September 7, 2013

Liberian Coffee/リベリカ種のコーヒー

The latest edition (Sep. 4) of Shukan Flavor is titled "Revenge! Roasting Liberian Coffee".
週間フレーバーの最新版(9/4)のタイトルは「リベンジ!リベリカ種を焙煎する」です。
 
 
In last week's edition (Aug. 28) of Shukan Flavor, Nakagawa-san attempted to roast Colombian coffee beans first and then Liberian beans, using a milk can roaster, to compare the two varieties, but he failed to roast them.
先週(8/28)の週刊フレーバーでは、中川さんは、ミルク缶焙煎機を使って、まずコロンビアを焙煎し、次にリベリカ種を焙煎し、この二つの品種を比べようとしましたが、焙煎に失敗しました。
 
 
In the latest edition, Nakagawa-san explains why he failed, starting at around 2:40. The cause was the characteristics of the high-power portable gas stove he used for roasting: No flames are generated from the center, and when you move the milk can roaster up and down above the stove, the flames will escape sideways.
最新版では、2:40頃から中川さんが失敗の原因を説明します。焙煎のために使った高出力の携帯用のガスコンロの特性が原因でした。中央から炎が出ず、コンロの上でミルク缶焙煎機を上下に振ると、炎が横に逃げるそうです。
 
This time, he uses his commercial roaster to roast Liberian coffee beans.
At 39:10, he starts to show the beans roasted for 3, 6, 9, 12, 15 (first crack), and  18 minutes (end of roasting). Changes for 3 minutes from 15 to 18 minutes are very remarkable.
今回は商売用の焙煎機を使ってリベリカ種を焙煎します。
39:10に、3、6、9、12、15(1ハゼ)、18(焙煎終了)分間焙煎した豆を見せます。15分から18分までの3分間の変化がとてもすごいです。
 
At 52:20, in response to a comment, Nakagawa-san says that those who wish to drink this coffee are requested to place an order for beans by mail order, and he will offer some as a giveaway. He adds that he will offer it as beans even if you request it to be ground.
52:20に、コメントに応えて、中川さんはこのコーヒーを飲みたい人は通販で豆を買ってくれれば、おまけとしてつける、と言います。また、粉がいいと言っても、豆のまま送るとも言っています。

At 54:26, he starts explaining the two characteristics of Liberian coffee beans he has found: The beans have not expanded as much as he expected, and when brewing, he found that gas was released very fast.
54:26、中川さんが見つけた、リベリカ種の二つの特徴を説明します。豆が思ったほど膨張しなかったことと、コーヒーを淹れる時に、ガスがとても速く抜けたということです。

At 59:00, he starts explaining the flavor of Liberian coffee. First of all, he says it's "drinkable". It's a bit like tea, it has sweetness, but the aroma is a little weak.
59:00、リベリカ種の味を説明し始めます。まずは「飲めますよ」と言い、ちょっとお茶のような感じで、甘さもあるが、香りは少し弱いそうです。

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I ordered some Mocha beans to get some of the Liberian coffee beans as a giveaway.
このリベリカ種のコーヒー豆をおまけとしてもらおうと、モカを少し注文しました。

Compare the Liberian beans (left) with Mocha beans.
リベリカ種(左)とモカを比べてください。 
I don't have a coffee mill, so I used my Milser (small blender) to grind the Liberian beans.
私はコーヒーミルは持っていないので、ミルサー(小さなミキサー)を使って、リベリカ種を挽きました。
There is no way I can grind them coarsely.
とても粗挽きにはできません。 
In the murashi (steaming) process, it took 15 seconds until the coffee started dropping into the server. Usually, it takes only about 7 seconds.
蒸らしの段階で、コーヒーがサーバーに落ち始めるまで15秒かかりました。通常は7秒程度しかかかりません。

Coffee grounds, after 3-minute murashi:
3分の蒸らし後のコーヒーの粉:  
 I transferred the initial liquid to a glass, and started pouring water for brewing.
最初の液をコップに移し、 抽出のため水をさし始めました。
It took me about 3 minutes to brew 600 ml (or maybe around 400 ml) of coffee.
600 ml(もしかすると400 ml程度)のコーヒーを抽出するのに3分程度かかりました。 
First three cups of coffee:
最初の3杯: 
Even the first cup tasted bitter!
最初の一杯でさえ苦かったです。

Last three cups of coffee:
後の3杯: 
I tasted all of the six cups one at a time, and I mixed the first three cups together.
6つ全部、一つづつ味見して、最初の3杯を一緒にしました。  
I tasted it, found it was quite bitter yet drinkable, and diluted it with an equal amount of water.
味見すると、かなり苦いですが、飲めます。同量のお湯で薄めました。   
I also mixed the last three cups together, tasted it, and found it was not good. I later dumped it down the sink.
後の3杯も混ぜて、味見しましたが、美味しくなかったので、後で流しに捨てました。

11 comments:

  1. I always wanted to share this video with you
    http://vimeo.com/60080191
    He uses a Hario timer and scale, can, dripper...even in Berlin...
    The german descriptions are quite easy to read:
    - rinse can and dripper with hot water
    - weigh coffee beans (12 g / 200 ml water) and grind at medium grade (Hario hand mill)
    - add coffee to dripper
    - pour 50 ml water, temperature 95C
    - after 30 seconds refill (make sure the coffee stays still wet) while pouring slowly slowly in circles, - refill again and again until 200 ml water has been poured.

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  2. Kiki: Thanks for the link, but quite frankly, there is not much to see in the video except the fact that Hario products seem to be popular even in Berlin.

    Brewing coffee with the Matsuya method is like making dashi from kombu and katsuobushi. The techniques are different, but the aim is the same: extracting flavorful components while keeping in unflavorful components. For kombu, the aim is achieved by soaking a sheet of kombu in cold water for a long time first, then heating the water, and removing the kombu before the water comes to a boil. For katsuobushi, the aim is achieved by putting in boiling water for a short time without stirring. No one would want bitter, cloudy dashi. For coffee, the aim is achieved by 3-minute "murashi" (steaming) first and then brewing while keeping the "hitahita" (barely covered) state by controlling the water flow carefully.

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  3. Hmmmm...sounds like you did not like the Liberian coffee at all...thats sad Hiroyuki ...Why was it so bitter ?..Was it a bad roast/ too dark roast ?....or was it just bad coffee ...No wonder its free :-)

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  4. Dan: It's not that I didn't like it. After I diluted it with an equal amount of water, I found it was quite drinkable.
    The bitterness was my fault, I suppose. I was unable to grind the beans coarsely.

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  5. whats the manufacturer name of your grinder/milsner ? Though not coarse enough I see the grinds are fairly consistent in size ..Is it a japanese make ? This can be used when you travel I guess and can be used to grind spices....btw I have emailed Nakagawa-san and have cced you in th email ...

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  6. Dan: Milser is a product name, and it's a product of Watatani, a Japanese manufacturer. It may not be apparent from the photos, but the coffee grounds are NOT consistent in size!

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  7. Hiroyuki ...I purchased a hario mini mill ( ceramic burr grinder ) about 12 months back and its a ceramic/conical burr grinder and its better than a blade grinder ..Its very very very good for fine grinds for making espresso ...But at coarse grind settings its not that great as its a little bit inconsistent and produces "fines" but still million times better than a blade grinder...Its easy on your wallet too as its not very expensive and I like it a lot ..Just a thought ...Other grinders like Porlex with the same functionality are a little expensive ...I think grind size/consistency is of PARAMOUNT IMPORTANCE and the most important tool kit a serious coffee lover can invest in his arsenal is a good burr grinder which many people tend to overlook ...Its just simple ...Bad grind = Bad coffee ...:-) ..Grind size matters even more when one uses full immersion brew methods like french press , as the "fines" tend to make a bitter brew ...But the drip brewing mechanism is a bit more forgiving I guess as we use paper ..

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  8. Dan: Thanks for your suggestion. I have this particular model in mind:
    http://www.fujiko-ki.co.jp/mill/r220.html
    Millkko (sp?) R-220
    This is a small-size version of the R-440
    http://www.fujiko-ki.co.jp/mill/r440.html
    (used in Flavor Coffee and many other coffee shops in Japan).

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  9. wow ..that grinder looks really like a good commercial grinder...looks like I can buy it here in the US as well ...But unfortunately is out of my league and is kinda pricy ...around $500.00 ...maybe cheaper in japan ..not sure ...

    http://www.amazon.com/high-performance-Standard-Black-Fuji-R-220/dp/B000TIMX8K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1378957807&sr=8-1&keywords=fuji+royal+r220

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  10. Dan: It's around 32,000 yen in Japan. Kalita's Nice Cut Mill is much cheaper (around 15,000 yen).
    Compare the two products:
    Millkko:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MgmoM6dIJOc
    Nice Cut Mill:
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0TmDRvkIh_g

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  11. Both of the grinders looks really good ..and for just home use I guess they might last your whole life time ! as they seem to be built very strong ....Not sure why the fuji is almost double the price of kalita...But I guess both are very good products ...I dont think I have seen or heard both these grinders in the US Market ...For home use most folks prefer Baratza vario or Baratza preciso ...But your grinders looks like they are built like a tank and comparatively cheaper to products here in US.. ...The same products here might cost more than 100,000 yen here ...

    ReplyDelete