Have you ever heard the saying ‘’Perfect is the enemy of good’’? While we clearly understand the meaning of it, our google search will frequently begin with “what’s the best…” That search bar is our dearest friend indeed, but today we will take the courage and answer your most popular coffee questions.
When to buy the best coffee beans?
Coffee is the small seed you find inside a cherry, which grows one time per year. It follows the flowering phase, which is a beautiful small white flower, that looks and smells amazing, very similar to a jasmine flower. Inside each cherry, there are usually two small seeds, (one single round seed is called a peaberry). We roast this seed, which then becomes the beans that you drink.
We buy processed green beans fresh, each season, and believe it is always best to use fresh season crops, so we never have old last season crops. Arabica coffee loves growing in high altitude, volcanic soil and grows close to the Equator in temperate climates. When you are buying your coffee beans, check the crop year and the roast date. We like to rest our coffee for about a week before brewing, this allows it to degas and “mature” and we recommend your freshly roasted beans are best before 2 months from the roast date. Washed coffee’s peak a little earlier than naturally (sun-dried) processed coffees.
Store your whole beans in an airtight container in a dry dark cupboard. We strongly recommend grinding your beans just before preparing your coffee beverage, as the potential of your coffee flavour is lost very quickly once the beans are ground – think oxidisation that is visible when you cut an apple and it turns brown. The same thing happens to your ground coffee: all that wonderful aroma that dissipates is the beautiful flavour you should be drinking in your cup of coffee.
What is the best coffee machine and grinder?
If you expect us to give you a brand name here, sorry… there is no “one-size-fits-all” solution here. However, we will provide a short guideline for you to make an informed choice. There are 4 key elements to consider when choosing espresso equipment:
- Budget. We generally recommend 40% of your budget go to a grinder.
- What kinds of drinks do you prefer? Small cappuccinos, big lattes, straight espressos, or americanos? This will help you to ascertain what type of machine will be best: single boiler, heat exchanger, or dual boiler.
- Frequency and quantity of drinks. How many back-to-back espressos do you make? Choose the size of the brew and/or steam boiler accordingly.
- Space. What are the dimensions of the space in which you will install your machines? Do you plan to plumb this machine directly into a water source?
What is the best coffee to make without a machine?
Coffee pouches are your go-to, all you need is a kettle, a cup, and some good-quality water. No investment in equipment is needed – super simple, hassle-free brewing that delivers consistently exceptional quality.
Where do the best coffee beans grow?
We use a flavour wheel when we are cupping which is an internationally recognised system for scoring and describing these different coffees, with the corresponding scoring out of a potential 100 points that correlates to the pricing. To really taste the differences in coffee it is best to try drinking these without any additives. The soil, weather, varietal, and processing method, also impact the flavours you find in coffee. There is no best country, just what you prefer.
What is the best coffee shop in Dubai?
If you have ever been at RAW, you won’t be asking this question.
RAW Coffee team will happily answer more questions and help you to choose coffee equipment, beans, and anything else caffeine related. Please contact us at info@rawcoffee.ae.
