Comments for Peoples Coffee http://peoplescoffee.co.nz Thu, 09 Feb 2012 03:54:18 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.1 Comment on Brewing it cold by Dan http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/brewing-it-cold/#comment-108 Dan Thu, 09 Feb 2012 03:54:18 +0000 http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/?p=1833#comment-108 Nice work team! Looking forward to trying one... Nice work team! Looking forward to trying one…

]]> Comment on Brewtown pops up by Dan http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/brewtown-pops-up/#comment-105 Dan Wed, 25 Jan 2012 20:25:33 +0000 http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/?p=1780#comment-105 Choice az Peoples! Keep up the yummy brew development... Apparently, some Constable St regulars think Brew Town is a rival coffee shop – having the nerve to open right next to Peoples Espresso Bar, and out of loyalty have ill will for it! Maybe pop a logo on the window somewhere... Choice az Peoples! Keep up the yummy brew development…

Apparently, some Constable St regulars think Brew Town is a rival coffee shop – having the nerve to open right next to Peoples Espresso Bar, and out of loyalty have ill will for it! Maybe pop a logo on the window somewhere…

]]> Comment on A caffeinated christmas by Eugene http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/a-caffeinated-christmas/#comment-60 Eugene Wed, 21 Dec 2011 23:39:20 +0000 http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/?p=1740#comment-60 Brilliant Brilliant

]]> Comment on Taking the plunge by René http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/taking-the-plunge/#comment-58 René Mon, 19 Dec 2011 00:56:05 +0000 http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/?p=1710#comment-58 Hi Hadassah, Thanks for your response, this was more aimed at the general home coffee maker, rather than the experienced barista geek (like yourself). Preheating your plunger is definitely a benefit, as we do want temperature to stay in the 85 - 95 range. I do it, and I do recommend it. But we thought there must come a time when the home coffee maker says "enough of all this geekery!" and it was dropped from the long list of preparation guidelines due to word limit constraints! I'm not sure (as a rule) if your "pushing with a spoon ... prevents an uneven extraction" or gives any more consistency than stirring, (as I'm sure it's possible to inconsistently stir, or push with a spoon!) But if the coffee is fully saturated, then great, thats the goal!! When I am making plunger it's usually a full and large plunger with 1 litre of water. The bloom makes the grinds overflow, so using half amount of water to start with stops this from happening, and allows a good stir without spilling. I do believe a short thorough stir (not aggressive) ensures complete saturation of grind, but should be kept consistent brew to brew. In my mind, the danger of stirring would be to cause over-extraction (as well as temperature loss), but I would rather take this risk and have all the grind thoroughly extracting from the beginning. Another way to ensure thorough saturation is to pour from a height onto the bed of coffee, this can be a great way of achieving saturation, but (as my shirts will attest) is sometimes messy. I believe for "pour over" (filter style), agitation has much more impact on extraction rate than in a plunger, as contact time is shorter, and there is a lot less water to coffee at any one time. So to this end I am much stricter on pour-over on this issue. My experiments give a drop in temp from 99 to 95 degrees during the 3 minute wait for the water to cool in jug before pouring onto coffee. Around another 10 degrees will be lost during brew, and will then be in the low 70s once it reaches the cup. I find coffee in the 60 degree range suitable to drink, and find the best flavours once it has cooled to the 40 degree range. As a rule, when experimenting, I simultaneously make one brew as per normal, and one test brew, and taste them "blind". Side by side comparison is the best way to gauge the preference in flavour differences between brews. At the end of the day, the goal is for it to taste good to you, using your brew equipment. Coffee geekery is great, but be warned, the more you dig, the deeper the hole gets. René Hi Hadassah, Thanks for your response, this was more aimed at the general home coffee maker, rather than the experienced barista geek (like yourself). Preheating your plunger is definitely a benefit, as we do want temperature to stay in the 85 – 95 range. I do it, and I do recommend it. But we thought there must come a time when the home coffee maker says “enough of all this geekery!” and it was dropped from the long list of preparation guidelines due to word limit constraints!
I’m not sure (as a rule) if your “pushing with a spoon … prevents an uneven extraction” or gives any more consistency than stirring, (as I’m sure it’s possible to inconsistently stir, or push with a spoon!) But if the coffee is fully saturated, then great, thats the goal!!
When I am making plunger it’s usually a full and large plunger with 1 litre of water. The bloom makes the grinds overflow, so using half amount of water to start with stops this from happening, and allows a good stir without spilling. I do believe a short thorough stir (not aggressive) ensures complete saturation of grind, but should be kept consistent brew to brew.
In my mind, the danger of stirring would be to cause over-extraction (as well as temperature loss), but I would rather take this risk and have all the grind thoroughly extracting from the beginning. Another way to ensure thorough saturation is to pour from a height onto the bed of coffee, this can be a great way of achieving saturation, but (as my shirts will attest) is sometimes messy.
I believe for “pour over” (filter style), agitation has much more impact on extraction rate than in a plunger, as contact time is shorter, and there is a lot less water to coffee at any one time. So to this end I am much stricter on pour-over on this issue.

My experiments give a drop in temp from 99 to 95 degrees during the 3 minute wait for the water to cool in jug before pouring onto coffee. Around another 10 degrees will be lost during brew, and will then be in the low 70s once it reaches the cup. I find coffee in the 60 degree range suitable to drink, and find the best flavours once it has cooled to the 40 degree range.
As a rule, when experimenting, I simultaneously make one brew as per normal, and one test brew, and taste them “blind”. Side by side comparison is the best way to gauge the preference in flavour differences between brews.
At the end of the day, the goal is for it to taste good to you, using your brew equipment.

Coffee geekery is great, but be warned, the more you dig, the deeper the hole gets.

René

]]> Comment on Taking the plunge by Jenny Ryan http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/taking-the-plunge/#comment-56 Jenny Ryan Sun, 18 Dec 2011 05:36:37 +0000 http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/?p=1710#comment-56 This is brilliant...have been weighing my coffee all week and it's been perfect every time. Do you reckon you could do a stovetop espresso post at some stage?? still struggling to make mine perfect. thanks! This is brilliant…have been weighing my coffee all week and it’s been perfect every time. Do you reckon you could do a stovetop espresso post at some stage?? still struggling to make mine perfect. thanks!

]]> Comment on Taking the plunge by Eileen Turnbull http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/taking-the-plunge/#comment-52 Eileen Turnbull Sat, 17 Dec 2011 04:33:19 +0000 http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/?p=1710#comment-52 Gold ! I always let the water cool down for 3 minutes (in the jug letting it cool to just over 90 degrees )before pouring into the plunger, otherwise It will taste burnt and bitter. Its simple,practical advise for everyone:) Ren being the wizard of coffee that he is, has nailed it .shot Gold !
I always let the water cool down for 3 minutes (in the jug letting it cool to just over 90 degrees )before pouring into the plunger, otherwise It will taste burnt and bitter.
Its simple,practical advise for everyone:)
Ren being the wizard of coffee that he is, has nailed it .shot

]]> Comment on Taking the plunge by Hadassah Grace http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/taking-the-plunge/#comment-48 Hadassah Grace Wed, 14 Dec 2011 22:28:41 +0000 http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/?p=1710#comment-48 Nice one. I much prefer to pour all the water in at once, then gently push the crust of grinds under the surface of the water with the back of the spoon. This prevents an uneven extraction, and reduces the chance of inconsistent brews, since it's hard to make sure you're stirring the same every time. Also, to measure your water, you'll either need to rest the whole plunger on top of a big set of scales, or pre-measure your water before pouring. I'm also a little sketchy about cooling the water down for a whole three minutes before pouring. I guess if you're keeping it in the jug, it might take that long to cool down, but the water will cool as you pour, and continue to cool as the plunger brews, and stirring aggressively will cause it to cool also. If you're leaving it a whole three minutes, the entire brew is likely to be less than optimal by the end of it. I'm usually much more concerned with keeping things hot, especially if you aren't going to pre-heat your plunger (which I assume you don't, since there was no mention of it). Nice one.
I much prefer to pour all the water in at once, then gently push the crust of grinds under the surface of the water with the back of the spoon. This prevents an uneven extraction, and reduces the chance of inconsistent brews, since it’s hard to make sure you’re stirring the same every time.
Also, to measure your water, you’ll either need to rest the whole plunger on top of a big set of scales, or pre-measure your water before pouring.
I’m also a little sketchy about cooling the water down for a whole three minutes before pouring. I guess if you’re keeping it in the jug, it might take that long to cool down, but the water will cool as you pour, and continue to cool as the plunger brews, and stirring aggressively will cause it to cool also. If you’re leaving it a whole three minutes, the entire brew is likely to be less than optimal by the end of it. I’m usually much more concerned with keeping things hot, especially if you aren’t going to pre-heat your plunger (which I assume you don’t, since there was no mention of it).

]]> Comment on Taking the plunge by Lizz http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/taking-the-plunge/#comment-47 Lizz Wed, 14 Dec 2011 08:44:17 +0000 http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/?p=1710#comment-47 Phew - and now Im thinking I better go and buy these scales! Phew – and now Im thinking I better go and buy these scales!

]]> Comment on Trouble brewing in fair trade by Ian Agnew http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/trouble-brewing-in-fair-trade/#comment-46 Ian Agnew Sun, 11 Dec 2011 20:49:36 +0000 http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/?p=1646#comment-46 This is a great blog post - we have been talking about the direction that Fair Trade has been taking for some time. The comments from Geoff White are spot on. Fair Trade the "badge" is now bigger than the philosophy behind it. As consumers we have stopped asking questions and become much too dependent on labels and badges to reassure us, whether it is Fair Trade, organic, etc. We need to focus on businesses that trade fairly and have ethics at the heart of their business values - not just profit for shareholders. We have set up the Black Gold Foundation (www.blackgoldfoundation.org) to promote these issues and promote the conversation about what trade and trade justice should be. Please encourage people to join the debate. Well done for this post. This is a great blog post – we have been talking about the direction that Fair Trade has been taking for some time. The comments from Geoff White are spot on. Fair Trade the “badge” is now bigger than the philosophy behind it. As consumers we have stopped asking questions and become much too dependent on labels and badges to reassure us, whether it is Fair Trade, organic, etc. We need to focus on businesses that trade fairly and have ethics at the heart of their business values – not just profit for shareholders. We have set up the Black Gold Foundation (www.blackgoldfoundation.org) to promote these issues and promote the conversation about what trade and trade justice should be. Please encourage people to join the debate. Well done for this post.

]]> Comment on Trouble brewing in fair trade by Fairtrade ANZ http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/trouble-brewing-in-fair-trade/#comment-45 Fairtrade ANZ Fri, 09 Dec 2011 03:03:22 +0000 http://peoplescoffee.co.nz/?p=1646#comment-45 As a pioneer of the fair trade movement Geoff White is right when he says “producers need to determine where fair trade goes, because it’s for their benefit”. That belief lies at the very heart of the Fairtrade Certification system. Fairtrade recognises developing country farmers and producers as partners in creating fairer trade systems globally. Producers groups are part owners in the system, and are involved in managing Fairtrade International (FLO) strategy and standard setting through consultation with the three producer networks who represent the 1.2 million farmers and workers in the Fairtrade system. While Fairtrade ANZ regrets the decision by Fair Trade USA to leave the global Fairtrade system, we along with Fairtrade International and other Fairtrade initiatives around the world remain committed to working with smallholder farmers organised through cooperatives, and to ensure that this decision does not adversely affect producers wishing to sell into the Fairtrade market in the US. Underpinning the Fairtrade Certification system is the fact that small-scale farmers and workers in developing countries are very capable of being responsible for their own destiny when empowered to do so. Fairtrade Certification recognises this and is unique in enabling developing country farmers and workers to create a better future for themselves. Fairtrade empowers farmers and workers in developing countries to trade their way out of poverty through providing fair & stable minimum prices as well as the additional Fairtrade Premium. Fairtrade empowers them to democratically decide amongst themselves what these additional funds will be invested in – whether they are social, environmental and business development projects. In empowering developing country farmers and workers to do this, the importance of independent certification remains vital. As an independent, third party certification system, and not-for-profit organisation, Fairtrade ensures traceability throughout the supply chain and always puts producers at the forefront of the work it does. In addition, the confusion caused in the market place through green-washing and fair-washing also reinforces the need for independent certifiers. In a recent GlobeScan survey (commissioned by Fairtrade International) 76 per cent of Kiwi consumers stated that they believe independent, third party certification is the best way to verify a product’s social and environmental claims. We also know that New Zealanders have high expectations of companies dealing with farmers and workers in poor countries with 91 per cent believing companies should pay farmers and workers fairly. Choosing a Fairtrade Certified™ product remains an important way Kiwi consumers can ensure this happens for the more than 6 million people – farmers, workers, their families and communities in 58 countries – currently benefiting from the Fairtrade Certification system. As a pioneer of the fair trade movement Geoff White is right when he says “producers need to determine where fair trade goes, because it’s for their benefit”.
That belief lies at the very heart of the Fairtrade Certification system.
Fairtrade recognises developing country farmers and producers as partners in creating fairer trade systems globally. Producers groups are part owners in the system, and are involved in managing Fairtrade International (FLO) strategy and standard setting through consultation with the three producer networks who represent the 1.2 million farmers and workers in the Fairtrade system.
While Fairtrade ANZ regrets the decision by Fair Trade USA to leave the global Fairtrade system, we along with Fairtrade International and other Fairtrade initiatives around the world remain committed to working with smallholder farmers organised through cooperatives, and to ensure that this decision does not adversely affect producers wishing to sell into the Fairtrade market in the US.
Underpinning the Fairtrade Certification system is the fact that small-scale farmers and workers in developing countries are very capable of being responsible for their own destiny when empowered to do so. Fairtrade Certification recognises this and is unique in enabling developing country farmers and workers to create a better future for themselves. Fairtrade empowers farmers and workers in developing countries to trade their way out of poverty through providing fair & stable minimum prices as well as the additional Fairtrade Premium. Fairtrade empowers them to democratically decide amongst themselves what these additional funds will be invested in – whether they are social, environmental and business development projects.
In empowering developing country farmers and workers to do this, the importance of independent certification remains vital. As an independent, third party certification system, and not-for-profit organisation, Fairtrade ensures traceability throughout the supply chain and always puts producers at the forefront of the work it does.
In addition, the confusion caused in the market place through green-washing and fair-washing also reinforces the need for independent certifiers. In a recent GlobeScan survey (commissioned by Fairtrade International) 76 per cent of Kiwi consumers stated that they believe independent, third party certification is the best way to verify a product’s social and environmental claims.
We also know that New Zealanders have high expectations of companies dealing with farmers and workers in poor countries with 91 per cent believing companies should pay farmers and workers fairly.
Choosing a Fairtrade Certified™ product remains an important way Kiwi consumers can ensure this happens for the more than 6 million people – farmers, workers, their families and communities in 58 countries – currently benefiting from the Fairtrade Certification system.

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