Where Does Coffee Really Come From?
Many of us drink coffee each and every day, but very few of us are really understand where coffee comes from.
This might be a shock to you, but coffee beans actually come from a fruit.
Yes, it surprises many people to find out that the rich and bold flavor of a coffee bean is actually pulled out of a fruit.
The entire process starts with a coffea plant.
The coffea plant is an evergreen and bush-like plant family that includes hundreds of different species.
Some of these species of coffea plant produce small berries that almost resemble cherries.
Inside of the small fruit there are several layers and membranes - in the center, there is a coffee bean.
The two most popular coffea plants grown all around the world in coffee plantations are the Arabica and Robusta coffea plants.
The Robusta coffea plant is sometimes also referred to as the Canephora coffea plant.
While there are many other types of coffea plants that yield the beans, these are by far the most popular and widely grown.
The beans are harvested by hand or by the use of a machine just like most other fruits.
Then the beans are extracted from the middle of the fruit to begin the drying process.
When the bean is inside the small berry, it is covered with many skins and is surrounded by fluids.
After the bean comes out of the berry, it looks like it is covered with a thick gel.
All of this gel and skin must be removed before the bean is allowed to dry.
The drying process can last anywhere from a few days to several weeks, depending on the flavor that the process is aiming for.
After the beans are dried, they are put under heat to roast.
Once again, the roasting process can take hours or days and is a huge factor in the resulting flavor.
Once the roasting is finished, the beans are either packaged as they are or they are ground up to a variety of different consistencies before being packaged.
The packaged beans are then shipped off around the world so they can go to coffee shops, grocery stores, and anywhere else that consumers can purchase them.
Guatemala, Colombia and Mexico are three countries that are very well known for their high quality coffee beans.
In these countries, the coffea plants are usually grown at a high altitude to create the ideal soil and climate conditions for the beans in the berries to mature and flavor correctly.
Beans that are grown from the Arabica coffea plant at an altitude of 3000 feet or more are usually considered to be gourmet beans because they have some of the richest and boldest flavor in the world.
So, the next time that you brew up a pot of coffee, just think about all the work that went into preparing each and every bean.
If you are a true coffee enthusiast, you should respect the process involved in preparing the coffee for your morning drink.
This might be a shock to you, but coffee beans actually come from a fruit.
Yes, it surprises many people to find out that the rich and bold flavor of a coffee bean is actually pulled out of a fruit.
The entire process starts with a coffea plant.
The coffea plant is an evergreen and bush-like plant family that includes hundreds of different species.
Some of these species of coffea plant produce small berries that almost resemble cherries.
Inside of the small fruit there are several layers and membranes - in the center, there is a coffee bean.
The two most popular coffea plants grown all around the world in coffee plantations are the Arabica and Robusta coffea plants.
The Robusta coffea plant is sometimes also referred to as the Canephora coffea plant.
While there are many other types of coffea plants that yield the beans, these are by far the most popular and widely grown.
The beans are harvested by hand or by the use of a machine just like most other fruits.
Then the beans are extracted from the middle of the fruit to begin the drying process.
When the bean is inside the small berry, it is covered with many skins and is surrounded by fluids.
After the bean comes out of the berry, it looks like it is covered with a thick gel.
All of this gel and skin must be removed before the bean is allowed to dry.
The drying process can last anywhere from a few days to several weeks, depending on the flavor that the process is aiming for.
After the beans are dried, they are put under heat to roast.
Once again, the roasting process can take hours or days and is a huge factor in the resulting flavor.
Once the roasting is finished, the beans are either packaged as they are or they are ground up to a variety of different consistencies before being packaged.
The packaged beans are then shipped off around the world so they can go to coffee shops, grocery stores, and anywhere else that consumers can purchase them.
Guatemala, Colombia and Mexico are three countries that are very well known for their high quality coffee beans.
In these countries, the coffea plants are usually grown at a high altitude to create the ideal soil and climate conditions for the beans in the berries to mature and flavor correctly.
Beans that are grown from the Arabica coffea plant at an altitude of 3000 feet or more are usually considered to be gourmet beans because they have some of the richest and boldest flavor in the world.
So, the next time that you brew up a pot of coffee, just think about all the work that went into preparing each and every bean.
If you are a true coffee enthusiast, you should respect the process involved in preparing the coffee for your morning drink.
