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COFFEE DRINKIs a Coffee Drink Really Good for your Health? 
But WAIT, have you ever wondered... …. is this good for me? …. is it hurting my health? …. is there’s another alternative? Well, these are the questions I asked myself and thought; “No way” was I going to give up my coffee drink. So I thought, coffee comes from beans, right?? Can’t be too bad for you. But then I got to thinking, what does it really take for those beans to become a cup of coffee? Although, coffee is one of the most heavily consumed drinks on the earth, many coffee drinkers know little about what goes into making a cup – I mean a real GOOD cup of brew. What is Fresh Coffee Anyway? See "What is the definition of fresh coffee?" Most coffee drinkers have never REALLY tasted fresh coffee. Believe or not there are only two ways to enjoy the great taste of fresh roasted coffee: (1) Roasted (NOT GRINDED – that comes later) quality raw green coffee beans at home, or (2) Find a local roaster selling certified fresh roasted coffee. O.k. this does seem rather difficult. First, who is going to take the time to roast coffee beans, heck you might as well roast your own peanuts too. Second, where are you going to find a local roaster? Coffee Drinkers are very serious about their coffee. So coffee drinkers read on and learn. Well, first I am going to give you a little background on coffee and then you can be the judge or decide for yourself whether or not you want to buy unroasted, roasted, ungrounded, grinded, instant or decaffeinated coffee. 
What is a green coffee bean? A green bean is an unroasted "raw" coffee bean. The coffee bean is the seed of a berry. It resembles a cranberry and has a sweet pulp, protected by a membrane called parchment and a silky thin membrane called silverskin. Coffee beans are actually the two flat-sided seeds inside the cherry. Unprocessed coffee is called green coffee. See photo. Are their different varieties of coffee bean? Yes, but there are two main commercial varieties of coffee beans - arabica and robusta. Arabica coffee is better (higher in quality). How long do unroasted "raw" coffee bean last? The average shelf life of a unroasted green bean is 2 to 10 years depending on country of origin. How do I store unroasted "raw" coffee bean? Keep dry and store away from direct sunlight. What kind of unroasted "raw" coffee bean are typically roasted and sold in grocery stores? Some brand name coffees are made from 100% arabica beans, but most are a mixture of robusta and arabica beans.
These green coffee beans have been cooked by commercial coffee roasting companies or you do it at home, and ready to be bagged or grinded. What is Ungrounded Coffee Beans?
These beans have been roasted but not grinded in a grinder. What is Grounded Coffee Beans? These beans have been roasted and then grinded and is ready for the coffee maker and to make a coffee drink.
Unbelievably, REAL fresh coffee consists of roasting, grinding, and brewing all done in only a short period of time. See below. For a coffee drink to be fresh and best, it must be consumed within 5 days after roasting, 3 hours after grinding and 15 minutes of brewing. I know, you are all probably thinking, how can I get fresh coffee? Read on, but it is really up to you. The first sign that coffee is stale is a bitter taste! Coffee degrades quickly after it has been roasted, however if coffee is stored right, the flavor will stay relatively well for almost two weeks. Any coffee bought on a shelf, since it has probably been sitting there for weeks already, will usually have a poor flavor. No matter what kind of airtight containers the coffee is shipped in, after roasting the coffee flavor will degrade within a matter of weeks. Unroasted coffee will stay very fresh for months, which is making it a great choice for those who are very serious about the coffee they drink. Since you can roast coffee in a variety of ways (including a popcorn maker), many people have switched to buying unroasted coffee. Dust off that popcorn maker and make some use out of it. Here is the
method of roasting using a Popcorn Popper. Freezing fresh roasted whole coffee bean does increase its shelf from 5 to 10+ days, however I learned that storing coffee in the freezer results in an inferior tasting coffee. The beans should be in small packages so that what you remove from the freezer is what you use. I found that moisture can seriously affect the coffee, "in" and "out" of the freezer creates condensation on the beans. The condensation of moisture from removing and returning the coffee to the freezer ruins the coffee. So keep coffee in a airtight, cool dark area all-year around.
Look for a roaster that puts the roasting dates on the coffee they sell - it's your only guarantee of freshness. Most coffee companies will roast in large batches to achieve economies of scale. Average distribution times in the market range from weeks to months.
*Newman's Own organic coffee Yes, home roasting was common place in many parts of the world up until the 1950's. But its coming back due to the fact consumers wanted access to a better quality, fresher coffee beans. Raw green beans can be roasted in three ways: (1) in the oven on a cookie sheet at 450◦F/ 230◦C for 12 to 15 minutes; (2) on the stove top in a pan at medium heat for 5 to 10 minutes; and (3) in an electric home coffee roasting appliance. In methods 1 and 2, the beans must be continuously stirred or shaken to prevent burning. The following websites offer great organic and fair trade coffee. Enjoy your favorite brew, and improve the lives of coffee farmers worldwide. How is caffeine removed from coffee?? There are three popular methods to remove caffeine: 1) Methylene Chloride and ethyl acetate (chemical); 2) Swiss Water (natural); and 3) water-carbon (H2O/C) (natural). All remove 99% of the caffeine. CO2 and Swiss Water are better at maintaining coffee quality. 
Also, back in the 1970s, another solvent, trichloroethylene, was found to be carcinogenic and is no longer used to decaffeinate coffee. The most widely used solvent today is ethyl acetate, a substance that occurs naturally found in many fruits: such as apples, bananas, and pineapples. When your coffee label states that the beans are "naturally decaffeinated," it is referring to this process, specifically using ethyl acetate. Although, it doesn't sound like a natural process, it can be labeled as such because the solvent occurs in nature. Like I always said, stay on the safer side – go natural and organic. Please read Organic Coffee
For more detail information on picking, process, drying and roasting please go to
Wikipedia free encyclopedia.
Instant coffee drink was launched onto the market in the 1950's. A cup of instant coffee can be prepared quickly and easily, without brewing, since this has already been done in the factory. To produce instant coffee, millions of cups of coffee a day are produced. These huge amounts of fresh coffee are then concentrated by allowing a considerable amount of the water to evaporate. The coffee produced is then made into instant coffee using one of the two techniques: freeze-drying or spray-drying. Where and how does coffee grow? Coffee grows exclusively in tropical and sub-tropical regions. As most people know, Brazil is the world's largest coffee producer. The coffee plant is choosy about growing conditions. Coffee trees can't tolerate weather that is too hot or cold, or too wet or dry. They need direct sunlight, but only for a few hours a day. A good coffee tree can produce up to only 2.2 lbs.(1 kg) of raw coffee per year. |
