We see a lot of organic coffee beans available in the market. Are they worth it? Here is a look at some of the reasons for making the switch to organic coffee beans.

The Future of Agriculture

From all indications, the future of agriculture lies with organic farming. For the consumer, this means healthier produce. Organic farmers make use of sustainable farming processes and avoid the use of dangerous chemical pesticides and fertilizers. These harmful substances are known carcinogens.

In order for produce to be certified as organic in the U.S., it must pass strict requirements by an agency of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. For organic coffee beans, these requirements include proof of being grown in an area that is proven to have no exposure to prohibited pesticides and chemicals for at least 3 years. Additional requirements for certification include a sustainable crop rotation plan which avoids soil depletion and pest control through non-chemical methods.

Try a New Organic Lifestyle

It’s becoming easier these days to adopt an organic lifestyle, since organic products are now more common in the market. Your diet can now include all kinds of organic foods, from milk to meat to fruits and vegetables. There is no question that lowering your exposure to deadly chemicals and pesticides is vitally important to your health. It’s only natural to make organic coffee beans part of your organic lifestyle.

Respect the Earth

Many farmers who grow organic coffee beans also make a commitment to protect the earth in other ways besides avoiding pesticides and chemicals. Many plant their coffee under trees in the rainforest, rather than clearing the trees. This helps preserve the diverse bird population that calls the rainforest home.

Are Organic Coffee Beans more Expensive?

If all the arguments for avoiding pesticides and helping to preserve the fragile rainforest haven’t convinced you to buy organic coffee beans, you should give them a try because they taste great. You may think organic coffee beans are significantly more expensive, but this is not the case. You can find organic coffee with prices comparable to non-organic online and at many stores. You will feel good knowing that you are getting less exposure to harmful substances and helping to protect the planet at the same time.

Last but not the least, check if you are buying organic coffee beans from reputable third party. You want to be sure you’re getting the real thing.

Among all types of coffee, my favorite type is gourmet flavored coffee. You might wonder why. Tell me tell you the reasons now.

The Wide Varieties of Gourmet Flavored Coffee

There is absolutely no shortage of different flavors of gourmet coffee. The online store where I buy most of my coffee has these flavors: amaretto, almond, butterscotch cream, butter rum, cherry cobbler, cherry bomb, chocolate cherry, chocolate almond, chocolate marshmallow, chocolate Irish Cream, chocolate raspberry, chocolate mint, orange, cinnamon hazelnut, pumpkin spice, orange, vanilla nut, vanilla almond, etc., etc., etc. I have only tried a fraction of all these go types of gourmet flavored coffee.

You Should Know How Gourmet Flavored Coffee is Made

Obviously, coffee beans can’t be grown with all these different flavors. Gourmet flavored coffee begins with a base like Colombia Supremo, to which pure flavors are added. There are no sugars or chemical additives in gourmet flavored coffee. The end result of this process is a wonderfully delicious coffee, so delicious that flavored coffee can become addictive. With so many flavors to choose from, you will never become bored when drinking gourmet flavored coffee.

The Best Way to Brew Gourmet Flavored Coffee

Like all types of coffee, gourmet flavored coffee will taste better when it’s brewed correctly. Start by keeping all your coffee brewing equipment as clean as possible. Coffee residue, especially flavored coffee residue, can leave later pots of coffee tasting funny. I make a practice of cleaning all of my coffee brewing equipment each time I make coffee.

Water is another important factor in brewing a great cup of gourmet flavored coffee. Be sure to use filtered cold water so that the gourmet flavor is not masked. For really fresh flavor, start with coffee beans and grind them yourself. The coffee will stay fresh longer. Each time you make a pot of coffee, measure and grind just the amount you need. I think you’ll agree that freshly ground gourmet flavored coffee can’t be beat.

You may not know this, but unless you buy your coffee direct, the coffee beans used to make the morning cup of coffee that you love so much have probably been in the hands of half a dozen middle men. With so many stages involved in getting the coffee to your distributor, the quality of the beans suffers. Here’s a fresh idea – eliminate the middle men and get your coffee direct from the distributor.

Save Money when you buy Coffee Direct

Surprisingly enough, when you buy your coffee direct you may actually be able to spend less for coffee than you do at the supermarket. In the normal distribution process, each middle man takes his cut. By purchasing coffee in bulk from a distributor, you can save money over the long haul. Buying in bulk means purchasing up to 25 pounds at a time. When you buy this amount, you start to see some real savings.

Get Fresher Beans when you buy your Coffee Direct

There’s no way to tell how long coffee has been sitting on the supermarket shelf, and after a few months the flavor starts to fade and grow stale. Buying whole beans doesn’t always solve this problem, since the beans many pass through several warehouses before you buy it. Only when you buy coffee direct from a distributor are you guaranteed to get fresh and flavorful beans. Your taste buds will tell you the difference.

Buying Coffee Direct Tips

* What kind of coffee do you enjoy? There are many types to choose from, including dark, light, robust and mild. Consider the location where the coffee is grown. This could be Sumatra, Kenya, Columbia or even Hawaii. Once you’ve narrowed down your search, check the Internet to find a distributor in your community. Contact the distributor and buy your coffee direct.

* For the best tasting coffee, brew it as soon as possible after it’s roasted. Find a local coffee roaster and buy your coffee direct. If there are no roasters in your area, check the Internet to find out about having fresh roasted coffee shipped to you.

* For the best tasting coffee, invest in a grinder so that you can grind the freshly roasted beans that you buy.

* Buy only the amount of coffee you expect to consume within one month. This way you will always be brewing fresh coffee beans. After a month, most beans begin to lose flavor.

If you really love coffee, follow these tips and you’ll soon be enjoying the aroma and taste of the freshest cup of coffee you’ve ever had. Buy your coffee direct and get freshly roasted beans. You’ll be glad you eliminated the middle men and shortened the time from tree to cup.

Do you grind your own coffee beans? Maybe next time you would want to try a manual coffee mill to enjoy hand crafted ground coffee.

Even if you like your current electric grinder here are some reasons to try out a a manual coffee grinder? Probably for the same reason that some people enjoy working with old fashioned hand tools instead of the latest high tech electric version. It is great to feel like an old fashioned craftsman.

If the idea of actually feeling the beans being ground appeals to you, read on. If you prefer to buy ground coffee, you will still find this enjoyable to think about how coffee used to be made.

This of this as a way to transport yourself back to a simpler time, when the only way to grind coffee was with a manual coffee mill. What should you look for in a manual coffee grinder today?

How to buy a manual coffee grinder

First, be sure to buy a new grinder. Don’t mistake a decorative grinder for one that will do the job for you reliably and consistently. Many coffee grinders are just decorations. They were never meant to be used to grind coffee, and they may even be contaminated with who knows what if they are vintage grinders.

Second, avoid inexpensive grinders. A manual coffee is a precision instrument, with a hardened steel grinding mechanism designed to crush and grind coffee beans consistently and reliably. You should look for a coffee grinder with a five or ten year warranty. You can plan to spend between $50 to $75 for a mill that will last years, if not a lifetime.

Grinding your coffee by hand

With your quality mill, you will quickly grind coffee for about six cups of brew in just a couple of minutes. You will vary the grind based on how you plan to brew your coffee: coarse for a French press, fine for espresso, and in between for a drip brewer. The finer the grind, the longer it will take you but it this is easy and fulfilling work as you feel the beans being crushed and releasing the fresh coffee fragrance to enjoy.

A special mill for Turkish coffee

If you make Turkish coffee on your stove top, you need extremely finely ground beans, almost powdered.

Regular hand coffee mills won’t grind beans finely enough. You will need a special Turkish coffee mill. You can expect to pay a bit more for a quality manual mill for Turkish coffee, probably around $75 to $100.

Should you buy a manual coffee grinder?

If you are deciding between an electric coffee grinder and a manual coffee mill, which should you buy? That depends on you. I would buy the electric one first, but make sure it is a quality mill that uses the burr style instead of blade style grinder. Also, buy one that grinds at a lower speed to avoid building up static electricity that makes the coffee stick everywhere. We have more ideas for choosing the right electric grinder on our site at Coffee Daydreams Best Coffee Grinders

Then I would buy a manual grinder. Use it for the days when you feel like enjoying simpler pleasures in life. When you want to add to the coffee experience and the hands-on feel of taking whole beans and applying some of yourself to the coffee making process.

When you relax and enjoy the results of your hand ground coffee beans, you will experience a bit of the ongoing adventure through the years, enjoying different coffees and trying different techniques, always learning, always growing in your coffee skills and appreciation.

Bulk Coffee Programs

A bulk coffee program is a plan that will ship you a predetermined amount of coffee each month. The amounts vary, so make sure you find a plan which suits your needs. Start with ordering a small amount at first, to make sure you don’t end up with more coffee that you can consume before it starts to go stale. Most of the plans offer a house blend brand of coffee which may be imported from Sumatra, Kenya, Central America or South America.

Check out Online Options for Bulk Coffee

If you buy bulk coffee online, you should be able to find it at a discount. This may seem great at first, but don’t forget to factor in the cost of shipping. The shipping cost may be sizable since bulk coffee ships in bags weighing up to 25 pounds. One way to cut down on shipping costs is to find a local distributor. Not only will save you money, but it can also save you delivery time. The last thing you want to do is to end up paying high overnight shipping costs for large amounts of bulk coffee.

Tips for Brewing Bulk Coffee

If you do own a restaurant, coffee house, or large business and are making a lot of coffee, be sure to use a commercial grade coffee machine for brewing your bulk coffee. The same coffee maker you use at home cannot make coffee fast enough and it can’t get the water hot enough for optimal brewing. Really high water temperature is one of the secrets to the great coffee served in your favorite coffee house.

If you don’t consume a lot of coffee in a short amount of time, purchasing bulk coffee may not be your best option. The best cup of coffee comes from fresh beans, bought within the last month. Even though buying bulk coffee will save you money, you’ll be disappointed in the taste of your coffee if it sits on your shelf much longer than 30 days.

Origins of Kona Coffee

Kona coffee comes from the island of Hawaii, also known as the Big Island. Coffee was first brought to Hawaii by an American missionary in the form of coffee plant cuttings from Brazil. Originally grown on large plantations, today the coffee is grown on about 800 small Kona coffee farms. Kona coffee is one of the most expensive and rare coffees, since just 2 million pounds are distributed each year.

There are basically two types of Kona coffee beans. I’m partial to the smaller bean, known as the peaberry. There are many blends of Kona and Columbian or Brazilian coffee available, but I try to always buy 100% Kona coffee. I don’t recommend buying a blend, since it may consist of as much as 90% cheaper coffee. Why pay a premium price for that?

How to brew the best Kona Coffee

When you invest in premium Kona coffee, it makes sense to make sure you brew it the best way. Always buy whole beans and grind them yourself. Only grind the amount that you will use in the same day. Learn how much fits into your coffee press or coffee machine, and only grind that amount at a time.

This leads me to the question of the coffee maker. I use a coffee press rather than a coffee maker. A coffee press is a glass cylinder with a plunger attached to the top. You put coffee in the bottom of the press, add hot water and let it brew for at least 4 minutes, then push the plunger down to strain out the coffee grounds. My coffee press makes a better cup of coffee than my $200 Capresso espresso machine. I would never use anything but my $30 coffee press when brewing Kona coffee.

When testing whether you like Kona coffee, buy a small amount first. If you find that you like it, you can then order larger quantities to save money. If you’re really a coffee aficionado like me, buy enough coffee beans to last you a month. For me, freshness is the top priority.