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Slurping brings flavor to the fore
By By Alica P. Thiele
Challenger reporter
Challenger reporter
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EmailNovember 20. 2009 6:00AM
As a fresh cup of Ethiopian ground coffee was set in front of her, Nancy Fees dipped her spoon into the dark broth and then slurped loudly.
“Pretty darn good,” she said.
And all at the table slurped with her.
The group was at a coffee cupping, a one-day coffee tasting class offered as one of the Brandon Valley Community Education classes. Brandon residents Marge and Pat McClanahan taught the class.
They roast coffee under the Covenant Roasters label, which they sell through their Web site and at Sunshine grocery store. They also offer their coffee to groups for use as fundraisers.
At the Nov. 3 class, the couple taught their cupping class how beans are grown, processed and roasted, and how beans grown in different regions of the world each have their own distinct flavors.
“Coffee is a very complex taste,” Pat McClanahan said. Coffee has about 850 elements that contribute to its flavor. Compare that to only half as many taste elements in wine, and you can see how interesting coffee can be, he said.
The McClanahans, who both are seminary students, started roasting beans as a hobby, doing only a day’s worth of beans at a time in a hot air popcorn popper. Later, they got more serious and began to roast on a larger scale. The couple has visited a coffee plantation in Guatemala and has learned about coffee from other professionals.
During the Nov. 3 coffee cupping, each student smelled the aroma of the dry grounds before water – at 190 to 200 degrees, please – was added. As the loose grounds rose to the top, they formed a soft crust. After waiting for the coffee to steep, cuppers broke the crust with their spoons, and then they started slurping.
Slurping is the standard way of tasting coffee. It allows the coffee to coat every taste bud, and the inhaling action allows aromas to exert their full effect.
Mary Goheen said she wasn’t self-conscious at all about slurping her coffee. “I teach middle school,” she said, “so nothing embarrasses me.” She said her husband, Bob, is a serious coffee drinker and was most enthusiastic about attending the cupping.
Not surprisingly, the cuppers had different reactions to the various coffees tasted, which included coffees from Brazil, Mexico, Guatemala and Ethiopia. Pam Leonard liked the Mexican best. “It had a smoother taste to me,” she said. Leonard said she has a cup of coffee first thing every morning and drinks about eight cups a day. Typically she drinks Folgers but enjoyed the more exotic varieties at the cupping.
The McClanahans use a French coffee press at home to bring out the best flavor in their coffees. They recommend using 2 tablespoons of grounds per 8 ounces of water. And they take their coffee in its purest form – black.
Each cupping participant took home a half-pound of Covenant Roasters coffee to enjoy later.
“We’re having a lot of fun roasting and selling and doing stuff like this,” Pat McLanahan said.
“Pretty darn good,” she said.
And all at the table slurped with her.
The group was at a coffee cupping, a one-day coffee tasting class offered as one of the Brandon Valley Community Education classes. Brandon residents Marge and Pat McClanahan taught the class.
They roast coffee under the Covenant Roasters label, which they sell through their Web site and at Sunshine grocery store. They also offer their coffee to groups for use as fundraisers.
At the Nov. 3 class, the couple taught their cupping class how beans are grown, processed and roasted, and how beans grown in different regions of the world each have their own distinct flavors.
“Coffee is a very complex taste,” Pat McClanahan said. Coffee has about 850 elements that contribute to its flavor. Compare that to only half as many taste elements in wine, and you can see how interesting coffee can be, he said.
The McClanahans, who both are seminary students, started roasting beans as a hobby, doing only a day’s worth of beans at a time in a hot air popcorn popper. Later, they got more serious and began to roast on a larger scale. The couple has visited a coffee plantation in Guatemala and has learned about coffee from other professionals.
During the Nov. 3 coffee cupping, each student smelled the aroma of the dry grounds before water – at 190 to 200 degrees, please – was added. As the loose grounds rose to the top, they formed a soft crust. After waiting for the coffee to steep, cuppers broke the crust with their spoons, and then they started slurping.
Slurping is the standard way of tasting coffee. It allows the coffee to coat every taste bud, and the inhaling action allows aromas to exert their full effect.
Mary Goheen said she wasn’t self-conscious at all about slurping her coffee. “I teach middle school,” she said, “so nothing embarrasses me.” She said her husband, Bob, is a serious coffee drinker and was most enthusiastic about attending the cupping.
Not surprisingly, the cuppers had different reactions to the various coffees tasted, which included coffees from Brazil, Mexico, Guatemala and Ethiopia. Pam Leonard liked the Mexican best. “It had a smoother taste to me,” she said. Leonard said she has a cup of coffee first thing every morning and drinks about eight cups a day. Typically she drinks Folgers but enjoyed the more exotic varieties at the cupping.
The McClanahans use a French coffee press at home to bring out the best flavor in their coffees. They recommend using 2 tablespoons of grounds per 8 ounces of water. And they take their coffee in its purest form – black.
Each cupping participant took home a half-pound of Covenant Roasters coffee to enjoy later.
“We’re having a lot of fun roasting and selling and doing stuff like this,” Pat McLanahan said.
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Marge McClanahan pours hot water over coffee grounds during a coffee cupping, or tasting, class at Brandon Valley High School. Mary Goheen (left) and Pam Leonard were among participants who learned about the roasting process during the community education class. Photo by Alica P. Thiele |  |
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