We drink it hot or iced, with soy milk or steamed milk, but how much do we really know about the coffee we drink every morning? We went on a tour of the Gaviña Gourmet Coffee Plant in Vernon, CA. The Gaviña name has been in the coffee business for over 100 years and they make Don Francisco’s Coffee. Purchasing Manager and Resident Q Grader Michael Gaviña schooled us on the world of coffee. [info]
5. Slurping is a good thing
The louder the better! Michael prepared a cupping (coffee tasting) for us and one of the steps is to slurp. You take a spoonful of the coffee into your mouth by forcefully slurping it up. The air mixes with the coffee and it touches all the tongue’s taste areas.
4. Coffee pops like popcorn
When you put a bag of popcorn in the microwave, you can hear it pop and when the popping slows down you know it is ready. The coffee roasting process is similar. The beans make a popping sound when they are being roasted. There are two cracks and the second crack means the beans are roasted.
3. Q Grader is an official coffee taster
A Q Grader is a professional cupper who has successfully passed CQI’s Q Grader Certification and earned a certificate as a Licensed Q Grader. There are seven Q Graders at Gaviña, and Michael is one of them.
2. Freezing your coffee will keep it fresh longer
Moisture, air, light and heat will make roasted coffee stale. Michael recommends freezing your coffee in an airtight container to keep it fresh.
1. Coffee beans are actually seeds … not beans!
The coffee plant produces cherries and once they are ripe, they are picked, processed and dried. Inside the cherry is a seed that we know as a coffee bean. It is green in color and turns brown or black during the roasting process.
