These are used by Keurig single cup home brewing systems. They are not limited to coffee only, but are also available for tea and cocoa. Altogether they have over 200 different varieties from several brands like Green Mountain Coffee, Van Houtte, Caribou, Timothy’s, Twinings etc.

Tassimo Discs or T Discs

T Discs are used by Tassimo single serve coffee machines for making coffee, tea or hot chocolate. You can choose from several different varieties from brands like Starbucks, Carte Noire, Jacobs, Kenco, Twinings etc. T Discs have unique bar code system that machine uses to determine necessary brewing time, temperature and water amount.

Nescafe Dolce Gusto Capsules

Used by Nescafe Dolce Gusto system and produced by Nescafe. There are several different variations available like Cappuccino, Caffe Americano, Latte Macchiato, Espresso etc.

Coffee Pods

Coffee pods are to coffee what tea packs are to tea, sort of. These are used by several different systems and are somewhat interchangeable. One of the best known systems that uses them is Philips Senseo. Now, all pods are not created equal meaning that there are different sizes of them and therefore all pods cannot be used in all systems. Most common sizes are 44mm, 55mm and 62mm. Senseo uses the 62 mm size, Bunn MyCafe however has a specific kind of pod holder that allows many different sizes. Since coffee pods are one of the most common options in single serve coffee world, then there is a wide variety of different tastes and roasts and you are not limited to only one or two brands.

Also, read our suggestions for popular single serve coffee makers.

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We’ve been playing around with Squidoo lately and created a lens about coffee posters. The lens is covering some vintage art coffee posters as well as posters about coffee signs, cups, posters and beans. Click here to visit the coffee posters lens.

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Jimseven
This blog is run by World Barista Champion 2007 James Hoffman. I’d say that this guy is not just any other blogger, he’s more of an artist and philosopher of coffee in his own way.

Pure Coffee Blog
This blog is mainly centered around coffeehouses and coffee establishments. You can also use it as sort of guide to find a good coffeehouse.

A Sweetmarias weblog
This is a blog of a mail-order home coffee roasting business. Lots of posts about the coffee related places, since they seem to travel a lot due to their business. Also, they have whole bunch of articles on the coffee roasting and green beans on their main site. You can read them here.

The Bean Vagrant
A site run by Trevor Hyam, a barista from the UK. An in depth look to his explorations in the world of coffee, with lots of illustrative materials.

Coffee & Conservation
And now on a bit different note, a blog that is mainly covering the topics on connection between coffee and environment.

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From a narrow band centered on the equator of around 23 degrees North to 25 degrees South comes all of the world’s source of the liquid that a Turkish proverb calls ‘black as hell, strong as death, sweet as love’. As a commodity, coffee is second only to oil in dollar volume. Coffee beans are grown worldwide in over 70 countries.

Brazil is by far the largest coffee bean producer in the world with an average output of 28% of the total. Even world-renowned Colombia is a distant second at only 16%, Indonesia has less than half of that – 7%, and Mexico, with the 4% is on the fourth place.

The best beans are produced by coffee trees that grow in high altitudes but they have also adapted to a variety of other areas.

In Brazil, the plantations cover very large areas and employ hundreds of workers to tend the plants. In Colombia the rugged mountains and poor economic conditions mean that transportation to processing centers is still largely carried out by mule or Jeep.

While Colombia has the tree-lined mountains, Hawaiian producers plant on the slopes of the Mauna Loa volcano. The black volcanic ash is rocky, but ideal for the plants where the intense afternoon sun is softened by tropical clouds. Frequent island showers provide the ample rain needed.

Indonesia is combined of 17,508 islands of which about 6,000 are inhabited and is the world’s largest archipelagic state. Coffee has been grown ever since the Dutch colonists brought it there in the 17th century. Even though other countries may have greater technology, no one exceeds the helpful warm, damp micro-climates found here. Hundreds of one to two acre farms on the largest islands of Sumatra, Java and Sulawesi combine to secure the country’s third place position.

As opposed to Brazil, plantations in Mexico are primarily small farms but there are more than 100,000 of them, so in the total they still make the country a serious factor on the world market. Majority of the plantations are located in the south, in Veracruz, Oaxaca and Chiapas with the special Altura beans indicating their origin in the high altitudes.

In recent years Vietnam has rapidly been challenging Indonesia’s position as the Tonkin area recovers from decades of stagnation. In the mid-19th century by French missionaries planted there the arabica trees, but today the small plantations produce robusta, which is one of the two main types of plant.

Even though Africa, Kenya and the Ivory Coast, are smaller producers they are famous for the dark, large beans grown there. In the foothills of Mount Kenya grow some of the largest in the world which go to produce a well-known fruity coffee. The Ivory Coast holds its position as one of the world’s largest producers of robusta, often used in espresso blends.

Whether it’s the Brazilian Liberdade, the Costa Rican La Fuente, the Indian Monsoon Malabar or the Tanzanian Peaberry, there is a coffee for every taste and everywhere. With such a wide choice, there no reason to be satisfied with just one option from a local store. Try something different today, you just might be pleasantly surprised.

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Despite an early dip at the beginning of the recession, this $11 billion a year industry continues to grow and diversify, according to the Franchise Direct study. With coffee consumption remaining constant in this declining economic climate, coffee franchises continue to be a worthwhile investment.

According the study, the coffee franchise industry remains extremely competitive at the top and fragmented at the bottom. Starbucks is the industry’s leading coffee chain, with over 16,000 stores worldwide. Because of the accessibility and popularity of coffee, a franchised approach, boosted by an established brand identity, continues to be one of the most profitable options to profit on this product.

One of the most reassuring reasons to invest in a coffee franchise is the enduring success of the beverage. The Franchise Direct study quotes a recent poll that shows that coffee consumption actually increased last year among the lucrative 25-to-39-year old demographic, while it remained steady amongst 40-to-59-year-old’s. As the recession continues, we can safely assume that the popularity of coffee will continue unabated.

Coffee franchises are also flexibly adapting to new American consumer habits. For instance, in recent years, there has been greater demand for environmentally-friendly products that do not exploit workers in the production process. Coffee franchises have been at the cutting edge of the Fair Trade movement, and with a range of organic goods, they are perfectly positioned to thrive on this developing $1billion industry.

The Franchise Direct study shows that location is the most important factor in a coffee franchise’s success. At the same time, mobile units or kiosks give prospective franchisees a low-overhead, high footfall alternative to the standard franchise unit arrangement.

Underpinning the recent success of coffee franchises is the growing popular consensus that coffee has a number of health benefits for drinkers. While perhaps once seen as unhealthy, coffee, as illustrated by authoritative studies conducted by researchers at Harvard and UCLA, clearly has health incentives.

People exploring franchises for sale will find that coffee franchises sell a product with broad public appeal that is seamlessly adapting to American consumer trends towards healthiness, social responsibility, and environmental sustainability.

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Roasting beans is, however, something of a ‘cooking’ specialty. Unless you are willing to invest in a quite expensive piece of equipment, the results are often less than satisfying. On top of that – even if done properly – it will fill the house with odors that take time to dissipate and can become pretty annoying.

Even after roasting, beans will stay fresh for a while. Freshly roasted beans naturally release small amounts of carbon dioxide which helps to keep oxygen away from the bean, postponing spoilage. If stored in an airtight container, especially with a drying agent, they’ll retain their good flavor and aroma for up to a week.

Naturally, the closer to roasting they’re ground and consumed the fresher they’ll be. But even after a couple days they can still produce a stellar grind and a superior brew. After two weeks the flavor may still be acceptable, however, the aroma will no longer be first rate. Whole bean coffee stored at even optimum conditions will be dull after a month.

Key to getting a good cup from purchased roasted beans is to ensure that the skin is unbroken. If that happens, all bets are off. Oils underneath the skin and inside the bean will deteriorate unless frozen, in which case the brew will never be first rate.

When it comes to storing beans, it’s essential to use an airtight container. A glass jar of the type used for instant tea grounds is tempting, but insufficient – there is still too much leakage around the lid. A good glass jar with a rubber seal is best. The jar needs to be stored in a cool, dark place because not only air, but also heat and light can contribute to spoiling beans.

Better, but more expensive option, is a container which flush air with an inert gas, then inject the coffee beans which then give off carbon dioxyde, providing natural protection against spoilage. Beans stored in this way can keep their freshness for several weeks.

The next best thing to home roasting is grinding at home. This is an option open even to them who have little or no cooking skills.

Good grinders are available at moderate prices, are normally easy to use and easy to clean. Lots of them are automated to the point where with only a minor experimentation, it’s possible to get consistently good grinds.

Since grinding breaks the bean skin the same ‘oil spoilage’ problem will arise if the grind isn’t used within a few days. Just as the roasted beans, only more so, any grounds that are not consumed within a day should be packed in a desiccating cannister. Those cannisters contain a drying agent, normally beneath a mesh at the bottom, which keeps moisture from introducing mold or excess oxygen into the grounds.

If grounds are not stored in a desiccating cannister, they will lose much flavor within a few hours. Oils will evaporate and the grounds will deteriorate, because they are exposed to the air and moisture within the jar.

If you want an excellent cup of coffee, you should only grind as much as you intend to brew and drink everything you brewed within an hour. With modern machines there is no longer any reason to suffer second-rate coffee.

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Caffeine, one of the main ingredients in coffee, has long been known to be a mild stimulant, that can raise blood pressure, increase heart rate and produce the occasional irregular beat. But many researchers now believe the effect is mild and short-lived.

In contrast, the emerging data about the health benefits of coffee consumption are numerous and diverse.

There is a strong evidence that coffee can reduce the odds of developing colon cancer, but only at higher levels of consumption – four cups a day or more. That much intake may well outweigh the benefits and have it’s own dangers attached.

However there are also benefits that accumulate even at moderate levels of coffee intake.

Coffee, like wine, contains antioxidants that help prevent heart disease and certain cancers by removing cell-destroying free radicals from the blood. There are studies that say the concentration of antioxidants is greater than that found in cranberries, apples or tomatoes. However, there many other valuable vitamins, minerals and fibers in fruits and vegetables that coffee doesn’t have, so it shouldn’t be used as substitute to them.

In addition to the obvious contribution to mental alertness, Chinese studies strongly suggest that coffee can even help reduce the effects of Parkinson’s disease.

Both American and Scandinavian studies suggest that decaf and regular coffee help reduce the risk of type-2 diabetes. It is good news for the Scandinavians who have the highest per capita consumption in the world.

Furthermore, there is some evidence that coffee may reduce the risk of developing kidney stones and gallstones.

Caffeine has been shown to reduce constriction of airways in asthma sufferers, with moderate consumption. In addition to the caffeine, coffee contains theophylline, a bronchodilator which helps the effect.

But not surprisingly those benefits come with their share of risks.

Though mammalian sperm swim faster, longer and farther in fluids laced with coffee, some studies link heavy coffee drinking with reduced fertility.

Moreover, increased coffee consumption has been associated with higher blood levels of homocysteine, recently shown to be a risk factor for coronary heart disease. Some studies have shown an increase in LDL-cholesterol (the ‘harmful’ kind). To what degree these factors actually contribute to heart attacks is still a matter of debate.

Coffee contains cafestol, a substance which is known to raise cholesterol levels, especially in coffee made by the European method of boiling ground beans in water. Percolated or filtered coffee, favored by most Americans, on the other hand, removes it. Decaf coffee might be an exception.

Women who drink coffee lose more calcium and tend to have less dense bones than non-caffeine consumers. Drinking four or more cups per day also doubles the risk of urinary incontinence.

As you can see, there are both pros and cons to drinking coffee as well as passionate advocates for the both sides. Which side outweighs the others? The jury is still out in this matter. Future studies should bring more light into this, until then use your better judgement.

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Their younger cousin, coffee, arose a couple of hundred years later, though it’s not known how old the plant itself is. Some archaeological evidence shows that humans were eating the berries as long as a hundred thousand years ago.

The word ‘coffee’ has come a long way to become a part of English language. It entered there in 1598 via Italian word caffé, which in return is derived from Turkish kahve that came into being via Arabic qahwa, a truncation of qahhwat al-bun meaning wine of the bean.

One legend says that a goat herder Kaldi in Ethiopia observed his charges eating the red berries from a nearby tree and became excited. Trying them himself, he too felt a great lift. Similar myth says that Yemenite Sufi mystic Shaikh ash-Shadhili, while traveling Ethiopia, observed unusual vitality of goats and experienced the same after eating the berries that goats had been eating.

One of the possible origins for both the beverage and the name is the Kingdom of Kaffa in Ethiopia, where the plant itself came from (they call it bunn or bunna).

At first coffee was mostly grown in Ethiopia where it was cultivated by highlanders.

By 600 AD that magical berry, and the brew made from drying and grinding its seeds, had found its way to what is now known as Yemen, on the southern tip of the Arabian peninsula. The first coffee house was opened in 1471 in Istanbul and was called Kiva Han. The first European coffee house was opened in Italy in 1645.

Stories tell of a native of India smuggling the precious seeds of the tree out of Arabia around 1650 AD, then planting them in the hills of Chikmagalur. Arabian law forbad the exporting of beans that could germinate, effectively controlling coffee trade for centuries. Whether myth or history, the fruit of those seeds now forms a third of India’s large coffee output.

Europeans – the British, Dutch, French, and others – spread the beans to other countries during their travels. The Dutch were responsible for its introduction to Java in the 18th century. From those plantings, history tells us, came the famed tree coveted by France’s king, presented to him as a gift.

Louis XIV of France, finding the tree didn’t tolerate frost well, had a greenhouse erected to supply him with the beans to make the brew he so savored. It is said that from that source came the cultivars used in Central and South America.

Reaching Martinique around 1720, sprouts were planted and grew well in the hot Caribbean clime. From the thousands of trees that resulted, some were transported to Mexico where the product now forms one of their largest exports.

Making its way to French Guiana around the same time, the tree grew well in that steamy atmosphere. Seeing an opportunity, a rascal named Francisco de Melo Palheta solicited the aid of the governor’s wife to smuggle seeds out of the country. As he prepared to part for Brazil, the lady handed him a bouquet of flowers containing the illicit beans. It was in the year of 1727.

Brazil was the biggest coffee producer in the world for many decades in 19th and 29th century. Today it still remains as one of the largest coffee producers on the planet.

From Brazil the seeds complete the circle, making their way in the late 19th century to Kenya and Tanzania, not far from their original home in Ethiopia. Six centuries to return home is a long journey and an excellent excuse to rest and have a cup.

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Next comes the coffee. Best choice would be arabica – whether its from Brazil, Bogota, or elsewhere, it should be grown above 3000 feet (915m) and delivered fresh for roasting. Whether you have roasted it youself or has it been bought within a few days after, the coffee should have that ‘fresh food’ smell.

Robusta should be reserved for those quick pick-me-up cups, not used for an espresso to be savored. It – even though it’s easier to grow and is more disease resistant – has more caffeine but less flavor.

Don’t use blade grinders for grounding. Blade ‘grinders’ actually don’t grind, they chop. Instead choose burr grinders – these have pyramid shaped teeth on two plates that grind the beans between them. The roast should be dark – either French or Viennese. The name here refers to the color, not the origin.

The fineness of the granules is determined by the distance between the plates. Sand grain-sized is good, powder is fine too, but small-gravel is too large. The grind should not be exposed to air any longer than necessary. Coffee, like any other food product, will oxidize and absorb odors from the air. Neither is favorable for a good cup.

And, last but not least, a good espresso requires a clean good quality machine. Good quality here means that it generates heat by boiler or thermoblock and is capable of producing at least 9 bars of pump pressure or more. A thermoblock heats water as it passes through the machine on the way to the pump. Don’t use cheaper units that use steam to create pressure.

These were the basic elements required for great espresso. Now lets look at the process itself.

Pre-warm the equipment by running good water through a clean machine. You can turn the machine on, let the water heat, and run a cup through with no coffee to warm the surfaces and flush the system.

Add your ground roast and pack down slightly, just like it’s done with pipe tobacco. You should be able to feel some springiness, but the coffee shouldn’t scatter.

Insert the hopper in the machine firmly and place a warmed espresso cup at the outlet. Start the machine and in about five seconds you should have a thin, steady stream. (It should take approximately 20 seconds for a double shot.)

If you want to make a cappuccino, warm half a cup of organic milk in the microwave for about 90 seconds, froth, and add to the espresso. Garnish to taste with cinnamon, nutmeg or chocolate. In case you like it sweet a little organic sugar goes a long way.

That’s about it -simple, straight forward, and easy. Good ingredients are essential, remember to keep your equipment clean, and don’t burn the roast. As a result you’ll get a great cup of espresso.

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