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Single Origin vs Blends

Wed, 29 Feb 2012 09:00:00 +0800

A ‘single origin’ coffee is a bean from one particular growing region that has not been blended with beans from different growing regions. Single origin coffees are good to highlight certain characteristics that one bean may possess. The soil, climate, and altitude of each growing region influence the flavours of coffee grown there.

The following are some of the general characteristics of different growing regions:

Brazil – Clear and sweet with a full body and low acidity. A great base for espresso blends.
Colombia – Rich in body and flavour with a well balanced acidity.|
Ethiopia – Sweet and complex with intense aromas and fruity acidity.
Guatemala – Moderate acidity and medium body with smoky, spicy and chocolate flavours.
Indonesia – Full bodied with a long finish, earthiness and gently acidity.
Kenya – Coffee is grown at high altitude and is flavourful with a winy acidity and dry finish.

The Master Roaster blends different single origin coffees together to create different flavour profiles for each blend. Different single origin coffees are used for qualities such as: body, sweetness, acidity, brightness, balance and aromatics. For example, a Brazil or Colombian coffee may be used for its full body, whereas a Kenyan coffee may be used for its acidity.

Depending on what brew style you use to make coffee, you may find different single origins or blends are better suited. For example, our Chantico blend has a low acidity so it works well in automatic coffee machines. On the other hand out Jazz coffee is an Italian style espresso blend, so it work well though manual espresso machines. Through a plunger you may find the chocolate notes in our Mexican coffee really shine through.

Because we have a wide variety of Single Origin & Coffee Blends there will be one to suit your taste and brew method. Just let us know what you are after and we’ll point you in the right direction.

All About Tea

Mon, 20 Feb 2012 09:42:21 +0800

Black, green, herbal, infusions…. But what does it all mean? When it comes to tea there are so many options that it can at times be quite daunting. With this article we hope to help break it down to help make your next purchase a little bit easier.

Tea comes from an evergreen plant known as Camellia sinensis. Most of the teas you see, other than herbal, all come from this plant. It is the way it is processed that will define whether it is a black or green tea. You then also have herbal teas and infusions, which incorporate different parts of plants other than the traditional tea bush.

Black teas:
Black tea goes through a processing method where it is wilted, sometimes crushed, and fully oxidised. This category includes plain black teas of different varieties such as Ceylon, Assam & Darjeeling. It also includes black tea blends such as English Breakfast, Irish Breakfast, or black teas with different herbs, spices, etc. added, such as Punjabi Chai (with citrus peel, rose petals cloves & cardamom), or Earl Grey (with natural bergamot oil).

Green Teas:
Green tea is derived from the same plant as black tea and differs in that it is not wilted and undergoes a minimal oxidation process. This leads to both a difference in appearance and flavour profile compared to black tea. Green tea is known for its health benefits being loaded with antioxidants and being lower in caffeine. Green Tea comes as a leaf, such as Japanese Sencha or is rolled into small pellets, known as ‘Gun Powder’ tea. Different herbs, etc. are then added to green tea to create different blends such as China Green Jasmine (with jasmine flowers), or our Sunshine Green Tea (Gun Powder tea with added pineapple pieces).

Herbal Teas:
An herbal tea on the other hand is made with the flowers, leaves, seeds, roots or fruits of plants other than the leaves of the Camellia sinensis tea bush. A herbal tea is generally just one part of a herbal plant, such as peppermint, chamomile or rooibos. These teas are often noted for their medicinal qualities.

Infusion:
An infusion is generally classified as a mixture of different herbal teas or fruit pieces, that may also include a small portion of green tea. These teas include fruit melange tissanes, which are composed entirely of fruit pieces and herbs, such as our Granny’s Garden blend (with apple bits, elderberries, beetroot bits, hibiscus, blackberries, raspberries & strawberries). Herbal infusions include combinations of different herbal teas, such as Lemon Grass and Ginger or our Nightime blend (with rooibos, caraway, aniseed, fennel, balm mint & sunflower petals). These teas are either caffeine free or low in caffeine and are pleasant hot or cold.

What is Espresso?

Fri, 10 Feb 2012 12:24:42 +0800

On our home espresso machines we extract shots of espresso every day. But have you ever stopped to think about what is actually happening in the portafilter when you extract a shot of espresso?

When we extract espresso we are essentially forcing hot water, under pressure, through a dense layer of finely ground coffee to create a concentrated coffee brew. We are aiming for the water to be in contact with the coffee for just the right amount of time in order to extract the right amount of coffee oils and solids (minute fragments of the coffee bean), which is where the luscious flavour lies.

Once we lock in a dosed and tamped portafilter into the group of the espresso machine, we immediately start extracting the shot by engaging the pump and getting water flowing through the dense layer of ground coffee. This allows the water to make its way through the coffee grinds, washing away the coffee oils and solids, which then pour into the cup. The high pressure generated by the espresso machine emulsifies a small amount of the oils to create the dense layer of foam that sits on top of the espresso shot, called the crema.

When we look at an espresso pour there are three pretty distinct stages. The first phase is the start of the pour, where the coffee oils and solid are most concentrated. The pour should be a deep brown colour and quite viscous. The streams of espresso should hang from the spouts quite straight, similar to the look of honey pouring from the back of a spoon. The second phase is where the colour of the pour will change as the amount of solids and oils are diluted. Overall there will be more brown colour, but you will start to see the colour lighten, which we call ‘blonding’. The third phase of the pour is when all of the coffee solids and oils are depleted and you are left with a thin, watery stream that is very light in colour. The streams of espresso will start to thin out at this point and will slightly pull inwards, forming what we call ‘mouse tailing’. This part of the pour is very watery and bitter in flavour. We therefore want to have as little of this end up in the cup.

The rule of thumb for espresso extraction is that it should take around 25 – 30 seconds to pour 25 - 30ml of espresso. Make the brew time too short and you won’t extract enough of the oils and solids, leaving you with a coffee that lacks flavour and body, as well as being quite acidic. We call this an ‘under-extracted’ shot. Make the brew time too long and you’ll extract too many of the oils and solids, leaving you with a coffee that will be quite bitter and unpleasant. We call this ‘over-extracted’. In a perfectly poured espresso you should find a harmonious balance between acidity, sweetness and bitterness, as well as it being round, smooth and full bodied.

Welcome to our new blog!

Fri, 27 Jan 2012 10:30:00 +0800

Welcome to our new blog!

This is where we will be keeping you up to date with all of the latest Rubra news and products. Also keep your eye out for features on our cafe and retail stockists as well as information on how to best use your coffee and tea making equipment.

Be sure to add us to your rss reader and to let your friends know!