How to Choose Entry-Level Pour-Over Coffee Beans_Which Brands Are Suitable for Beginners_Coffee Bean Recommendations Entry Level

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What Makes a Good Cup of Coffee

As professionals in the coffee industry, let's set aside our expertise and explore what constitutes a good cup of coffee from the perspective of an ordinary customer.

First and foremost, most people need a smooth, easy-to-drink coffee.

The first essential quality of good coffee is the absence of offensive flaws. This includes monotonous bitterness (dark roast aficionados carefully analyze bitterness – desirable bitterness like bittersweet notes or the aromatic bitterness from roasting are pursued, while monotonous bitterness should be avoided), astringency, asphalt-like flavors, grassy notes, and sharp acidity that makes you cringe.

Premium growing regions, appropriate roast levels, and careful double-hand sorting can effectively ensure a smooth cup of coffee.

For those with more discerning palates, an interesting coffee is desired.

Beans from different growing regions and processing methods will transport you to different worlds. Experience the excitement and diversity of the coffee world, from Yirgacheffe with its citrus and jasmine floral notes to Mandheling with its herbaceous and woody flavors. The wild, ferment-like characteristics of natural processing methods, and so much more. In this section, I don't recommend drinking many expensive beans – diversity and interesting variations are what truly matter.

Finally, beyond just flavor, there's the precious coffee – something truly special.

Take Geisha, for example. Its lemon-tea-like flavor profile had never been seen before, and upon its introduction, it consistently won awards. Because it was discovered as a mutant variety with no large-scale cultivation initially, production volumes haven't increased significantly, keeping prices extremely high. The determining factor isn't taste but rarity.

Time is Coffee's Enemy

The development of coffee is accompanied by countless cultural traditions. If I were to open a café, I would definitely let you experience coffee flavors from various cultural systems.

For instance, in both the UK and Australia, I've found cafés that offer raw sugar, which has richer flavors than regular white sugar, especially with caramel aromas.

Vietnam primarily produces Robusta coffee, and locals enjoy it with large ice cubes and sweetened condensed milk added to the bitter but malt-rich Robusta. Many people absolutely love this combination.

Both Japan and Europe have traditions of adding salt to coffee. I've tried it myself – it creates a very distinctive flavor that seems to add a special umami quality.

Even more surprisingly, many customers have told me that black coffee with Wangzai milk is a perfect match!

Ultimately, you need to find the coffee that brings you joy, whether it's smooth or unique.

Finally, just one piece of advice: try beans from different growing regions and always buy fresh beans.

Time is coffee's enemy, primarily for three reasons:

• Dissipation of aromatic compounds

• Maillard reactions at room temperature

• Oxidation of oils

The best solution is almost always to buy fresh coffee. Once you've experienced the aroma of coffee within a week of roasting, you'll find it difficult to go back to stale coffee.

Storing Beginner Coffee Beans

We should understand the main enemies of coffee bean storage: high temperatures, humidity, oxygen, and sunlight.

Coffee beans store better than ground coffee, so when grinding, we should follow the principle of "grind only when you need it." So where should coffee beans be stored? A sealed coffee bean storage container is an excellent choice.

Regarding whether to store coffee in the refrigerator: first, we should know that whether coffee can be stored in the refrigerator depends critically on how well the coffee bag can be sealed. Because humidity affects coffee quality more than temperature, using a sealed container or coffee bag sealing strip to properly seal the coffee becomes particularly important. If this issue is resolved, refrigeration can be considered when room temperature is too high.

Let's examine the effect of air on coffee quality. The flavor oils in coffee beans are easily oxidized, so before sealing coffee, air should be expelled from the coffee bean container or coffee bag, then sealed tightly. Don't give air any opportunity to affect the coffee.

Regarding temperature: high temperatures cause coffee beans to release oils, increasing the opportunity and extent of flavor oil oxidation by air. This is why friends sometimes store coffee in the refrigerator, similar to storing tea. Here, I just want to remind friends in northern regions to keep coffee beans as far away from heating sources as possible during winter. If you consider refrigeration, it's acceptable, but ensure the container is properly sealed first, otherwise your coffee in the refrigerator will become a deodorizer!

Among the various elements affecting coffee quality, ranked from most to least severe: humidity, air, high temperature, sunlight. When coffee beans are exposed to moisture, the flavor changes: the coffee becomes more bitter, loses aroma, and has a one-dimensional mouthfeel. High temperatures cause coffee to release oils, while direct sunlight causes aroma loss.

Recommended Beginner Coffee Bean Brands

FrontStreet Coffee's roasted beginner coffee beans: Yirgacheffe Coffee, Panama Mariposa Coffee, Indonesian Mandheling Coffee, and others offer full guarantees in both brand and quality. More importantly, they offer exceptional value – a half-pound (227g) package costs only around 80-90 yuan. Calculated at 15 grams per pour-over coffee, one package makes about 15 cups, with each single-origin coffee costing only about 6 yuan. Compared to cafés selling coffee for dozens of yuan per cup, this represents excellent value.

FrontStreet Coffee: A Guangzhou-based roastery with a small shop but diverse bean varieties, where you can find both famous and lesser-known beans. They also provide online services at https://shop104210103.taobao.com

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473