The Art of Italian Coffee with beans | what is espresso beans and the principle of blending proportion

Italy does not produce coffee beans, but there is a type of coffee called espresso, which is what we call espresso today. It is usually made of two or more coffee beans, the purpose of which is to combine the characteristics of a variety of coffee beans to achieve a balance of aroma and sour taste. The coffee is roasted more deeply than the average single coffee (boutique coffee), and the espresso liquid, which is usually used in institutional lattes or cappuccinos, is extracted by an Italian coffee machine that produces high-pressure steam. Like enthusiastic Italians, Italian coffee is famous for its rich and mellow flavor. Espresso (Espresso) is the most representative Italian coffee. Americans call it "Espresso" to fully express the meaning of rapid extraction. At first, he was only popular in Italy, France, Spain and other southern European countries, but later swept across the Americas and became one of the most popular drinks. Even in Britain, known as the "black tea country", you can smell the aroma of espresso in the air everywhere. Today, let's talk about the blending principles of Italian coffee.

Translated from The Art of Blending, Fresh Cup Magazine 2002

By Dr. Joseph John

ESPRESSO formula

The ideal espresso Espresso is very low acidity, high alcohol thickness, and has a rich, velvety, thick reddish brown Crema with coffee aroma and flavor. Crema is the only important indicator of complete Espresso. Basically, it must master the strong flavor of coffee. The vapors produced during the extraction of Espresso are contained in fine oil foams that explosively release volatile aroma molecules from the mouth to the olfactory receptors in the nasal cavity when drinking Espresso. These foams also attach to the taste buds, creating a long finish that can last up to an hour. Some people like to use a single cup of coffee to make SOE (Single-Origin Espresso), which may be very simple, but I believe the result needs to be compromised. Because no single coffee provides all the physical and flavor characteristics in the right balance, high-quality Espresso must combine two or more cups of coffee.

To put it simply, I think the characteristics of Espresso can be described in two broad and different directions. Physical characteristics: such as color, richness, Crema; flavor characteristics: such as aroma, taste and aftertaste. The physical trait consists of one group of coffee, while the flavor trait comes from another group of coffee. Although these two traits are not really separable, I have to make a choice so that coffee, which provides a thick texture for Espresso, and Crema, has less aroma and taste, and vice versa. Where practicable, the variants of the two groups of traits can be adjusted independently.

Sun-cured coffee tends to have more Crema than washed coffee. If you can find a low-acidity, high-alcohol suntan coffee, it will be a good base for Espresso. Asian coffee, especially from India and Indonesia, as well as Brazilian coffee, offers a low acidity option. After selecting the base beans, we need to evaluate whether this formula is suitable for adding high-quality Robusta. High-quality Robusta is difficult to obtain and expensive, usually more expensive than many Arabica. But Espresso can use clean, mild boutique Robusta. Different from the general grade, the higher unit price Robusta can produce a smoother, milder, softer taste without a rubber finish. In addition, it can increase the amount of caffeine in Espresso, an additional benefit that many people pursue. The content of Robusta in Espresso beans varies depending on the aging degree, grade, and baking degree of the beans. But more importantly, other coffee recipes. Considering that most of the Espresso drinks sold in North America are milk drinks, high-quality Robusta is an effective way to help enhance coffee acceptance, and Robusta can help Arabica enhance its flavor by blending milk.

Perhaps the most significant impact of high-quality Robusta is that it can increase the thickness and persistence of Crema, but it will affect the most important moderation trait of high-quality Espresso. He also added a unique flavor to the taste spectrum, a typical European Espresso flavor, which I believe Arabica is difficult to perform alone.

To add flavor ingredients to the recipe, choose one or two coffees that you really like its aroma and taste. I call them focus Coffee. These coffees can be medium or low alcohol thickness, or even a little sour. Start with one kind of coffee and then add a second coffee flavor if necessary.

Next, you have to balance the recipe. All the features must be integrated, and no one in particular overshadows the others. It must be smooth, gentle, thick, free of uncomfortable bitterness, and can not feel sour. Crema should be rich, smooth, velvet-like, and not easy to dissipate, pay special attention to the tail rhyme, the aroma must be very pleasant, so when the oil foam burst, the steam will fill the receptor of the entire nasal cavity, creating a pleasant experience.

Mix first and then bake or bake before mixing

Whether it is pre-mixed raw beans or roasted individually and then mixed, it must depend on the characteristics of the coffee in the formula. Both methods are acceptable. Mixing after baking provides different degrees of baking for each bean so that each ingredient shows the best effect. He also offers non-bakeries the opportunity to create their own exclusive recipes. The most obvious disadvantage of this method is that if the baking plant cares about freshness, it will need to be baked many times and cause wear and tear.

When the roasting properties of the coffee in the formula are compatible, pre-mixing before baking will be feasible. However, when the mesh size, density, water content, thermal conductivity and baking development curve of beans are different, premixed baking will be very difficult and impossible in most cases.

My experience of playing Malaba in India is very enlightening. At first, I bake each coffee individually and then mix it. I put great emphasis on freshness. I took the order to bake, and I didn't leave any baked beans to match them. Premixed baking seems attractive because it minimizes baking loss. But the initial attempt to bake such premixed beans had disastrous results. Monsoon Malaba AA is made up of large beans with low density and high moisture, with a moisture content of about 14.5%. On the other hand, Robutsa in this formula is small, high-density, with a water content of about 10.5%. From a baking point of view, these beans should be no different.

But at all stages of baking, some beans remain green, but others are obviously overbaked. Later, I spent three years repeatedly correcting the premixed beans so that they could be baked at any time. In the process of this adjustment, I learned a lot about the characteristics of raw beans, and now I know more about every move of roasting these coffees than ever before.

Translation Note:

The use of Robusta in Espresso formulations has always been a controversial issue in the industry. Traditional Italian coffee must add Robusta to increase the thickness and durability of Crema, fat and viscosity will also be greatly improved. At the same time, it can also reduce the acid value, making the coffee smoother and more chocolate after adding milk. I don't think there's anything wrong with it. Green vegetables and radishes have their own preferences, and who says using Robusta is not exquisite? In the ten years since the publication of this article, coffee production technology has become more sophisticated, producers have made a single Arabica coffee have more flavor and a good Body, and it is becoming more and more popular to use SOE to express Espresso. The formula made with pure Arabica can also produce a well-balanced taste. But the author is right, first pick the base, and then add an attractive focus, like cooking with seasoning, stack the flavor, so that it is not difficult to make a good Italian recipe. To share my own recipe BadAss Blend, I use Ethiopian sun dumeso as a base (40%), wash Colombia and honey-treated Costa Rica by 30% each to increase the sweet and sour feeling. The aim is to create a refreshing flavor with floral and berry aromas and a sweet finish.

It is really necessary to study beans after mixing and baking, first according to the variety, treatment, density, moisture, and particle size as a reference, after repeatedly adjusting the proportion, first avoid the risk of burning some ingredients, and then slowly adjust the flavor by baking degree. With the current equipment and the information provided by raw bean manufacturers for careful analysis, it is believed that we can pull out premixed beans that can be baked immediately without spending three years on indigenous steelmaking like the author.