Everything You Didn't Want To Know About Coffee

I love coffee. I love it so much I actually work in a coffee house. Not just any coffee house of course.. Caribou Coffee!! Havent heard or it? Well that is because we are an up and coming corporation based in Mineapolis, Minnesota. Currently we are located in Minnesota, Michigan, Ohio, Georgia, and Illinois. Our owners John and Kim Puckett are totally cool people-although I haven't had the chance to meet them, they should be paying a visit to my store soon! Our goals at Caribou are for:

The best neighborhood gathering place

The friendliest staff

AND THE BEST COFFEE IN THE WORLD!!!!!

I know this sounds like some crazy ad, but I am so excited about it all I just can't help myself! Well actually, the reason I mention it is because what I know about coffee I have learned from Caribou, and Caribou College. Also some of the drinks I will talk about may be Caribou drinks that other Coffee Houses dont have, or may call something else, or use another technique or something. So that you know, what I am writing about is what Caribou does, and is based upon the machines used at Caribou.

Anything you want to drink I can make.. well unless it is a mochalattechino.. which just isnt anything at all! You could even describe the type of drink you would like, and we can invent it for you if it isnt already on the menu!

There are several types of drinks though, and I myself used to not understand one thing about them, and I felt intimidated at times looking at all the choices, and feeling so stupid not knowing what the hell anything on their meant.

Let's go through some basics first:

Espresso.. what is espresso? Can you order an espresso? What IS espresso!!!

Ok, well basically, espresso is a really dark STRONG bean which is can be ordered as regular or decaf, just like anything else. It is made with drinks such as Mocha's, Latte's, and Cappucino's. For the more bold, you might want to order an espresso shot or two or three or four or ten!... any more than that, and you have a really high tolerance for caffeine, or you are trying to kill yourself. Well actually, it wouldn't kill you to like drink a ton of espresso, you would probably be up for like a week or something. So I wouldn't really recommend it :)

What Makes A good Espresso Shot

There are five things actually that go into making a good espresso shot:

Time it takes for the shot to come through the machine (20-25 seconds is best)

How the shot comes out of the machine.. basically this means that the espresso coming out should look like it is twirling or ratailing out of the machine into the shot cup

Once a shot has come through the machine, there is something called crema, which looks like a lighter, brown substance over the espresso shot. Usually, if the shot has been "thrown" correctly, it should last for 60-90 seconds

The body of the shot(s) is also very important. The shot needs to have a lot of body to it, and be very full and rich looking

Finally there is taste. A good espresso shot should be a little bit sweet, not tart or bitter, and when swallowing it, should feel as if it is rolling down your tongue :) When you get a shot like this, and if you know what you are doing, you should every time, it is really a delight!

Streaming Milk

You might have heard that schwooshing sound associated with espresso drinks.. what you are hearing is the steaming of milk. Basically, when you are steaming the milk, you are creating froth which is necessary for making a good latte or cappucino.

THE DRINKS

Alright. We have gone over the very very basics, so let's get into some drinks!

Cappucino

Simply, cappucino is some espresso, some milk, and a ton of froth! Well actually, it's 1/3 espresso, 1/3 milk, and 1/3 froth :). Cappucino is a stronger drink that really relies on the espresso for the taste, so the more cappucino you want, the more espresso that you need in it. For example, a 12oz would have two shots (generally the minimun number of shots for any drinks unless you ask for less), 16oz would have three shots, a 20oz would have four. I wouldn't really recommend a cappucino to a first time coffee drinker, just cause I don't particularly care for it :)

MORE TO COME SOON! Visit Caribou's Web Page