Archives for November 2013

Growing up in the country exposed me to home grown coffee, not sure at what age I started drinking the beverage but I recalled that coffee was on the menu for coffee break twice a day when I joined KPMG years ago. There is much to know about the brew. Then it was instant coffee that one was served. I recall buying some blue mountain instant coffee in the 1970s which tasted far superior to the regular instant. That was discontinued. My real first recollection with Blue Mountain coffee was when I visited a client one day in St James and drank coffee. I still recall the special taste. In the 1980s I got turned off instant coffee for good when I had a batch that tasted like chocolate. I switched to Blue Mountain with its far superior taste and I learnt a lot more about coffee over the years. One of the first things I found out is that I no longer get headaches if I skip the drink. I also learnt that drinking water after having coffee at night reduces the effect that the coffee has on sleep.
All brands not equal| I think I have over time developed a taste to identify the subtle taste of different brands as well as flaws in the product where these exits, Some of the coffee has a fruity taste, some have a taste that suggest that the fruit was not mature when reaped. I also discovered that not all blue mountain coffee taste alike. I tried a number of brands and have pretty much stuck with one although there is another that’s just as good and sometimes better tasting. The most popular Blue Mountain coffee is probably the least tasty. One of the most telling findings for me is that the amount of ground beans that is used vary from brand to brand and may vary depending on the time the berries were reaped as well as how they are roasted. I have also found that some coffee out of Columbia taste pretty close to our Blue Mountain coffee.
Preparation affects taste| Ground coffee may be more convenient to purchase. The problem is, it tends not to give a rich a brew as freshly ground beans. Worse, the factory ground coffee tends to utilise about 25 percent more to make a cup than the home grounded coffee. Why? That is a question I asked someone in the industry. Apparently, coffee ground for sale is done by industrial machines that produce a coarser grounded product than grinders for home use. The result is, less of the ingredients flow into the brew than is possible with finer grounded coffee.
Blue Mountain Coffee taste is distorted with too much condensed milk that is popularly used in Jamaica for cream and sweetener. A very limited amount of the condense milk can work without distorting the coffee taste too much. Sweetening with it is a no, no if one is to really enjoy and really get the wonderful taste od a cup of Blue mountain coffee the ways it should.
Coffee’s appeal and taste comes from the ability to smell it. This is why it is so important that the beans or grounded coffee must be kept in properly sealed containers and once opened to be kept in a fridge properly sealed, to maintain the quality.
Many think coffee is bad for us. Research has unearth many benefits of coffee.
Instant boost| The main benefit of coffee is its stimulating effect. Caffeine helps concentration for sustained periods and delays feelings of tiredness. The caffeine in it encourages your body to use up energy reserves and it has good effect on the digestive system as it increases saliva and digestive enzymes. Caffeine tightens blood vessels in the brain, which reduces the intensity and the duration of migraines.
A natural high| It makes the mind more alert and quickens your heartbeat, as well as mobilising fat reserves as a principle source of energy during exercise. This allows the body to economise on glycogen reserves in muscles and stops you getting tired.
Antioxidant action| Coffee and tea contains the highest number antioxidants which play a protective role against cellular ageing and mutations.
Many studies show that coffee drinkers are less likely to develop Parkinson disease than others. The protective effect is estimated at 30% for people who drink at least two coffees a day. Recent experiments have produced evidence of a neuroprotective mechanism in caffeine.
A study carried out on more than 7,800 American nurses revealed that women who drank four cups of coffee or more a day were 25% less likely to get gallstones. Other studies showed risk lowered by 45% in men.
So now you can change the way you look at coffee and enjoy a grew to the fullest.