As I mentioned in my first post, I am a local chef and bloggist in need/want of expanding my cursory knowledge of coffee.  My first attempt was a failure (getting up at 7 a.m. to ride a bike 14 miles to take tasting notes on coffee after a long Friday night service just wasn’t in the cards last week), and I promised myself and the esteemed Matt S, my Coffee Sherpa and manager of Mars Cafe, that even a swarm of caffeinated hornets would not prevent my arrival at the Coffee Tasting (a Free Public Coffee Tasting is held at 9 a.m. every Saturday at Mars Cafe).  Here is my first installment about said Tasting/Class:

Coffee is even more of a science than I had originally thought.  I understand, as you should too, everything you eat or drink is the way it is because of chemical reactions (science), and there is are specific steps to optimize flavors, aromas, and textures of each of those items.  Science went into the calculations of your home automatic drip brewing robot which allows you to “set and forget” your machine as it whirs and sputters coffee into your life.  Unfortunately, by taking out the human element, you aren’t giving your beans the attention they require for them to give YOU their all.  This was lesson 1.

um. Science.

As I sat at the counter watching Matt gather supplies for the tasting, I was joined by a couple, Tom and Barb M. from the Des Moines area.  This was their first tasting, and they were eager for some sips and knowledge.

We were introduced to the Chemex, an hourglass shaped coffee brewing contraption made of…uh…glass.  There is no heating element or mechanical devices at all involved in brewing your coffee when using the Chemex.  It just you, your beans, some hot water, and 4 minutes of brew time, (we will learn the specifics of Chemex use in our next visit together).

[Stay tuned for more Chronicles of Chemex coming soon to the Mars Cafe Site...]

You should definitely make it out to a Tasting soon.  You will leave a changed coffee drinker.

Happy Brewing!

Sam

aka @VegChefDSM