Most of those who try coffee get hooked off their first sip.  The unique balance of Hawaii’s best Kona coffee is simply unmatched.  True coffee lovers know, and have known for a long time, that one of the best and most flavorful coffee in the world is Kona coffee, made from beans that are grown in Northern slopes of Hawaii and Oahu.

To ensure that you get the best, freshest cup of gourmet coffee, buy Kona coffe beans!  While Kona coffee’s are higher priced than other coffe blends, they are absolutely worth the price.  After all, everybody around the world purchases this specific kind of coffee.  The climate, which is made up of beautiful bright mornings and humid afternoons, is perfect for growing unique flavorful coffee.

Cuttings from Brazil were transplanted and used to grow the trees from which we get our gourmet Kona coffee beans today.  In the 1800’s, Hawaii saw Samuel Reverend Ruggles bring the first try of it’s kind to the island.  Because the weather and soil in Hawaii are highly conducive to crop production, many opportunistic farmers grow beans on large plantations.  There are more than 2,300 acres where fresh gourmet Kona coffee beans are grown.  Kona coffee cultivation is now so successful that about two million pounds of the beans are harvested per year.

Every February through March, the Kona tree blooms.  These blooms, called Kona snow, are visible as tiny white flowers.  Then small green berries pop up by early spring; However, by mid-summer they have already turned to a ruby red fruit and exhibit similar qualities to ripe cherries.  It is a right time for the “fruit” to be harvested.  One of the things that make fresh, gourmet Kona coffee so exceptional is that each bean is carefully, hand-picked.

Within 24 hours of the fruit being harvested it is put through an apparatus that separates the pulpy matter from the bean itself.  The beans will ferment.  Let them set for a half-day at low altitudes, and a full day at higher altitudes.  After rinsing, the beans are spread out on a type of drying rack to dry out completely, which usually takes one to two weeks.  The dry beans are then stored on parchment.  Interestingly, to produce just one pound of fresh, gourmet Kona coffee, it takes approximately eight pounds of fruit.

If you pay attention to the characteristics of the Kona coffee seeds, you will be able to pick out the the fresh, gourmet Kona coffee.  For example, There is two beans for each cherry or fruit, with one side flat oand one oval.  The single, round bean found per cherry in some varieties is known as a Type II bean.  After that, the beans undergo further grading based on several criteria, including size, type, bean moisture levels and purity.  With fresh, gourmet Kona coffee, you know you are purchasing a higher quality or grade of the Kona bean.

Kona Coffee

After all, there are many different barista espresso machine makes and models out there that you can choose from, and all sorts of different features that you can have included. There is even a Starbucks espresso machine that will help you brew espresso that tastes just like the espresso at Starbucks.

Getting Started

The first thing to do when shopping for a barista espresso machine is to work out a budget. The prices on these barista espresso machines can get to be quite high, and so by figuring out how much you are willing and able to spend, you will not only make sure that you are not spending more than you can afford, but as well you will be helping yourself by narrowing down the selection significantly.

The Selection

Now, in order to find the best barista machine, you need to first learn about selection. Find out about the different barista espresso machine makes and models that are out there and what features you will find.

One of the most popular barista espresso machine models is the Bosch B20 Super Automatic Espresso Machine. This is without a doubt one of the most feature-rich machines on the market today, and well worth every penny you spend on it. The key feature of this espresso machine is that it offers quality gourmet flavor and handy convenience - It makes perfect espresso in about 30 seconds.

Advanced features offered by the machine includes programmable brewing options, adjustable coffee strength, the ability to use pre-ground coffee of your choice in addition to coffee beans if you wish and which is useful if you have decaffeinated coffee beans in the hopper but want a regular espresso or coffee, rapid switching between brewing and steaming functions, and an adjustable coffee grinder for fine tuning your espresso or coffee.

To save you having to take the whole machine apart and clean it, there’s even an automated cleaning system.

This is just one of the many fabulous barista espresso machines out there, and if you want to find just the right one for you and your needs you are going to have to take a bit of time to browse around and check out the selection.

For the freshest possible coffee the ideal is to obtain unroasted beans, then roast and grind on the same day you plan to brew.

Roasting beans is, however, something of a ‘cooking’ specialty. Unless you’re willing to invest in a fairly expensive piece of equipment, the results are often less than satisfactory. Not to mention that - even when done correctly - it can fill the house with odors that take time to dissipate and can become annoying.

Beans, even after roasting, will stay fresh for a while. Freshly roasted beans naturally release small amounts of carbon dioxide which helps to keep oxygen away from the bean, delaying spoilage. If stored in an airtight container, especially with a drying agent, they’ll retain their good flavor and aroma for up to a week.

Naturally, the closer to roasting they’re ground and consumed the fresher they’ll be. But even after a few days they can still produce a stellar grind and a superior brew. After two weeks the flavor may still be acceptable, even though aroma will no longer be first rate. Whole bean coffee stored at even optimum conditions will be dull after a month.

Key to getting a good cup from purchased roasted beans is to ensure that the skin is unbroken. When that happens, all bets are off. Oils underneath the skin and inside the bean will deteriorate unless frozen, in which case the brew will never be first rate.

When storing beans, be sure to use an airtight container. A glass jar of the type used for instant tea grounds is tempting, but inadequate - there is still too much leakage around the lid. A good glass jar with a rubber seal is best. Many online vendors sell just the ticket. Be sure to store the jar in a cool, dark place since not only air, but also heat and light can contribute to spoiling beans.

Even better, but more expensive, are containers which flush air with an inert gas, then inject the coffee beans which then give off CO2, providing natural protection against spoilage. Beans stored in this way can keep their freshness for several weeks.

The next best thing to home roasting, and an option open even to those with less than stellar cooking skills is grinding at home.

Good grinders are available at moderate prices, are generally easy to use and are not difficult to clean. Many are automated to the point that with very minor experimentation, it’s possible to arrive at consistently good grinds.

Since grinding necessarily breaks the bean skin the same ‘oil spoilage’ problem can arise if the grind isn’t used within a few days. Like roasted beans, only more so, any grounds not consumed within a day should be packed in a desiccating cannister. Those cannisters contain a drying agent, usually beneath a mesh at the bottom, that keep moisture from introducing mold or excess oxygen into the grounds.

If not stored in a desiccating cannister, grounds will lose much flavor within a few hours. Oils will evaporate and, exposed to the air and moisture within the jar, the grounds will deteriorate.

For a superior cup, grind only what you intend to brew and drink everything brewed within an hour. With modern, moderate cost machines there’s no longer any reason to suffer second-rate coffee.

Dark roasts contain a little less caffeine than lighter roasts, but they lack the acid taste of the latter. Be sure to start with quality beans, of course!

When roasting coffee beans for the first time it is probably a good idea to do so in a well ventilated room.  The beans need to be heated to between 460F (223C) and 530F (262C), therefore this may cause some smoke and quite a strong smell!

Put the beans in the roaster and turn up the heat! (Take care to be ready to temporarily disable those over-sensitive home fire alarms.)

For some roasters, the thermometer is built-in, but you may want to have an extra for when it’s open, or for those frying pan experiments. Candy making thermometers work well for the purpose.

During the process those green beans will turn yellow, then brown. How brown depends on how dark you like your roast, which is always an individual choice.

As the bean begins to get hot, pressure will build up on the surface of the bean and after a while you will hear a loud crack as the bean bursts.  This should happen around four to seven minutes after your begin roasting the beans.  This sound is normal so don’t be alarmed.  Just remember to keep stirring the beans so they don’t stick and get burnt.

As the sugars in the beans heat up they will begin to caramelize (this means the beans turn brown and ‘burn’ a little).   The caramelization needs to be to your own personal taste.  Remember to check the beans every 30 seconds or so.

If you roast the beans for a quite a while you will hear a loud second crack.  The beans will now be quite dark a too harsh for some people.  If you were to continue with the roasting at this stage you would just be burning the beans and the result would be to bitter to drink.

Transfer the beans to a metal colander, then agitate them.  The reason you need to agitate the beans is to remove the fine skin ‘chaff’ that results from roasting.  Once this skin is removed the beans are ready to use.

Try a few batches with varying degrees of time or darkening. Experiment to get the flavor you like. Keep in mind that the heat trapped in the bean will continue to cook it for a short while, so try stopping a little short of your desired end goal.

When you use a popcorn maker to roast the beans make sure you can stir the beans so they don’t stick and burn.  If you are roasting the beans on the stove top, cast iron skillets are fantastic.  Remember don’t leave the beans for a second and keep stirring.  Roasting coffee beans is very quick.

For those more interested in drinking a beverage than eating coffee grounds, a wide variety of automatic coffee makers are available from the plain to the esoteric. Here are a few things to look for…

The largest selection of automatic coffee makers these days is, of course, the inexpensive drip model. Pour water in the top, it’s heated by an electric coil, the water passes through the coffee grounds and into a glass pot sitting on a heating plate.

These features are basic. There are many other features you may like to consider. The amount of options available on today’s coffee makers has developed so much that the coffee virtually brews itself!  Display screens tell you the time the machine will start brewing, once brewing how long is left, temperature, etc.

Have you ever forgotten to shut your coffee machine off and it has overflowed all over your kitchen bench or you have been unable to wait until it has finished brewing and you have had drips all over the hot plate.  If this is you then you will find the auto shut-off feature very useful.  As soon as you lift the pot off the hot plate the machine stops brewing.

Controlling every aspect of how your coffee is prepared is now very easy to do with the automatic coffee makers available today.  Waking up to a freshly prepared pot of coffee, just how you like it is now a reality.  All you have to do is set up the machine the night before and wake up to perfect coffee every morning.

Everyone loves the smell of coffee, and it is very comforting to come down into your kitchen on a dark, cold morning and smell the fresh brewing coffee as well as seeing the little illuminated display telling you your coffee is ready.

Cleaning has been made better, too, by the development of coffee ‘pods’ - small pre-measured paper containers of coffee through which the water flows. They have the added blessing of providing good filtering for grounds. Once the brewing is complete you just pop them out (after they’ve cooled!) and toss them into the waste basket. Essential for the busy - and averse to cleaning up - coffee drinker.

A water filter can prove to be a really useful addition to your coffee machine.  If the water where you live is not that great then the water filter will only improve the quality of your coffee.  Of course the water filter may increase the price of your coffee machine, but can you really put a price on the perfect cup of coffee?

Although traditional coffee filter styles are still popular, machines with pods are becoming more available.  Some people question what effect the pods have on the enviroment and also if they alter the quality of the coffee.  Only you can decide.

With so many brands to chose from and a bevy of coffee machines available it may seem like an impossible task to finally decide on your faultless coffee maker.  But you can take pleasure in that fact the once you have chosen you can enjoy your perfect cup of coffee whenever your want for a long time to come.

Kona coffee can only be called that if it is grown within the district of Kona on the Big Island of Hawaii. It is grown in a small area only one mile wide by 30 miles long. Coffee grown in any other area of the islands can only be called “Hawaiian.” Even coffee grown in Kona is called “Hawaiian” if it falls below the “Prime” grade.

Kona Peaberry coffee is classified as “Extra Fancy” and costs more not only because you are getting a bigger and denser bean, but because you are also getting a rarer bean and only accounts for approximately 5% of the coffee bean crop. Peaberry is a “freak of nature” so to speak, and occurs when the coffee cherry yields only one bean instead of two. The Peaberry bean is shaped like a football; it is not flat on one side and round on the other, like a regular coffee bean. It also has a lower acid content than regular beans. Some believe that the cylindrical shape causes this bean to roast differently than a regular bean giving it a much different taste.

When coffee is prepared in a French Press coffee pot it produces a concentrated yet very smooth and rich
tasting coffee. You can imagine how the combination of Kona Peaberry coffee, which is already great tasting, and brewing it in the French Press coffee pot would kick it up a notch and make a more intense flavored cup of coffee.

To be sure you are getting Kona Peaberry coffee check the label carefully. It can only be labeled Peaberry if it is one hundred percent Peaberry.  Just because you are spending more and it says “Kona Blend” or “Estate” does not mean it is Peaberry coffee. Most Hawaiian coffees are blends of several different types of coffee berries roasted together to create the blend.

It is well worth the extra cost to buy pure Kona Peaberry Coffee. You will not be disappointed.

It is very important to keep the following statement in mind. Irrespective of all the coffee maker ratings and reviews you need to remember that the best coffee maker for someone else might not necessarily be the coffee maker that is best for you. The whole process of which coffee maker to buy is very subjective. The circumstances and preferences of each individual are of course different, but one facts remains the same, the best coffee makers for others may not be the best coffee maker for you.

Consider the following;

• How often will you be using your coffee machine?
• How much coffee do you consume?
• What is your brew of preference?
• How quickly do you need your coffee fix?
• Have you the time or inclination to grind your own coffee beans?
• Is cleaning a coffee maker a real pain for you?
• How much space have you available for your coffee maker?
• How much can you afford to spend on your coffee machine?

Now that you have answers to the questions above we will look at some of the options available to you in your search for the best coffee makers.

Automatic Drip Coffee Makers

Automatic drip coffee machines are probably the coffee makers most favored by Americans. They are relatively inexpensive to purchase and simple to use. Most work on the same principle. Within the coffee pot is a filter basket where a paper filter retains the coffee grounds. Cold water is decanted into the reservoir where it’s heated prior to being poured over the grounds. The ensuing coffee flows into a carafe. The brewed coffee is kept warm by the hot surface beneath the carafe.

Keeping the machine and carafe clean, using quality coffee and disposable paper filters will help ensure a better result.

Automatic Espresso Coffee Makers

Automatic espresso coffee makers are available in semi-automatic, fully automatic and super automatic versions. Semi-automatic models tamp the coffee grounds, brew the coffee, fill the cup and eject grounds. Fully automatic models also grind the coffee. Super models offer a wide variety of features, including built in water filters.

French Press Coffee Maker

French Press coffee makers are also known as press pots or plunger pots. The pot is a glass or porcelain cylinder which contains a stainless, mesh plunger that works as a filter.

The user measures coffee grounds into the pot and adds water that is just short of boiling point.. The plunger is put in place but not pushed until the coffee has steeped a few minutes. After steeping, the plunger is pushed and the coffee is ready.

There’s no hot surface to maintain the temperature of the coffee so the coffee must be served immediately or placed into a thermal carafe of some type.

Percolator Coffee Makers

Percolator coffee makers are available in stove top styles and in electric styles. Most modern ones are both electric and can be programmed. Some models make only one cup of coffee, others can make 12 cups at a time. The massive coffee urns that a lot of organisations use operate on the percolation principle and can brew in excess of 100 cups of coffee at a session.

Percolators are not used as often as they used to be. These machines continuously run the water over the grounds and the water is boiled. Many coffee lovers claim that both actions violate the laws of making good coffee.

Coffee made via percolator tends to be stronger and often bitter tasting than coffee made with other brewing methods.

Stovetop Espresso Coffee Makers

Stovetop espresso coffee machines are simple to use and can be made anywhere there is heat, whether on a stove or over a campfire. Water is put inside the bottom boiler. The funnel filter is then placed in the boiler and filled with coffee. The top is screwed on lightly and the unit is placed over the heat source.

Once the top of the boiler is filled with brewed coffee, the coffee machine is removed from the heat source and the coffee is served.

Vacuum Coffee Makers

Vacuum coffee makers look more like chemistry lab equipment than coffee machines. This type consists of two overlapped containers that are connected by a syphon tube. There is a filter in the bottom of the upper container.

The user places water in the lower container and coffee grounds in the upper container. The machine is then put on top of the stove where the heated water vaporizes and passes through the syphon tube into the upper container.

The coffee brewing cycle lasts approximately three minutes. After the unit is removed from heat, the vapor turns back to water and is forced through the filter and back into the lower container. Farberware created the first automatic vacuum coffee machine model while Sunbeam made the first truly automatic modern one.

This quick guide to coffee makers will make your task of choosing the best coffee makers for your circumstances, just that little bit easier.

With the millions of coffee drinkers worldwide there is a rise in demand for not only organic coffee but also for organic flavored coffee.  Many coffee growers have discovered alternative and safe ways to improve the growing process.  They now use organic fertilizer and other earth friendly ideas to enhance and protect their plants.

Organic flavored coffee means that only 100% natural flavorings (fruit & nut extracts) are used to produce flavored organic coffees. Certified organic coffees must be grown, harvested, and processed without chemical pesticides and fertilizers. Farms that grow certified organic coffees are tested for chemicals by an independent certification agency for three consecutive years.

Natural and organic are not interchangeable. Other truthful claims, such as free-range, hormone-free, and natural, can still appear on food labels. However, don’t confuse these terms with “organic.” Only food labeled “organic” has been certified as meeting USDA organic standards.

By choosing organic flavored coffee, even though it may cost a bit more, it is a simple extension of your personal beliefs that everything we do should help, rather than harm, the world in which we live.

Organic coffee, like other organic or all natural foods, is sold in an entirely different section of your local supermarket. This type of coffee is sold in caffeinated and decaffeinated as well as flavored with vanilla, chocolate hazelnut or anything else you can think of that regular coffee comes in. Organic flavored coffee (like other all-natural products) must contain a seal indicating it is, in fact, organic. This is an FDA classification and cannot be overlooked.

Organic coffee growers in other countries are free from the dangers associated with working and living in chemically polluted regions. In organic farming cooperatives, streams and underground water supplies are not polluted with chemical fertilizers. Coffee growers do not suffer from chemical poisoning - an all too real side effect of growing coffee the traditional way.

Organic coffee prices will go down over the next few years, analysts predict. This is made possible by the crop rotation practices mentioned earlier by avoiding using fertilizers and pesticides.

The use of organic coffee or other products will not allow you to live longer, that is a guarantee that cannot be made. These organic products can help you live healthier lifestyles. Healthier lifestyles can lead to longer life. So the next time that you are in the grocery store or other large food center look at all of the organic food you can buy and realize that you can be feeling better and living a healthier, more enriching life than you were before switching from non-organic foods to organic.

Get the latest information on coffee go to French Press Coffee

For those on the go, there’s the single cup coffee maker. For those at home there’s the staying power of a classic brewer. If you’re a fan of a stronger brew, or want the ability to steam milk, the at home espresso machine is an option. There is also your friendly neighborhood barista. How do you know which option to take though – that triple shot caramel latte, or a cheap at home single brew.

First off, how much caffeine will you be getting in each of your drinks? Caffeine itself is found in over sixty plants the world over, in the leaves and beans, usually acting as a natural pesticide. For us it is a stimulant when ingested. From coffee to tea, kola to cacao, caffeine inhabits many of the plants we refine and eat everyday.

Let’s take a look at what doses of caffeine you’re getting in those drinks.  A typical cup of coffee is going to hit you with 100 mg of caffeine, whereas a single shot of espresso is around 40-60mg, depending on the variety. Tea has about half as much as that drip coffee and energy drinks are filled with 80-300 mg of caffeine.

So, when you’re picking up your double tall mocha from Starbucks, you’re getting about as much caffeine as a typical cup of strong drip coffee. The difference is in the taste no doubt, but for those of you interested in a quick and easy option to getting up in the morning – something like a one cup coffee maker would be the go. You’re getting just as much in your single cup as you would stopping at Starbucks for that mocha and as an added bonus, you save four dollars a day.

Kona Coffee is considered to be one of the purest coffees in the world. Only grown on the big island of Hawaii, in the Kona growing region. Kona coffee requires a special amount of sunlight and water that only Hawaii’s warm climate can give.

The coffee is harvested by hand ensuring only the best beans. The ripe berries are red when they are ready to be picked, they are then dried, pulped to remove the outside skin and hulled before being sorted by a machine into different grades depending on their size. The biggest beans are more expensive because they are said to be the most flavorful.  After the sorting, they are roasted and sealed in a can to preserve freshness, and are ready to be sold all over the world.

History

Samuel Ruggles was the first man to introduce Kona coffee to Hawaii in 1828. Although at the time it was known as arabica coffee, it later became known as Kona coffee after growing so well in the Kona region. The Kona region has thick volcanic soil that makes perfect conditions for growing coffee. After many different cultures had experienced the rich and flavorful Kona coffee, its popularity grew immensely, and became one of the greatest economic developments of the 1880s.

Farmers experienced ups and downs during WWII, but the sales slowly progressed afterward and have been booming ever since. Most people consider this rare and delectable coffee to be one of the finest, and certainly the most expensive coffee of the past few decades, and this statement is probably true, even Mark Twain wrote about it saying “I think Kona coffee has a richer flavor than any other be it grown where it may.”

Buying Kona Coffee

It is important to pay close attention to labels when buying Kona coffee some companies say that their coffee is the purest and finest, but some of the time this is not the case.  Some of these coffees only contain a very small amount of the actual Kona coffee, they are usually blended with some sort of  South American coffee. For this reason, be sure to buy 100% Kona beans from a true Hawaiian market. Online is usually the best way to find Kona beans because most cannot find them in a regular market, and they are usually fresh and can be shipped in just a matter of days.

Grades of Kona Coffee

Kona beans come in many different grades, like Extra fancy, Fancy, Kona #1, Prime, Kona#1 Peaberry, and Kona Peaberry prime. Kona beans are usually graded by size with some farmers saying that bigger is usually better, others say that it does not affect the end taste of the coffee. One of the most important parts involved in making the coffee taste well is the harvesting and processing part of the job i.e. That is where only the best Kona beans are picked and processed leaving only the finest to be sealed and shipped.

It is better to buy whole Kona beans rather then ground, because of the freshness. The whole Kona beans will last for months, while the ground will only last about one month at the most. Kona coffee has been around for hundreds of years and has no sign of slowing down in popularity. It is sure to go on being the best coffee of the age.