About Us
If you ever had the opportunity of consuming a fresh cup of coffee, you'll appreciate the fact that for most of our lives we have taken our cup of coffee for granted. Most of the times instant coffee is the only thing that strikes our mind when we crave some caffeine. Now don't get me wrong here, I am not trying to slowly set you up for an anti-instant coffee cult. The lack of awareness about home brewing methods is mainly due to the over hype of overpriced cafés. Thanks to the hundreds we pay at a Starbucks cafe, there's a common misconception that coffee is heavily overpriced and out of the bounds for most people. A few weeks ago, while talking to a barista I came to know that a lot of consumers who consumed their coffee on a regular basis couldn’t sense the difference between an espresso from a proper machine and a coffee capsule machine. They didn’t do this on purpose, just to be clear. It was only done when the regular machine was under maintenance. I think that this is the perfect example to clarify what I’m talking about here. Coffee is viewed as a commodity and not something artisanal. It is viewed as a daily requirement. The realms are limited to a beverage that’s meant to keep you awake. This phenomenon can be further explained by the waves of coffee. But that’s a topic for some other day.
Now if all those lame years filled with rote learning has taught me anything, it's that's our education system is seriously irritating. Well that, and the fact that India is one of the biggest coffee exporters in the world, most of which comes from the southern region. And considering these numbers it's quite disappointing that not many people are aware of the home brewing methods. So now this is the part where I start acting like me two hours before an exam. No, I'm not talking about getting anxious, I'm talking about stuffing all the information in less time. (Should I cue in a master class theme here?)
So basically there are mainly two types of coffee beans - Arabica and Robusta. In India, the produce is mostly Arabica. Now there are lots of factors that affect the taste of coffee, even before you brew it. The major key is the elevation of the coffee plantation. While the low elevation plantations (900-150 MSL) tend to be a little more on the bitter side, the coffees grown at higher regions (3800-4500 MSL) have a more fruity and sweet taste. This is because at lower altitudes we have plenty of oxygen and as we go up the number of oxygen decreases. The second factor that affects the overall taste of coffee is the process using which the beans are separated from the cherry. You could either wash away the cherries, keeping the natural flavours of the beans intact. Or you could go for a natural process which by the way might sound a little gross in the first place. In this method, the bacteria’s are allowed to rot away the cherry, which keeps the natural flavours of the beans and adds some extra notes.
The next step is roasting the beans and get it ready for your morning latte. Here you get a variety depending on the roast intensity i.e. dark, medium dark, etc. From here the taste you get depends on how fresh it is while brewing. When the beans are roasted and packed in airtight bags, they have lots of carbon dioxide. If they are directly exposed to lots of oxygen, the oxidation process is triggered. This is the same process that makes iron rust and here it makes the coffee stale. This is why there's a small valve (Don’t judge me for not knowing the right words! I'm as amateur as you) on the pack of coffee. It ensures that the beans are exposed to as little oxygen as possible.
Now that I have talked about getting the bean to your cup, I would finally come to the point and answer the question - Why should one read this blog? The answer is quite simple. If you ever wished to make café like coffee at your home and the only thing stopping you was the common stereotype of fresh coffee being a luxury meant for the riches, this blog is for you. I upload articles fortnightly, most of which would be about exploring various methods and techniques to brew coffee. I will also publish a compilation of all the machines you could get to have a proper coffee set up according to different budget brackets. Over time, I'll keep on updating a list of all the coffee beans worth trying in India. The main aim would for this blog to be a one-stop place for all your coffee needs and the way to learn more about manual brewing instruments.
There are a lot of blogs and YouTube channels that teach about brewing coffee at home. But I realised that there wasn't enough for an Indian consumer who is just an amateur. There enough rip-offs of a brewing machine to make someone regret a purchase. And then there are some coffee providers like Café Coffee Day who sell ground coffee, but its way beyond its freshness period and most of it is mixed with chicory. Now I am not saying that it's a bad thing, but you just can't appreciate the natural flavours from a six-month-old coffee that's mixed with chicory.
Wrapping up this brief introduction to the blog, I'll slowly transform into a different person. I'll now talk like every wannabe YouTube ever. If you liked the content or even the idea of the blog, please subscribe to the blog and spread the word. You can also follow our Instagram page, link to which is provided below. We post frequently about different Cafés and some photos for the "aesthetic".
If you have any suggestions or questions you can DM us on Instagram or mail us at manualbrewingguide@gmail.com
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