COFFEE SMARTER: THE MATERIALS MATTER
Do you have a favorite coffee mug? I do. Sometimes I have more than one. Right now it is this heavy-duty ceramic one I found in the free pile at a garage sale years ago. It has a thick lip which leads to extra coffee dribbles, and weighs about half a pound.
I also have this red tin enameled cup that was part of a set from my Grandmother I like even though it is terrible at keeping the coffee hot. I also have a double-wall steel camp mug, and a clay one, and a glass one. One morning or another, they have all been my favorite.
The question I had for Siri Simran Khalsa, Director of Coffee at Lofty Coffee, on today’s show was; will the materials that make up the vessel I’m drinking out of impact the flavors I taste? I didn’t know, but I had a feeling she would. The answers didn’t surprise me, but it did get much more nuanced than I expected.
For me, the same question about the equipment we use to brew coffee—the French press versus the Aeropress or pourover—was an afterthought. For Siri it deserved much more recognition when it comes to the final flavors found in a cup of coffee.
Unrelated to the material, she did bring up something that I’ve never really thought about. The way we brew our coffee, not just the material of the vessels, will impact the way it tastes. Umm, duh, I thought, after hearing it…but only after.
She recommended that infusion methods of brewing, like pour over or Chemex, styles that also require a filter and involve pouring water over a bed of ground coffee, would be better for light, fruity, subtle coffees. Those styles of brewing would help enhance the brightness and acidity of the coffee.
And, in her opinion, immersion style brewers like the French press would better complement a darker roast with smooth, rounded flavors. They are opinions that match my own real world experience perfectly. I just didn’t understand why until she said it. I hope you enjoy this week’s Coffee Smarter session. We cover a lot of ground, and even veer off on some really fun tangents.
During the show Siri references a video of James Hoffman, Youtube coffee celebrity, trying water that has various paper filters immersed in the glass to see if they might impact the flavor of our coffee. I’m sharing that video below, but the paper filter part doesn’t come in until the 4 minute, 30 second mark.
If you’re looking for some coffee this week, Siri’s Lofty Coffee desert island roast is the Sweet Blue Blend. I’m still figuring out what my own desert island coffee is. That’s why I ask the questions, and Siri is the expert. I’ll leave you with some advice from this weeks show: Good coffee still tastes good cold.
COFFEE NEWS
There seems to be a never-ending supply of new coffee shops in SoCal. Copa Vida is adding to their already existing stores with three new locations in San Diego County, including the one that just opened in Del Mar. More details.
INDUSTRY LEGACY PARTNERS
Mostra Coffee is everywhere this week. I saw a post about them on the Mastercard blog. Did you know that credit card companies had blogs? I didn’t. They are also dropping a new beer collab today (5/7) with Harland Brewing, the Halo Halo Pastry Sour which is another in a line of beer and coffee collaborations inspired by a Filipino dessert. You need to create a Mostra Experience membership account to get access.
The Roast! podcast is supported by some local coffee industry (or industry adjacent) partners. These companies not only support Roast! efforts to share more coffee content they are the foundation I lean on when I need some coffee expertise.
Zumbar Coffee & Tea • First Light Coffee Whiskey • Leap Coffee • Steady State Roasting • CAFÉ LaTERRE • Mostra Coffee • Cape Horn Coffee Importers • Marea Coffee • Coffee Cycle • Camp Coffee
IN CLOSING
Need to get caught up? Don’t forget to listen to the last Coffee Smarter episode from Friday where Chris and I dig into the details of Kopi Luwak!
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The Materials Matter