two main methods you’ll see us roasting - let’s take a look at them.

Before we do that though, let’s talk about caffeine itself. What is caffeine? Caffeine is a convergent evolution in around 60 plants. That means that it evolved pretty much independently in plants as diverse as coffee, tea, cocoa, and even some flowers. Caffeine originally evolved as a pest deterrent. If you, as a plant, simply kill the pests that attack you evolution will self-select for those individuals that are resistant. Instead, caffeine evolved to confuse and in the case of some flowers, attract insects. In what amounts to a happy accident of evolution, this molecule blocks receptors in our brain for adenosine, a chemical that produces sleepiness - hence that jolt of energy we’re all familiar with.

To decaffeinate coffee, raw coffee beans are put through one of two processes: ethyl acetate (sometimes called sugar cane processing) and mountain water processing. Though these two processes differ, they start out the same way. Raw coffee beans are brought to a decaffeination facility and washed to remove dust or any foreign objects. Next they are polished to remove the silver skin layer and steamed. The act of steaming coffee beans helps them to open up on a cellular level, so that they are more receptive to having caffeine removed.

Here is where the two processes differ: you next add a solvent to the raw coffee to remove the caffeine. A solvent is a substance that dissolves a solute, or a specific compound we’re trying to get at - in this cafe, caffeine and hopefully nothing else. In sugar can processing the solvent is ethyl acetate - which might sound like a scary artificial chemical, but is actually a naturally occurring ester made up of alcohol and acetic acid (vinegar). It’s found in apples and pears and is a byproduct of fermenting sugar cane into molasses. The raw coffee is added to a sealed tank along with ethyl acetate where it’s held at a specific temperature and refreshed with new ethyl acetate as many as 10 times over about 8 hours. It’s agitated constantly to help “wash” out the caffeine. We use ethyl acetate because it’s very selective; it takes out caffeine but leaves most of the other compounds that make coffee delicious. Afterwards the tanks are flushed with steam for about two and a half hours, causing the ethyl acetate to boil away. Finally the coffee is dried and cooled down before it’s packed and sent to us for roasting.

Mountain water processing is very similar to ethyl acetate, however the solvent used is a proprietary blend called green coffee extract. While we don’t know exactly what’s in this, we do know that it is made from coffee, contains most of its solubles, yet leaves a convenient gap where caffeine should be. When you add the green coffee extract to water and raw coffee and heat it up, only the caffeine will extract because everything else is balanced. After coffees processed both ways are dried, they’re tested rigorously to make sure no solvent remains, as well as making sure the caffeine has been completely removed.

That’s a lot of science but suffice to say that to decaffeinate coffee you need a solvent, and that solvent is either ethyl acetate or green coffee extract depending on the process. You won’t ever see us use something called methyl chloride, an erstwhile solvent used to decaffeinate. It’s been found to be harmful even in small quantities, so we stay away from it. Regardless of the process, we roast to perfection and make sure you can be sipping any time of day or night.

VARIETIES

When you think of what influences a coffee’s flavor, your mind might first go to the brewing method. Obviously espresso tastes much different than filter. You might also think of the process; again, naturally taste quite different than washed. Terroir also has a lot to do with flavor. Brazilian coffees are naturally going to taste different than Ethiopian. But let’s go back even further and talk about something you might not think of: variety.

There are two main species of coffee widely cultivated: Coffea arabica and Coffea canephora. But within the species of arabica there is still a lot of genetic diversity, just not enough classify as a different species altogether. Think about how all wine is made from the species Vitis vinifera, but there are many different varieties that you’re probably already familiar with: pinot noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Pino Grigio, etc. You’re probably heard of some of the more common or well-known varieties of coffee too: Bourbon (that’s bore-BOHN, not the whiskey), Typical, Gesha. But there are hundreds of different varieties of arabica, and while many of them were bred for increased yields or ease of harvest, some were selected for flavor. Some are even naturally occurring.

Let’s start with the basics. Plants reproduce via pollination - pollen from one plant is carried by a pollinator (bees, flies, birds, the wind, etc) to another plant, where it fertilizes the flower leading to the production of fruit or seeds. Coffee is a self-pollinating plant; that means that pollen from the plant travels to either other flowers on the same plant, or between reproductive structures within the same flower. What that means from a variety standpoint is that coffee is very easy to crossbreed. We’re not talking about GMOs here. Coffee can be crossbred as easily as rubbing one flower with your fingers, then rubbing a second and planting the resultant seed. This process has led to dozens of different varieties, with more being created all the time. Coffee varieties generally don’t get a name until they’ve reproduced for at least two generations. The first expression of a new hybrid is called an “F1,” a naming convention that is held throughout the agriculture industry. You can find F1s being sold by roasters, usually as an experimental lot. They’re almost always worth checking out, especially if you want to taste something on the cutting edge!

Coffee has almost always been crossbred for ease of harvest or disease resistance. For example, you’re probably familiar with Edgar Cosigua’s coffee from Finca San Jeronimo Miramar - a variety called “Sarchimor.” This is a cross between Catimor (a robusta) and Villa Sarchi (an arabica). This gives it disease resistance from the robusta and good flavor from the arabica. Disease resistance is becoming increasingly important as climate change causes fungal diseases to be more prevalent at higher altitudes. Another example is Catuai - a hybrid of Caturra and the heavy producing Mundo Novo. Many coffee varieties are naturally occurring mutations: Caturra is a mutation of Bourbon. Yellow and Orange Bourbons are natural mutations as well.

There are also many varieties that stand on their own for flavor. Both Typica, which gives rich chocolate and nutty flavors, and Bourbon, which taste similar with pronounced stone fruit notes, are thought of as the genetic parents of coffee. The famed Ethiopian variety Gesha (so named for the Gesha village, not for the Japanese courtesan “geisha”) tastes almost tea-like with delicate florals and acidity. SL-28 and SL-34, named for Scott Labs in Kenya where they were created, carry distinct black currant notes. Pink Bourbon isn’t a Bourbon at all; rather it’s an Ethiopian landrace that gives bright tropical fruit flavors. Not much research has been done in to breeding coffee plants for specific flavor combinations - but the potential is certainly present.

While many coffees are blends of several varieties mixed, with some even being labeled as merely “various arabica,” you can often find specific varieties and even singular ones. Try to notice the next time you really dig a particular coffee not just where’s from or how it’s processed, but what variety it is.

THE NINE FACTORS OF EXTRACTION

Whenever we talk about espresso - or any coffee really - there are nine factors that we have control over and can use to affect flavor. It’s important to note that most of these factors aren’t readily accessible to us as baristas. They require reprograming the machine, changing water filtration profiles, or otherwise altering the brew method. There are three that we regularly alter on a daily basis; but first let’s look at the other six.

1. The coffee
   Much of what comes out in the cup depends on the coffee that we choose. All coffee has its own unique character and quality. Where did the coffee come from? How was it processed? How long ago was it roasted? What level of roast was applied to this coffee? There are many factors that influence the character and quality of a coffee, and our aim as baristas is to highlight these natural characteristics.

2. Water Quality
   Coffee is anywhere from 88-99% water, so the quality of water used for brewing is of paramount importance. Brew water should be filtered for taste and odor, and any sediments or chemicals should be removed. There are exacting parameters that SCA puts out as to how many parts per million (PPM) certain elements can fall within, but for the most part they are at or below 150.

3. Water Temperature
   What specific flavor compounds are extracted from coffee depends greatly on the temperature of water. Generally, it is best to use water as close to boiling as you can - 205* seems to be the most advisable given current research. Lower temperatures tend to accentuate acidity but not much else, and the closer your approach boiling (212*F), bitterness and astringency dramatically rise.

4. Pressure
   All brewing methods deal in pressure, but you are probably most familiar with the pressure involved with espresso. Using a great deal (10 bars - 10 atmospheres) of pressure, we can force water through a compacted bed of very finely ground coffee, producing a concentrated drink with rich flavor and a syrupy body.

5. Agitation
   Good, high levels of extraction rely on saturation of all the coffee grounds with water. Coffee grounds are prone to sheltering air pockets, leaving some coffee (often even at the bottom of the brew bed) dry for long periods of time during brewing. Thus stirring - whether manually with a spoon or other implement, or by a high flow rate of water - can help to saturate the coffee more fully.

6. Time
   When we speak about time with regard to extraction, we are referring to the contact time of the brew - that is, the amount of time that water was in contact with the coffee. As baristas we are often taught that time is a delineator of quality when it comes to extraction but it is no more a factor than any of the others. Rather, it is more useful to understand that more time equals more extraction, and vice versa.

Now for the three factors that we most often have agency over in our day-to-day work lives as baristas:

1. Dose
   Put simply, the dose is how much coffee is put into any brew, be it a pour over or a shot of espresso. Increasing the amount of coffee will brew a stronger cup, but it will also affect brew time and flavor. No factors exist in a vacuum!

2. Beverage Weight
   Beverage weight on the other hand, is related to how much water is used for a particular brew. Keep in mind that some amount of water will be retained in the coffee grounds - this is known as the Liquid Retention Ratio. That’s why the beverage weight is different than the total amount of water used in the brew.

3. Grind Size
   We grind coffee to create more surface area for the water to interact with during a brew cycle. The finer a coffee is ground, the more surface area is available for water to interact with. In espresso, this is extremely important - most extraction occurs through erosion in espresso, so the more surface area the water can touch, the more extraction will occur. For most brew methods, the grind size will influence the contact time; finer grounds will lead to a longer brew time, while coarser grounds will shorten it. This will have a cascading effect on the overall extraction and flavor of a cup.

Taken together, the dose and beverage weight can be combined to the brew ratio. A brew ratio is most often expressed as as ratio; for example, 28g of coffee to 375g of water, or written another way 13.4:1. It’s helpful to think to time as the answer to the equation of the brew ratio. We’re not actually solving a math problem here, but your grind size and your brew ratio, taken together, will get you a specific brew time as a result. Thus, time can be used to monitor consistency of shots and brews. If the brew time is different, then something has changed.