What Is Unique about Shade Grown Organic Coffee?
If your goal is a great cup of coffee, free of impurities and friendly to the environment, you probably want to look for shade grown organic coffee brands. But, what is unique about shade grown organic coffee?
Shade Grown Coffee
Growing Coffee the Way Nature Intended
In the wild coffee grows naturally in the shelter of shade trees. It is only recently that growers have developed sun tolerant hybrids in order to increase the amount of coffee that they can grow on a plot of land. Shade-grown coffee comes from coffee plants grown under a tree canopy. Coffee growers plant both coffee and a variety of shade trees. This is a sustainable agricultural practice resulting in high quality organic coffee. Shade trees attract birds and are the cornerstone of a healthy habitat. Some coffee farmers plant plantain and other trees which produce fruits to harvest so they grow more than one crop on their land.
The Best Organic Coffee Provides Bird Habitat
In Harmony with the Environment
Serious Eats talks about shade-grown coffee.
First and foremost, there are some reasons that shade-grown coffee is a good idea. When coffees are grown in the shade of other plants, the biodiversity of the landscape sees a benefit. Native plants that shade coffee trees-which can range from forest trees like cedars, to fruit trees, like banana, orange, lemon, avocado, and soursop-are planted to create a harmonious nitrogen balance in the soil, and, over time, effect a specific, coffee-beneficial microclimate. The insect, animal, and bird landscape sees a positive influence as well, as biodiverse climates promote a sustainability of more species, which means greater survival of these species and increased pollination. Careful planting promotes healthier soil, which can also offer broader benefits like decreased erosion.
The point being that when a coffee farmer mixes coffee in with a canopy of other plants and crops there evolves a balance with nature that preserves the soil and the quality of the coffee that is produced year after year and decade after decade.
Does Organic Coffee Taste Better?
Unfortunately there is no strong evidence that growing coffee in the shade results in better taste. But, remember that taste is entirely subjective. For some folks the best tasting cup of coffee has so much cream, sugar and liqueur added that the coffee makes only a small contribution.
Is Shade Grown Coffee More Likely Organic?
This is certainly true. Healthy organic coffee is often shade grown. The kinds of herbicides, insecticides and fungicides that growers have to use when their crops are crowded in the sun to increase yield are not necessary in a mixed plant environment and are in fact dangerous to other plants and the microenvironment in such growing conditions. It has been shown that there are around 150 different impurities that can be found in a cup of regular commercial coffee. These are not found in organic coffee. What is unique about shade grown organic coffee is that it is great coffee, safe for the environment and safe for you! Look for organic on the label when you buy coffee.
Organic Coffee in a Bio-degradable Cup
The twin goals of healthy organic coffee are to provide and excellent and safe cup of coffee and to protect the environment. White Coffee, importers and roasters for three quarters of a century have gone a step farther. According to an article in DBR Technology Packaging, is rolling out a line of organic coffees in a compostable cup.
White Coffee Corporation in the US has expanded its product range with the introduction of single serve organic coffees in a compostable BioCup.
The new bio-degradable and compostable organic single serve coffee BioCup is available in 11 flavors such as Colombian, Breakfast Blend, French Roast, Full City Roast, Mexican High Grown, Peruvian, Rainforest Blend, Hazelnut, French Vanilla, Sea Salt Caramel and Chocolate Morsel, under the White Coffee moniker.
White Coffee’s BioCup is available in 10-count and 80-count boxes in retail outlets across the nation.
These cups will be 2.0 compatible, for use with the Keurig system and similar coffeemakers, the company said.
Commenting on the launch, White Coffee Corporation executive vice president Jonathan White said: “Our goal is to be the leader in the coffee industry in minimizing its environmental footprint.”
White Coffee has been engaged in coffee importing and roasting business since 1939.
White Coffee Corporation makes single serving coffees similar to those sold by Keurig, the “K” cups. In fact, as the article notes, their organic coffee in a bio-degradable cup will compatible with Keurig brewing systems.
Convenience versus Environmentally Friendly
The long standing issue with single serving coffees is that there is always packaging left over that goes into the landfill. The organic coffee in a bio-degradable cup by White Coffee addresses that issue. After all, you buy organic coffee partly because you are doing the environment a favor. There is a lot of work that goes into certified organic coffee.
Organic coffee certification guarantees that the consumer is drinking organic coffee, coffee uncontaminated by unwanted substances. Organic coffee certification also drives up the cost of a cup of coffee. The problem for a small coffee grower is that some organic practices can be more costly than conventional practices. For example, the labor cost of composting may be more than the cost of buying conventional, albeit prohibited, fertilizers. If the coffee farmer cannot obtain a sufficiently high price for his crop his is unable to continue the sustainable farming practices necessary to produce organic coffee. Thus the ability of the consumer to obtain organic coffee antioxidants and other healthy ingredients depends upon the willingness of the consumer to pay for the higher quality coffee available through organic growing practices and organic coffee certification.
The point is that using a biodegradable container reduces the wastage that commonly goes with single serving coffee. The most efficient and environmentally friendly way to buy and store coffee is in large containers. However, a single person living along may only consume a couple of pounds whole bean coffee in the six months shelf life of freshly roasted coffee. Economy of scale does not work in this case. And, frankly, single serving coffees are efficient when it comes to your own time and affairs. So, thanks, White Coffee for your new organic coffee in a bio-degradable cup!
Beware of Fillers in Your Coffee
The coffee market is under stress from several factors. One is the drought in Brazil, the country that produces forty percent of the coffee in the world. The other is the rising value of the US dollar versus virtually all other currencies. The drought in Brazil is a natural phenomenon that leaves many coffee farmers in the country with smaller crops. The rise of the dollar has to do with the strength of the US economy and the weakness of those economies based on raw material exports. Not only do coffee farmers in Brazil have less coffee to sell but the value of the local currency, the real, is falling. If the farmer cannot find an international buyer he is taking a thirty percent loss as compared to a year ago. The real traded 2.18 to the dollar a year ago and now it takes 2.76 reales to make a dollar. But what does this have to do with fillers in your coffee?
Anything to Fill the Bag
Remember our article about Coffee Please, No Dirt? We quoted the Washington Post which warned about fillers in coffee, dirt, corn, twigs, soybeans, etc.
Cream and sugar may not be the only additives in your morning cup of coffee. Tough growing conditions and rising demand are leading some coffee producers to mix in wheat, soybean, brown sugar, rye, barley, acai seeds, corn, twigs and even dirt.
The point of all this is to purchase healthy organic coffee that comes from a supply chain that is closely monitored and free of the many impurities that come with regular coffee, not to mention dirt, corn, twigs, etc.
Healthy Organic Coffee
How do you know if your coffee is organic? Here are three options:
According to the USDA, the following applies to USDA organic coffee as well as to all organic food production. “… Organic food is produced by farmers who emphasize the use of renewable resources and the conservation of soil and water to enhance environmental quality for future generations. Organic meat, poultry, eggs, and dairy products come from animals that are given no antibiotics or growth hormones. Organic food is produced without using most conventional pesticides; fertilizers made with synthetic ingredients or sewage sludge; bioengineering; or ionizing radiation. Before a product can be labeled ‘organic,’ a Government-approved certifier inspects the farm where the food is grown to make sure the farmer is following all the rules necessary to meet USDA organic standards. Companies that handle or process organic food before it gets to your local supermarket or restaurant must be certified, too.”
USDA Organic Coffee Certification
UTZ Certified stands for sustainable farming and better opportunities for farmers, their families and our planet. The UTZ program enables farmers to learn better farming methods, improve working conditions and take better care of their children and the environment. Through the UTZ-program farmers grow better crops, generate more income and create better opportunities while safeguarding the environment and securing the earth’s natural resources.
UTZ Organic Shafe Grown Coffee
Rainforest Alliance Certified Coffee
An alternative to organic coffee certification is for a grower to be Rainforest Alliance certified. The Rainforest Alliance is a non-governmental organization that works to conserve biodiversity. It does so for agricultural products by influencing consumers to buy what is good for the environment and good for small farmers. Rainforest Alliance certified means that the coffee that you buy was produced using good land use practices. Rainforest Alliance certified coffee is part of a broader sustainable agriculture program of tropical crops, including coffee, bananas, cocoa, oranges, cut flowers, ferns, and tea. Certified coffee farms meet a strict set of environmental standards that include preservation of the ecosystem and reduction in use of synthetic chemicals of all sorts. In addition, strict health and safety requirements are part of getting Rainforest Alliance certified. The Rainforest Alliance works with the Sustainable Agriculture Network which is a group that includes conservation organizations in nine countries in Latin America. These organizations work to increase and maintain sustainable agricultural practices. On the other end of the coffee spectrum Rainforest Alliance works to convince consumers and to buy Rainforest certified products and works to have businesses buy from certified farmers and sell to the public.
Rainforest Alliance Organic Shade Grown Coffee
Look for any of these seals on the label and you will get good organic coffee without the fillers.
Indian Filter Coffee
A unique kind of coffee is Indian filter coffee. Known as Kaapi (phonetic coffee in Hindu), Indian filter coffee is a popular drink in the Southern states of Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Indian filter coffee is three fourths coffee and one forth chicory. Local coffees are used in this drink. In order of local preference one makes Indian filter coffee with Peaberry, Arabica, Malabar or Robusta from Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu regions. Although locally made Indian filter coffee is made with local coffee beans, feel free to use healthy organic coffee, one of the Colombian organic coffee brands. But, if you want to do this traditionally where do you find Peaberry or Malabar coffee beans?
Peaberry Coffee
Peaberry coffee is also known as caracole. Peaberry coffee is made from rounded coffee beans. Normally the coffee berry has two seeds and the sides facing each other are flattened. About one in twenty coffee beans are single seeds and rounded. These are peaberries. Tanzanian coffees are commonly associated with peaberries as are some Kona coffees. Rounded peaberries roast differently from other coffee beans, more evenly. Ideally these rounded beans are roasted separately from regular flat sided coffee beans. This requires manual separation of the beans.
Malabar Coffee
Malabar coffee is from the Malabar region of India. It is in the South between the Western Ghats and the Arabian Sea. Coffee leaf rust arrived in India more than a century before it reach the Western Hemisphere. Growers replaced their Arabica coffee with Robusta and bred for leaf rust resistance. Thus Malabar is always a non-Arabica variety.
Chicory
Chicory is a perennial plant often used as a coffee substitute or additive. The roots of chicory are baked and ground and added to coffee. Chicory is not only used in Indian filter coffee. Adding chicory to coffee is common in New Orleans.
Indian Filter Coffee
Indian filter coffee, in India, is commonly made with instant coffee. In India the key to good filter coffee is searching out the ideal instant coffee or coffee powder. Add the power to hot water and stir. Then pour through a filter. Add fresh milk to taste and a teaspoonful of sugar to the cup. The key to the Indian filter coffee story seems to be searching out the best coffee powder. If you would like to try some strong filter coffee powder from India follow the link. You will note that you will have to convert to Rupees to make payment.
Indian Filter Coffee
Kaapi – Premium Quality South Indian Strong Filter Coffee Powder by Cafe Madras is available online from Mumbai, India.
Add a Little Variety to Your Coffee
This is the last of our current series of types of coffee articles. Please feel free to re-read about Turkish coffee, Cuban coffee, liqueur coffees and the rest. There may be standards for how to make any of these coffee buy your standard should be what tastes the best to you. Try a few different ways to make coffee and always think organic!
Keurig Coffee Maker Recall
USA Today just announced Keurig recalls for more than 6.6 million coffee makers in the USA. The model is K10 and the ID number starts with 31. The issue is burns.
Keurig Green Mountain is recalling about 6.6 million MINI Plus Brewing Systems in the U.S. and 564,000 in Canada following burn reports, according to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
The model number is K10 and recalled brewers have an I.D. number starting with “31,” according to the safety commission on Tuesday.
“They are single-serve, hot beverage brewers and were sold in 13 different colors,” the commission reports.
The reason? There were about 200 reports of hot water coming out of the brewer made by the Waterbury, Vt. company, including 90 reports of burn-related injuries.
The machines were sold from December 2009 through December 2014 at a cost of approximately $100.
Customers are instructed to contact Keurig for a free repair of their machine.
The problem is that the system can spray out hot water and cause burns for the user.
McDonald’s Hot Coffee All Over Again?
According to Forbes the coffee machines have resulted in a couple hundred cases of spraying and at least 90 reported burns.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission on Tuesday announced a recall of Keurig’s Mini Plus Brewing Systems, citing concerns about water that can overheat during the brewing process, spraying out and burning consumers. Keurig GMCR -2.53% has received about 200 reports of hot liquid escaping from the brewer, including 90 of those that said they suffered burn-related injuries.
Keurig makes its money selling individual serving coffee but reliable machines are essential for sales. This situation is reminiscent of hot McDonald’s coffee and a famous jury verdict of $2.7 in punitive damages because the company did not take steps to remedy a recurring problem. In this case Keurig’s is taking prompt action and apparently no other coffee makers are causing this problem.
Keurig
Keurig Green Mountain is a publicly traded brand of coffee. Their headquarters are in Waterbury, Vermont/ USA. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Green Mountain Coffee Roasters, Inc., and is best known its individual serving K-Cups. Keurig Green Mountain offers more than 100 different coffee selections, including certified organic, Fair Trade Certified, estate, specialty blends and flavored coffees. Coffee is sold as the company’s brand and as Newman’s Own Organics brands. Keurig stated as a small café in Vermont and has grown to a $2.3 Billion company. Coca Cola has a ten percent stake in Keurig Green Mountain. The name Keurig as added because the company sells Keurig coffee makers.
Coffee Maker Burns
The leading link in Google for espresso machine burns is to a lawyer. Any machine with pressurized hot water is a potential for burns. Mishandling an espresso machine can leader to burns as any barista knows. The issue for the user is to know how to use the machine. The issue for coffee maker manufacturers is to produce a machine that is as nearly injury proof as possible and to fix any problems as they arise. This seems to be the case with the Keurig coffee maker recall.
Café de Olla
There is a traditional way to make coffee in Mexico. The coffee is made in a clay pot, thus the name, pot coffee, café de olla. The drink is made with ground coffee, cinnamon and unrefined whole cane sugar called piloncillo in Mexico and panela in most of the rest of Latin America. The preparation is reminiscent of making Turkish coffee in that the ingredients are all cooked together. Our decided preference is to make this with healthy organic coffee.
Café de Olla
How to Make Café de Olla
Traditionally you use a ceramic pot for this drink but for starters a sauce pan will do just fine
4 cups of water
3 ounces of panela or piloncillo
half a stick of cinnamon, preferable Mexican
4 tablespoonsful of ground coffee
Make café de olla in a sauce pan or ceramic pot on the stove top. Grind your coffee just before you start. Add water, cinnamon and panela to the sauce pan and simmer until the panela is dissolved. This takes just a few minutes. Bring the water to a boil. Add the coffee. Turn off the heat. Stir briefly and then put a cover on the sauce pan. Wait five minutes and pour the coffee through a filter or strainer into cups to serve.
Café de Olla de Liqueur and More
Café de olla can be a nice base for a liqueur coffee. Use Kahlua. In addition this is a traditional drink made in all parts of Mexico and there are lots of local variations including the addition of anise or cloves. Feel free to experiment once you get the basic recipe correct.
What to Eat with Café de Olla
If you are going to do it right you should drink café de olla with a Mexican meal. Mican cooking is a mixture of European (Spanish) and Central American. The basics are corn, beans and chili peppers from the Aztec side and beef, pork, chicken, goat, dairy products and European herbs and spices from the Conquistadores. If you are just looking to drink a little café de olla with a touch of dessert there are lots of dishes to choose from. Here is the list.
Alegrías
Arroz con leche, rice with milk and sugar
Bionico, a type of fruit salad with cream
Buñuelos
Cajeta
Capirotada
Carlota de limón
Champurrado
Chongos zamoranos
Churros
Coyotas
Dulce de leche
Empanadas
Flan
Glorias
Jamoncillos
Jarritos (spicy tamarindo candy in a tiny pot)
Leche Quemada
Obleas
Pastel de queso, cheesecake
Pastel de tres leches (Three Milk Cake)
Pepitorias
Platano
Polvorón
Rosca de reyes
Gorditas de azúcar
Tacuarines, Biscochos, or Coricos
The point being that there are lots of good things to eat with a cup of café de olla. Make sure to look or organic ingredients along the way. As with all coffee based drinks the quality starts with the best coffee so look for organic. Grind just before you make the coffee and store your coffee in a cool and dry place.
Cold Brewed Coffee
On a hot day you might like to enjoy a cold brew, cold brewed coffee that is. Cold brewed coffee is steeped in room temperature or even cold water for half a day. It can be served cold or hot. Cold brewed coffee is not iced coffee, which is regular coffee poured over ice to make a cool drink. Cold brewed coffee has to do with the process and not the temperature at which it is served. Additional ingredients to cold brewed coffee include extra water, milk, and chocolate.
Why Cold Brewed Coffee?
Cold brewed coffee is about two thirds less acidic than expresso or percolator coffee. It has to do with extracting caffeine and healthy antioxidants but less acid using a slow, cool extraction process. Basically the coffee just diffuses out of the ground beans over a few hours.
Making Cold Brewed Coffee
Our preference is to start with organic coffee, preferably one of the Colombian organic coffee brands. Grind the beans but coarse and not fine like you would with expresso. Ideally use bottled water and not chlorinated from the tap. If you do use tap water pour the water into a pitcher and allow to sit for several hours to let the chlorine evaporate from the tap water. Grind four and half ounces (1 ¾ cup) of coffee. Add three and a half cups of cold water to a two quart pitcher and then the coffee grounds. Cover, place in the refrigerator and forget for a dozen hours.
Serving Cold Brewed Coffee
The rap against iced coffee is that pouring hot brewed coffee or even espresso over ice typically results on dilute albeit cold coffee. Cold brewed coffee is often stronger than regular coffee. Before serving pour the coffee through a filter or use a French press to remove the coffee grounds. Add a little water if the coffee is too strong for your taste and a little ice if you want it to be colder. Many folks add milk, sugar, chocolate or even liquor making it cold brewed liqueur coffee. This is an ideal drink for a hot summer day but works well in front of a roaring fire in winter as well. From our liqueur coffee article here is a list of liqueurs and how to make.
Name of Liqueur Coffee and Liqueur Used
Gaelic coffee: (Drambuie or Glayva)
Irish Coffee: (Whiskey)
Brandy Coffee: (Brandy)
Keoke Coffee: (Brandy and Kahlúa)
English Coffee: (Gin)
Calypso Coffee: (Tia Maria or Kahlúa and Rum)
Jamaican Coffee: (Tia Maria & Rum)
Shin Shin Coffee: (Rum)
Baileys Irish Cream Coffee
Monk’s Coffee: (Bénédictine)
Seville Coffee: (Cointreau)
Witch’s Coffee: (Strega)
Russian Coffee: (Vodka)
Priest Coffee: (Brennivín)
Corfu Coffee: (Koum Quat liquor)
Kaffee Fertig: (Coffee: with Swiss prune schnapps)
Caffè corretto: (grappa, brandy or Sambuca)
Making Cold Brewed Liqueur Coffee
- Use a clear liqueur coffee glass and pre heat it
- Add 25 ml of liqueur of choice
- Mix in one teaspoonful of raw cane sugar, preferable organic
- Make Cold Brewed Coffee As Described
- Fill the glass to one inch from the top with coffee
- Add slightly whipped cream, pouring over the back of a spoon so that it layers over the top of the coffee and liqueur mixture
Macchiato, Mazagran and Mélange Coffees
Three interesting coffee beverages are macchiato, mazagran and mélange. All are best made with healthy organic coffee. Here is a bit of info about each of them.
Macchiato
The name of this coffee drink means stained. It is essentially espresso with just a dash of foamed milk. It is similar to but stronger than a cappuccino. Milk is foamed directly into the espresso cup and the espresso is added. Cocoa is usually sprinkled over the top. A long macchiato has two shots of espresso and a little extra water and a short macchiato has one shot of espresso and less water.
Mazagran
This is a cold coffee drink. It came from Algeria where it is served in a tall glass. Mazagran consists of coffee poured over ice with the addition of various amounts of sugar, rum, lemon or extra water.
Mélange
This is a popular drink in Europe, particularly the Netherlands, Austria and Switzerland. It originated in the 1700s as a café drink in Austria and is often called Wiener Mélange, Wein being the German word for Vienna. Make mélange by combining equal amount s of espresso and steamed milk plus milk foam.
Always Organic
Our preference is for organic coffee and or all organic ingredients. For help finding organic ingredients visit this link. Like organic coffee, other organic foods are certified by the United States Department of Agriculture, the USDA. If you are in doubt about where to find organic ingredients follow the links on the organic ingredient site. If you are in doubt about what constitutes an organic food or drink read the excerpt from the USDA web site.
Start with Espresso
Most coffee beverages are variations on coffee house coffee and start with espresso. Espresso is very concentrated coffee that retains a lot of dissolved as well as suspended solids from the roasted coffee bean. It is made by forcing steam (boiling water) through fine ground coffee. It has a thicker feel because of the suspended solids and foam because of the pressurized steam. Espresso concentrates the flavors of coffee and is served in a small cup, usually an ounce (30 cc). A cup of espresso typically has between 40 and 75 milligrams of caffeine while a standard cup of percolated coffee contains about twice this much but in an 8 ounce cup. Thus coffee house coffee espresso is about four times more concentrated than the cup of coffee that you had a home for breakfast. Because espresso contains more coffee per ounce also contains more organic coffee antioxidants if you insist on organic for your espresso.
Here are the basic coffee house coffees made from espresso.
Americano
Americano is a coffee house coffee made from espresso and diluted with water. This goes back to the World War II era and after when GI’s who were used to Mom’s home perked or boiled coffee asked the barista to add water to their espresso to make it less strong. Think “weak espresso.”
Breve and Latte
Both of these are made with espresso and foam. Latte is made with steamed milk and breve is made with half and half. For latte think “coffee with milk” or café au lait and for breve think “coffee with milk and cream.”
Cappuccino
Cappuccino is made with espresso plus hot milk plus lots of steamed foam.
Mocha
Mocha is for coffee and chocolate lovers. It is made with espresso plus chocolate syrup plus milk.
Coffee in Vietnam
Vietnam is the second greatest coffee producer in the world. Only Brazil grows more coffee. But Vietnam grows primarily Robusta coffee as opposed to Arabica coffee grown throughout the Americas. Robusta coffee has more coffee per bean and is a more bitter coffee than Arabica. Thus when you ask for coffee in Vietnam you always get it with a layer of sweetened condensed milk layered on top. The drink is very strong and very sugary. Coffee in Vietnam is served hot or cold.
History of Coffee in Vietnam
Coffee was introduced to Vietnam in 1857 when the French were the colonial masters of French Indochina (Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos). The costal highlands that run the length of this 1000 mile long country are ideal for coffee production. Vietnam was reunified in 1975 at the end of the French colonial period and then the Vietnam War. The government promoted coffee production and exports. By the 21st century coffee was only surpassed by rice as a Vietnamese export. The World Bank was instrumental in providing financing to coffee farmers as well as other farmers in Vietnam. Growers in other coffee growing nations blame the recurring excess of coffee supplies on the World Bank and its efforts. Nestle gets much of the caffeine for its various drinks from Vietnamese robusta coffee beans. Vietnam currently produces about 1.7 million tons of Robusta coffee a year.
Drinking Coffee in Vietnam
In Vietnam as in other nations of the world coffee is a social drink. There are coffee shops and coffee is served in restaurants. Coffee is made with a phin, a small cup with a filter chamber to catch the grounds. Grounds are added to the phin and hot water is poured in. the coffee drips into your cup. This is done at the table so you get to wait and watch it happen. Add sweetened condensed milk and you are ready to enjoy coffee in Vietnam. Additional additives to coffee in Vietnam beside condensed milk are eggs, yogurt, butter and cheese. In the capital city of Hanoi a traditional drink is egg coffee which is egg yolk, coffee powder, sweetened condensed milk , butter and cheese. The drink is served hot.
Here is a photo of a Vietnam coffee maker, a phin. Click on the image for more info.
The Caffeine in Your Soda, etc.
The majority of coffee in Vietnam is used to provide caffeine for various caffeinated beverages but not coffee. Nescafe instant coffee is made with robusta coffee beans, primarily from Vietnam. Nestle is a major buyer of Vietnamese coffee but so are other makers of caffeinated drinks. Other major growers of Robusta coffee for this purpose are Indonesia and Brazil.
Drinking Your Coffee in Vietnam
Vietnam is a beautiful country and as time has passed since the Vietnam War many Americans have come back, peacefully, to visit. The cities are bustling and the countryside is gorgeous. You can sit in a café and drink your Robusta coffee with sweet and condensed milk or with some of the other more exotic ingredients. Getting around usually requires air travel as there is no interstate system connecting this thousand mile long country from top to bottom.
Galão, Guillermo or Green Eye Coffee?
Here are three coffee house coffee variations with espresso as the base. Galão is from Portugal and only takes one shot of expresso. Guillermo includes slices of lime and two shots of espresso. Green eye is also known as Triple Death as it starts with regular coffee and adds three shots of espresso. Here are instructions for how to make Galão, Guillermo or Green Eye Coffee.
Galão
Galão can be made with one part espresso and three parts foamed milk but it can also be made with one part espresso and one part foamed milk. The first way to make Galão is served in a tall glass and the second called meiia de leite is served in a coffee cup.
Make espresso with healthy organic coffee. Foam the milk with hot steam as you would with latte. Add the espresso.
Guillermo
You can make Guillermo hot or cold and with or without milk. Make the espresso as you normally world. Slice up a lime and put in a coffee cup. Pour the espresso over the limes and enjoy. For the cold variety add lime slices and ice to a tall glass and then pour in the espresso, two shots. Add a touch of milk if you desire.
Green eye
Green eye is also known as triple death because it contains a LOT of coffee. Use one of the excellent Colombian organic coffee brands to make a strong dark roast coffee. Using the same coffee make a triple shot of espresso. Add the triple shot of espresso to the dark roast coffee in a tall cup and enjoy.
How Much Caffeine Do You Need?
Coffee has lots of health benefits and several of these are a direct result of the caffeine in coffee. But, you do not necessarily need to drink all of your caffeine at one sitting. Thus our preference of the three coffees lists is the Galão. It only requires a shot of espresso and comes nicely mixed with foamed milk. Our second choice is the Guillermo with the unique addition of lime. Our preference for an all-night drive across the entire country is Green Eye.
Many Ways to Prepare Coffee
There are many ways to prepare coffee. Here are a few with links to articles about history and preparation.
Turkish coffee
Touba coffee
Café Medici
Black tie coffee
Café Bombón
Rüdesheimer kaffee
Eggnog latte
Liqueur coffees
To these you can add Galão, Guillermo and Green Eye Coffee.
Always Organic
Always remember that organic coffee is better. It is free of the more than 100 impurities found in regular commercial coffee and is better for the environment. Look for certification by the USDA, Rainforest Alliance or UTZ on the label. Organic coffee differs from regular coffee in several aspects. The soil in which organic coffee is grown must have been verified as free from prohibited substances for at least three years. In addition there must be distinct boundaries between land on which organic coffee is grown and land where pesticides, herbicides, and prohibited chemical fertilizers are used. This guarantees that drift of substances sprayed or otherwise applied on adjacent land will not contaminate the organic plot of land. Organic coffee certification includes the adherence to a specific and verifiable plan for all practices and procedures from planting to crop maintenance, to harvest, de-husking, bagging, transport, roasting, packaging, and final transport.