The Alton Brown of Coffee.

The Alton Brown of Coffee.

Many of us love the over-the-top food science presented by Alton Brown. I stumbled upon a guy who did the same thing for coffee in a TedX video. Chandler Graf describes the science of coffee in order to help viewers understand coffee in both an approachable and scientific way.
 
Have you ever stood in front of a bunch of coffee bags trying to decide which one you may like? It's not that different than standing in a wine store, many simply choosing the one with the nicest label (which frequently turns out to be awful, ironically). So how do you choose which type of coffee bean you like? It's probably best to know where coffee comes from and what, in general, are their common properties.
 
Coffee is grown basically around the Equator between the Tropic of Cancer and Capricorn (ok, go ahead and get out your 7th grade geography book if you must).  This is where the cherry (yes, coffee is like the pit of a cherry) is grown, harvested and washed or dried in preparation for shipment to people like me to roast and sell.
 
Where the coffee is grown, the ground characteristics (again, like wine) helps the coffee takes on different qualities that change the aroma and flavors. And while it depends on the elevation of the farm and how the coffee bean has been naturally (dry) or washed processed can change its characteristics, each region/country shares some general qualities that could help you decide what you may like. Chandler helps put all of this into perspective for you.
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