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。

 

Shukan Flavor No. 122/週間フレーバーNo. 122

 

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。

 

Shukan Flavor No. 121/週間フレーバーNo. 121

 

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。

*********************************************************
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。

Which One to Recommend, Kono, Hario, or Matsuya/コーノ、ハリオ、松屋式のうちどれを奨めるか

In Shukan Flavor No. 80/週間フレーバーNo. 80, Nakagawa-san talks about Kono and Hario equipment, in response to questions/comments.

At around 59:30, he shows two Kono drippers. He says that they easily get cracked.
See the video at around 59:50. He says this is the problem with the plastic.
In contrast, Hario drippers won't get cracked after longtime use. See the video at around 1:00:20.
At 1:00:40, he says that Kono's idea that the extraction is done with the middle-to-bottom ribs is basically correct.
At 1:01:18, he says that Hario's dripper, which has top-to-bottom ribs so that it pulls water right from the top, is not quite right.
At 1:01:37, he says he recommends the Matsuya method, but if someone asked me which of Kono and Hario he recommends, he would recommend Kono. But Hario is less expensive, so he might recommend Hario.
In response to a comment, he shows a Hario paperless dripper at 1:02:23. He says he doesn't recommend it. He once got one to experiment it, and found it was no good. He hasn't used it since then.
Shukan Flavor No. 80/週間フレーバーNo. 80では、質問・コメントに応えて、コーノとハリオの器具について語ります。

59:30頃、コーノのドリッパーを二つ見せます。ひびが入りやすいそうです。
59:50あたりを見てください。プラスチックの問題だそうです。
それと比べて、ハリオのドリッパーは長く使ってもひびが入らないそうです。1:00:20あたりを見てください。
1:00:40、抽出は真ん中から下のリブで行うというコーノの考えは基本的に正しいと言っています。
1:01:18、上までリブがあり、上から水を引っ張るハリオのドリッパーは、あまりよくないそうです。
1:01:37、中川さんは松屋式を奨めるが、コーノとハリオのどちらを奨めるかきかれたら、コーノを奨めるそうです。ただハリオのほうが安いので、ハリオを奨めるかもしれないそうです。
コメントに応えて、ハリオのペーパレスドリッパーを1:02:23に見せます。奨めはしないそうです。実験するために一つ買ったが、「あかん」（よくない）と思い、それから使ってないそうです。

One-Cup Brewing with the Matsuya Method/松屋式一杯だし

Shukan Flavor No. 53 is about one-cup brewing with the Matsuya method.
週間フレーバーNo. 53は松屋式の一杯だしについてです。

Shukan Flavor No. 53/週間フレーバーNo. 53

Again, the Japanese version is omitted to save time.
時間節約のため和文は省略します。

At 2:27, Nakagawa-san says that with the Matsuya method, water control is everything.
It is difficult to do one-cup brewing with the Matsuya method, and Nakagawa-san will never teach you how to do it unless you have mastered five-cup brewing with the Matsuya method.
He first does five-cup brewing, using 50 g coarsely ground coffee (10 g per cup), to make "reference coffee". The idea is to approximate one-cup brewed coffee as closely to this reference coffee as possible by using all of three measures:
1. Use more coffee beans (15 g instead of 10 g),
2. Grind coffee beans more finely (7.5, for example, instead of 9 for Flavor Coffee's mill)
3. Pour water more thinly.
At 30:45, Nakagawa-san starts digging a hole.
At 33:25, he starts pouring water very thinly for murashi (steaming).
At 39:05, he starts pouring water for brewing. The water flow is very thin again. He makes sure that he doesn't pour water near the circumference.
At 40:00, he dilutes the coffee with just a small amount of water.
Despite the extra 5 g of coffee beans, the resultant coffee is slightly less strong than the reference coffee.
At 41:04, he shows one-cup brewed coffee (right) and the previously made reference coffee (left).
At around 41:40, he says that he has brewed nearly 100 cc coffee (instead of 120/2 = 60 cc). Otherwise, he couldn't get the (necessary) flavor.
On the one-cup brewing page
http://www.flavorcoffee.co.jp/fla-49.html
of Flavor Coffee's site, he writes:
Stop brewing when you get 50 to 70 cc coffee. (Determine this amount by yourself by trying as many times as necessary.)
(I think you can now imagine how difficult one-cup brewing with the Matsuya method is. It's difficult even for Nakagawa-san!)
At around 43:08, Nakagawa-san says that the two brews taste different, and "sadly", the reference coffee tastes better.
In response to a request, Nakagawa-san decides to do one-cup brewing with a very fine grind.
At 50:07, Sae-chan shows the coarse grind (grind level 9), usually used for 5-cup brewing.
At 50:22, she shows the fine grind (2).
At 52:06, Nakagawa-san starts pouring water for murashi.
At 52:52, he says he doesn't want to do one-cup brewing because it's tough to do.
At 53:43, he starts explaining the cautions when using a fine grind:
With such a fine grind, you can get strong coffee, but that also means that zatsumi (miscellaneous (unpleasant) flavors; off-flavors) will be extracted sooner. You have to determine when zatsumi start to be extracted. To do so, Nakagawa-san asks Sae-chan to taste coffee while he is brewing.
At 56:48, he starts pouring for brewing.
At 57:00, 57:05, and 57:10, he tells her to taste.
At 57:15, he says that astringency will start to emerge soon.
Sae-chan agrees, saying, "It doesn't taste good any more."
He stops brewing. The amount of coffee is less than 100 cc.
At 58:04, he explains in detail. In summary, with a finefind grind, one-cup brewing with the Matsuya method becomes even more difficult, and it's easier to brew coffee if you use a medium grind because you can delay the extraction of off-flavors.

***
As for me, I have never tried one-cup brewing with the Matsuya method. I'd rather use 5 g more coffee beans to do 2-cup brewing. Anyway, I haven't mastered the Matsuya method yet, and I'm not qualified to try one-cup brewing.
私自身は松屋式の一杯だしを試したことはありません。コーヒー豆をもう5 g使って、二杯だししたほうがいいと思います。ともかく、まだ松屋式をマスターしてないので、一杯だしを試す資格はないです。

How to Pour Water/お湯のさし方

Shukan Flavor No. 48 is about how to pour water.
週間フレーバーNo. 48は、お湯のさし方についてです。

Shukan Flavor No. 48/週間フレーバーNo. 48

In this post, the Japanese version is omitted to save time.
この記事では、時間節約のため和文は省略します。

Nakagawa-san starts by saying how important water control is with the Matsuya method, then he declares that he will make Sae-chan, the female assistant, into a professional who could run a coffee house. She admits not having tried it (the Matsuya method).

Nakagawa-san makes all the preparations necessary before pouring water.
At 9:30, Sae-chan starts pouring water for murashi (steaming), as guided by Nakagawa-san only verbally.
At 13:40, she starts pouring for brewing. Nakagawa-san tells her to try not to cause bubbles to form as much as possible. She says that it looks like the coffee grounds are moving about considerably.
At 15:10, he dilutes the coffee, and at 15:50, she tastes it.

Nakagawa-san then explains what it means to pour water.
At 15:15, he starts pouring water into a wine bottle. He artistically does so. The amount of water flow must be constant. This is the first technique Sae-chan has to master.
First, he explains how to hold a drip pot.
At 18:52, he tells her to hold a pot in a usual way, and she holds it firmly. With this way of holding a pot, you have no other way but to use your wrist to control water. He takes out two sheets of tissue paper to show her a proper way. See how he holds a pot at around 19:30. One advantage of this way is that when you put strength to your thumb and little finger, the pot starts to tilt to let the water flow out and when you release the strength, the flow stops. Thus, you can control water with your fingers only, without using your wrist. He says that human fingers are tireless.

He then starts explaining a proper attitude when holding a pot.
At 20:28, he tells her to stand at ease first and then raise her arm to form a right angle. Then he tells her to raise the elbow so that the pot becomes parallel (to her body?). At 20:49, he says that the legs should be shoulder-width apart.
At 21:02, Nakagawa-san suddenly pushes her by the shoulder, and she almost falls backward. He tells her to put her hand on her hip to lower the center of gravity. At 21:13, he pushes her again, but now she is more resistant.
At 21:27, he tells her to pour water, without watching the spout. She has to watch the top of the bottle instead. He tells her not to use her wrist.
At 22:09, he indicates the point where the water flow changes into drops, and explains that if the position remains constant, that means that the amount of water flow is constant.
At 22:36, he says the she can already pour water in a stable manner, and Sae-chan replies that her arm is shaking.

Usually, trainees have to do this exercise for a much longer period of time, but Nakagawa-san moves on to the next exercise because he has to make Sae-chan into a professional in an hour.

At 23:30, Nakagawa-san starts explaining the second technique: moving the drip pot in a circular motion.
At 23:40, he shows one of the easiest ways to do so: moving it with your wrist. With this way, however, the amount of water flow is not constant. With the Matsuya method, water control is important, so this way should be avoided. At 24:00, he demonstrates a proper way. At 24:30, he pours water along the rim of a Japanese teacup.
At 26:24, he explains that you may think that to move a pot in small circles, you only need to move your arm, but with this way, you can't move it smoothly. At 26:45, he says that you must imagine yourself moving a large pestle, a bat, or something similar, in large circles first, by moving your shoulders. Make the circles smaller and smaller, but make sure your shoulders still move.
In summary, you have to use your armwrist and shoulders, without using your wrist, when moving the pot in a circular motion.
At 28:39, Sae-chan starts the exercise. At 28:56, Nakagawa-san points out that she is moving the pot with her arm only, and her left shoulder is not moving.
At 29:20, he takes the pot away from her and tells her to form large circles. At 29:30, he points out that her left shoulder is now moving.

At 33:06, Nakagawa-san points out that the point at which the water flow turns into drops goes upward when Sae-chan moves the pot near her, and explains why. When she moves the pot near her, her wrists goes upward, decreasing the amount of water flow. To keep the amount constant, she has to put (extra) strength to her thumb when moving the pot near her.
(I wonder if this problem happens to everyone.)
At 34:32, Nakagawa-san tells her to stop the exercise.
Sae-chan says her shoulder aches.

At 38:40, Nakagawa-san starts demonstrating how to pour water.
Start pouring at the center. The flow must be thin. Don't rush. Do it slow.
At 44:32, he starts pouring for brewing.
Start pouring at a midpoint between the center and the circumference. The flow must be thick and you have to move the dripper quickly until the coffee starts dropping into the server. Then move to the center and start moving the dripper in a circular motion. Always stop pouring at the center.

At 53:40, Sae-chan starts pouring.
At 54:28, Nakagawa-san says that the coffee grounds have bloomed fine, just like a bun.
At 58:24, she starts pouring for brewing.
At 59:07, he says that no bubbles are formed this time.

At 1:01:30, Sae-chan compares the two brews, and confirms the latter one is better. Nakagawa-san explains why. For the first brew, the coffee grounds moved about, and in particular, the water flow was thick in the murashi process, so large bubbles were formed. For the second brew, she took care so that the coffee grounds did not move about in the murashi process, and in brewing, she raised the water level to such a level at which bubbles were not formed. This difference resulted in such a difference in flavor.

At 1:04:30, Nakagawa-san says that to become a professional, you only need to improve little by little. Keep in mind the sure way to make flavorful coffee, and keep on exercising.

***
Now you know how important water flow is with the Matsuya method. I can't say that I have mastered the two techniques described above, and I'm still learning.
これで松屋式ではどれほどお湯のコントロールが大事かが分かったと思います。私も上述したテクニックをマスターしたとは言えず、まだ勉強中です。

Shopping in Nagaoka/長岡で買い物

Today, I went to Nagaoka by train. My main purpose was to go to the school festival held at my son's high school, but I was looking forward to doing some shopping in Nagaoka.

It's a one-hour ride from Shiozawa Station to Nagaoka Station, and I bought these on my way to Shiozawa Station to quench my thirst.

今日は長岡に電車で行きました。主な目的は息子の高校の文化祭に行くことでしたが、長岡で買い物をするのを楽しみにしていました。

塩沢駅から長岡駅までは１時間なので、塩沢駅に行く途中で、渇きを癒すため、こんなのを買いました。

Roots Aroma Black (black coffee with no sugar) and Black & Black (gum).

Roots Aroma Black（無糖のブラックコーヒー）とBlack & Black（ガム）。

This particular canned coffee is quite drinkable. (Ten years ago, almost all canned coffee brands were hardly drinkable.)

この缶コーヒーは、かなり美味しいです（10年前は、ほとんどすべての缶コーヒーは飲めたものではなかったです）。

 

I had Yasuda Yogurt soft-serve ice cream in the food court in the Nagaoka station building. As I mentioned previously, the best soft-serve ice cream I've ever had.

長岡の駅ビルにあるフードコートでヤスダヨーグルトのソフトクリームを食べました。前にも述べたように、今まで食べた中で一番美味しいソフトクリームです。 

250 yen.

250円です。

 

I had no food at the school festival. I'm still on a diet. Last year, I had just a lot of foods at the festival as I described here.

文化祭では食べ物は何も食べませんでした。まだダイエット中です。去年はここで述べたように色んな食べ物を食べましたが。

 

At the supermarket in the station building, I bought these:

駅ビルのスーパーでは、こんなものを買いました：

Potato snack and Aki Aji (Autumn Flavor) beer.

ポテトのスナックと秋味ビール。

 

This particular brand is available around this time of year.

この銘柄は一年のうち今頃しか買えません。

Here are some of the items I bought in Nagaoka.

長岡で買った物の一部です。

 

At Marcian (bakery), I bought bread called Dan.

マルシャン（パン屋）では、暖というパンを買いました。

Good enough, but I still prefer Muku.

美味しいですが、無垢のほうが好きです。

 

Wines, green coffee beans (Brazil), roasted coffee beans (Mocha), Lotus biscuits, and prunes.

ワイン、コーヒーの生豆（ブラジル）、焙煎したコーヒー豆（モカ）、ロータスビスケット、プルーン。

Close-up of the green coffee beans:

生豆のクローズアップ写真：

I will roast them myself.

自分で焙煎するつもりです。

 

Bag containing Mocha coffee beans:

モカのコーヒー豆が入った袋： 

This particular bag explicitly says that you transfer the beans in an air-tight glass jar and store in the freezer.

この袋には、気密性のあるガラスビンに移し、冷凍庫に入れると書かれています。

 

Lotus Biscuits:

ロータスビスケット：

 

Very good!

とても美味しいです！

Dimensions of the 5-Cup Wire-Frame Dripper/５人用金枠ドリッパーの寸法

For those of you who wish to try the Matsuya method of brewing coffee, here are the approximate dimensions of the 5-cup wire-frame dripper available from Flavor Coffee.

松屋式のコーヒーの淹れ方を試してみたい人たちのために、フレーバーコーヒーで売っている５人用の金枠ドリッパーのおよその寸法を紹介します。

 

The stainless steel wire has a diameter of 2 mm, except the four bent segments, which has a diameter of 1 mm.

ステンレスのワイヤの直径は2 mmで、曲がった４つの部分のワイヤの直径は1 mmです。

 

 

 

Matsuya Coffee's Genuine 5-Cup Dripper vs. Flavor Coffee's Version of the Same Dripper/松屋コーヒーの純正５杯用ドリッパーとフレーバーコーヒー版のドリッパー

Matsuya Coffee sells their original wire-frame drippers for 3, 5, 10, and 20 cups, as well as accompanying paper filters for 3, 5, 10, and 20 cups.
松屋コーヒーでは、３、５、10、20人用の金枠ドリッパー、および３、５、10、20人用の紙フィルターを販売しています。
Page listing filters and drippers/フィルターとドリッパーのページ

Flavor Coffee also sells Matsuya's original wire-frame drippers for 3, 5, 10, and 20 cups, among others.
フレーバーコーヒーでも、３、５、10、20人用の金枠ドリッパーなどを販売しています。

Page listing drippers, dome-shaped lids, etc./ドリッパー、ドーム型のふた等のページ

It is important to note that the wire-frame dripper for 5 cups available from Flavor Coffee differs from the genuine one available from Matsuya Coffee.
フレーバーコーヒーで売っている５人用金枠ドリッパーは、松屋コーヒーで売っている純正のものとは異なることに留意してください。

In, Shukan Flavor 53, Nakagawa-san explains why his dripper differs.
週間フレーバー53では、中川さんがその違いを説明しています。

Shukan Flavor 53/週間フレーバー53

At 21:27, he shows the 3-cup dripper.
At 21:41, he compares the 3-cup dripper (right) with the 5-cup dripper available from Flavor Coffee.
At 22:00, he compares the 3-cup dripper (right) with the genuine 5-cup dripper available from Matsuya Coffee.
At 22:15, he shows that the 3-cup dripper fits in Kalita's 300-ml server.
At 22:24, he shows that the genuine 5-cup dripper doesn't fit in the server.
At 22:25, he shows that Flavor Coffee's version fits in the server.
At 23:00, he compares Flavor Coffee's version (right) with the genuine one.
He explains that these portions (four vertical segments) are bent (inward).
At 23:38, he places a 1-cup (2- or 3-cup, I suppose) filter in the genuine 5-cup dripper.
At 23:55, he places the filter in the Flavor Coffee's version.
He explains one great advantage of FC's version: For a small amount of coffee grounds like 20 g, you can get a greater height of coffee grounds than the genuine one, so you can get stronger coffee.
21:27、３人用ドリッパーを見せます。
21:41、３人用ドリッパー（右）をフレーバーコーヒーで売っている５人用ドリッパーと比較します。
22:00、３人用ドリッパー（右）を松屋コーヒーで売っている純正の５人用ドリッパーと比較します。
22:15、３人用ドリッパーがカリタの300 mlサーバーにフィットすることを示します。
22:24、純正の５人用ドリッパーはそのサーバーにフィットしないことを示します。
22:25、フレーバーコーヒー版はサーバーにフィットすることを示します。
23:00、フレーバーコーヒー版（右）と純正品と比較します。
この部分（４本の垂直部分）が（内側に）曲がっていると説明します。
23:38、１杯用（２、３杯用だと思います）のフィルターを純正の５人用ドリッパーに入れます。
23:55、そのフィルターをフレーバーコーヒー版に入れます。
フレーバーコーヒー版の大きな利点を説明します。20 gなど少量のコーヒーの粉では、純正品よりも粉を高くできるので、より濃いコーヒーを淹れられます。

In summary, if you get a 5-cup dripper from Flavor Coffee, you can use it to brew 1-5 cups of coffee, and you need not get a 3-cup dripper.
まとめると、フレーバーコーヒーから５人用ドリッパーを購入すれば、それで１～５人分のコーヒーを淹れられます。３人用のドリッパーは必要ありません。