How coffee beans are roasted can have a huge impact on the taste of the coffee in the cup. There is no perfect roast, however, different beans can greatly benefit from different roasting techniques and degrees of roast. Thus the art of roasting and the never ending quest for the perfect cup of coffee.

Lighter roasts, often referred to as a cinnamon or light city roast, produce a sharp and acidic taste. Medium roasts, such as City or Full City, generally bring out more flavour in coffee and is a popular middle-of-the-road choice of roasting styles today.

Darker roasts, such as light french, espresso, and French have a fuller flavour often with caramel overtones and with a bittersweet tang developing.

Very dark roasts, such as Italian, dark French and Spanish have a smoky and often burnt-like flavour. The darker the roast the less likely you are to taste the flavour nuances of the coffee and the more likely the char of the bean.

DEGREES OF ROAST

ACIDITY
Acidity is generally desirable in coffee. It has nothing to do with heartburn! Acidity is the tartness, the tang, and the snap which one feels in the back of the mouth. It provides a bright, clear vibrant quality. Low acid coffees such as Sumatra tend to have a flat taste. High acidity, as in Ethiopian coffee, is called winey taste. Aged coffee from India or Bali may be sweet or mellow. Brazilian coffees are prized for their "right" amount of acid, called richness. The darker the roast the less the acidity, which is why dark roasts often taste flat. 'High' and 'low' acidity are relative terms: all coffee is low on the acidity scale - an apple is more acidic than a cup or coffee!

BODY
No coffee is 'heavier' than another, but many somehow feel heavier in the mouth. This is body. It is the heaviness, thickness and richness that the tongue perceives. Coffee from Indonesia, especially Sumatran, is heavier and has good body. Central American coffees tend toward a lighter body. The best Brazilians are in the middle. With light-bodied coffees the flavour is delicate - one should never add milk. Brewing with too little coffee or too coarse a grind will also result in too light a body.

AROMA
This is a combination of acidity and flavour. Aroma comes from the perception of of the gases released during the brewing cycle. Aroma is greatest in the middle roasts but is quickly overpowered by carbony smells in dark roasts. Low acid coffees smell 'flat', richly-flavoured coffees smell, well, richly-flavoured. Some coffees are more fragrant than others. For the most aroma, Sumatran and Colombian are ideal.

FLAVOUR
Flavour can he described endlessly. It is the overall perception in the mouth. Flavour, above all else, is what coffee is all about. Some drinkers enjoy a very distinctive flavour, as in a earthy Ethiopian or chocolaty Yemen coffee. Sumatran coffee has a rich flavour. Brazilian coffee is sometimes preferred because it has no real distinctive flavour but blends well. Some wild or mellow coffees have little acidity or tang but do have good body. On the other end of the scale are harsh coffees (often canned, supermarket coffees containing some robusta) . These may be sharp and unpleasant but sometimes a bit of harsh coffee in a otherwise bland blend brings out certain flavour characteristics.

Professional coffee tasters use terms that are in a class of their own - hidey, sour, muddy, grassy, musty, muddy and fermented! These terms are often used for the lowest grades of coffee.

CAFFEINE
Possibly the most important thing to know about coffee and caffeine is that the strength of a coffee's taste has little to do with how much caffeine it contains! While caffeine has a slightly bitter taste, our perception of strength comes basically from the degree of roast (the darker the "stronger") and the ratio of coffee to water used during the brewing process that creates the actual strength of the coffee.
Caffeine content for an 8 ounce cup of coffee can range from 90 to 250 mg. depending on the types of coffee used in the blend and strength of the coffee. Caffeine varies between the two main species of coffee. Arabica coffees (most gourmet coffees) contain about 1% caffeine by weight in green form, Robusta coffee, often found in canned, supermarket blends can have double the caffeine content of the Arabica coffee beans in the display bins next to it!
Caffeine content of a 1-1/2 ounce cup of espresso will range from 90 to 120 mg., but also is dependent on the type of coffee used in the blends and strength of the brew.
The roasting process alters caffeine very little. It is readily water-soluble at temperatures above 170 F and consequently is fully released into the finished beverage during brewing.

DECAFFEINATION
There are three basic methods of extracting caffeine and three "agents of decaffeination". Some of the terms, methods and names are interchangeable, to confuse matters more.
A great deal of confusion and rumour surrounds the various methods used. Their safety and effectiveness are worth examining in some detail. All methods currently employed by the coffee industry carry no known or documented health hazards.

DIRECT CONTACT PROCESS
This is the original decaffeinating process and still widely employed. The green beans are first softened by steam for about 30 minutes. Then they are repeatedly rinsed - for about 10 hours - with methylene chloride solvent that soaks through the beans (comes in direct contact with the bean). Caffeine in the beans is drawn out, and bonds with the solvent, leaving the coffee 97 - 99% caffeine free. The solvent is drained off, the beans are steamed a second time, for 8 to 12 hours, then heated and blown dry, evaporating all traces of the methylene chloride. Numerous tests of methylene chloride have not linked it to any known disorder.
Although methylene chloride can be used for this process, it is becoming increasingly popular to use another solvent - ethyl acetate. The use of this organic solvent, which is a natural derivative found in many fruits, including apples, peaches and pears, is often referred to as "natural-process" decaffeination.
It seems highly unlikely that even if some minute traces of solvent remained after decaffeination, that any trace of solvent could remain after roasting and brewing, since it vaporizes at 104 F. Coffee is roasted at over 400 F. for 15 minutes, then brewed at 200 F.
The U. S. Food and Drug Administration (F.D.A.) sets a limit of 10 parts per million of solvent traces in ground coffee. The primary direct contact decaffeination plant in the world, K.V.W. in Hamburg, Germany routinely delivers coffee with less than 0.1 p.p.m. of solvent. Independent labs testing K.V.W's coffee verify that often the coffee tests out at 5 parts per billion (2000 times less than the F.D.A. limit). This is before roasting and brewing.

INDIRECT CONTACT PROCESS
Unroasted coffee beans are steeped in hot water for a long period of time. Gradually, the water dissolves and draws out the caffeine, along with important flavour elements and oils in the coffee. The water is separated from the beans and treated with either methlylene chloride or ethyl acetate. The solvent absorbs the caffeine, which is then removed by the process of heat and evaporation. The water, containing only the flavour components found in coffee, is reunited with the coffee beans which absorb their original oils.
The indirect method of decaffeination - because of its use of water - is referred to by some roasters and retailers as "water-process" or "French water-process".

SWISS WATER PROCESS
Green beans are soaked in hot water for several hours until at least 97% of the caffeine is removed. The resulting solution, which contains caffeine as well as other essential coffee elements, is passed through activated charcoal or carbon filters to remove the caffeine. Then, as in other methods, the water is added back to the beans,which are then dried. Unfortunately, charcoal is less selective than other decaffeination agents, and as a result, removes more of the essential coffee oils. It is also the most expensive method, since the caffeine, unlike the other methods, cannot be recovered and sold separately as a component of soft drinks and medicinal products. Lastly the activated charcoal cannot be reused.

There is no "best" way to prepare coffee; each of us prefers one method to the others (for the record we live for espresso!). Coffee is an everyday part of our lives and it should fit our lifestyle and pocketbook. Making coffee is both a ritual and a practical part of life. Unlike tea or cocoa, coffee lends itself readily to many different ways of preparation. All of these methods share the same basic principle, which is to use very hot water to extract from the ground beans the natural oils that give coffee its wonderful aroma and flavour. The resulting brews described below, are all technically a coffee infusion.

THE FILTER METHOD
The drip or filter method is possibly the most widely used method today. Fine ground coffee is placed in a paper or reusable basket unit and nearly boiling water is poured on top. For best results, a small quantity of water should be poured on first to wet (infuse) the grounds. The resulting brew filters through the unit into a pot or mug and is ready to drink. The coffee grounds remain in the filter basket. There are electric versions, which automate this process, including heating the water, and in general make a better or more consistent cup of coffee than the manual version. The filter method is used especially in Germany, Canada and the USA.

THE PLUNGER POT/FRENCH PRESS/CAFETIERE
The plunger method (said to have been invented in the 30's) extracts the most flavour from the ground beans. Coarsely ground coffee is placed in the bottom of the pot, hot water is added to the grounds and stirred, then it is allowed to steep for three to five minutes, before the plunger is slowly pushed down to separate the coffee grounds from the coffee infusion. This method is only slightly less convenient than the filter method and is today one of the two fastest growing ways to make fresh ground coffee. Cheaper pot models have nylon rather than stainless steel mesh to separate the grounds from the infusion, but they do not last as long. Very fresh-roasted coffee (2 days or less) will produce a foaming action when made in the plunger pot (C02 is being released) and is one sure way to tell if the "coffee right out of the roaster" actually is.

ESPRESSO AND CAPPUCCINO
Espresso and its derivative cappuccino, invented in Italy, are the fastest growing methods of making coffee. All the other methods involve a 'natural' form of infusion, and for a small cost, you can have a system that will make acceptable coffee. Espresso machines, however, force the hot water through very fine, compacted coffee into the cups below. Good espresso is more expensive to make because in order to extract the greatest amount of flavour from the coffee, a high level of pressure is required (8-10 bar) and thus a high quality machine. When making espresso, it is important not to over-extract the coffee, which means that the entire process should take around 18 - 30 seconds. The 'crema' lies on top of the black coffee underneath and will tell you everything about the quality of the espresso. Too light, or too thick or too thin: all mean that the espresso is sub standard. A reddish-brown colour is perfect. Espresso can become like a religion to some people. And there certainly is a big difference between a good espresso and a not so good one. How much we spend in terms of money or energy in seeking out the best is one of those lifestyle choices we all make for ourselves. Espresso is the foundation of cappuccino and cafe latte. A good espresso is less obvious under a head of frothed milk, but the quality of the coffee underneath is still an important factor. The aim in steaming the milk is to aerate it and give it the consistency of whipped cream without burning it. The combination of frothed and steamed milk is then poured and ladled onto the coffee in the cup, gently as though folding it in. The small amount of remaining milk is poured in also. And there we have the perfect cappuccino.

THE MOKA-NAPOLETANA
No Italian home is without one or more mocha jugs of varying sizes, and no matter what you may think of the coffee, their visual appeal is undeniable. Wonderfully designed stovetop pots; they combine the characteristics of espresso and percolator coffee. They force the water, which has come to the boil in the lower chamber, up through a tube and then down through the finely ground coffee. Handled expertly they can satisfy coffee cravings and produce an adequate 'espresso type' coffee in under a minute. This is the same premise that many so-called electric "steam-driven" espresso machines use. It is not true espresso because of the lower pressure developed. These machines can be identified by the screw top through which the water is placed.

ARAB OR TURKISH COFFEE
Although the coffee bean spread from Arabia to the rest of the world, the Arab method of making coffee did not. There is a fundamental difference between the Arab and other methods: the Arabs boil their coffee, traditionally, three times. Boiling coffee boils away the most delicate flavours, but it is a romantic way to make strong-tasting coffee. Arab coffee is made in an ibriq, a small copper pot with a long handle. Two teaspoons of very fine (a powder) ground coffee plus one of sugar are added to a cup of water and the mixture is brought to the boil. The ibriq is taken off the heat as it comes to the boil, usually three times, and then it is poured out and drunk. A cardamom seed may be added for flavour. Only the very best coffee grinders can grind coffee into the powder required for this method.

THE PERCOLATOR
The coffee percolator was widely used throughout the western world, where, until the recent coffee 'revolution', it was a standard piece of equipment in most homes. The percolator heats the coarsely ground coffee and cold water so that it boils and bubbles up into the top of the unit. It is an excellent way to have the relaxing sound of the coffee liquid burbling and gurgling, and to waft the aroma of coffee through the home, as all the volatile wonderful flavours go out of the coffee and into the air! There is possibly no worse way to make fresh coffee than this.

CAMPFIRE COFFEE
This method of making coffee is the simplest of all. The coffee should be coarsely ground and added to nearly boiling water. It is somewhat like the plunger method, but without the convenience of the plunger to separate the coffee grounds from the infusion. A splash of cold water can be tossed in to help settle the grounds before serving.

INSTANT COFFEE
The first soluble "instant" coffee was invented in 1901 by Japanese-American chemist Satori Kato of Chicago. It was not marketed commercially until the launch of Nescafe in 1938. The quality and diversity of instant coffee have grown dramatically over the years, and it is possible to make an acceptable (to some) cup of coffee from today's products. Instant coffee actually has a few advantages over fresh brewed coffee besides ease and convenience. It stays fresher longer, it is hard to damage the flavour, however hard you try, and most of all it is fast, cheap and clean. Instant coffee is manufactured, just like any other coffee, from ground beans (but often the cheaper and more bitter Robusta). The first stage involves the preparation of a coffee concentrate from which the water is removed, either by heat (spray dried) or by freezing (freeze-dried), to produce a soluble powder or granules. During the process of dehydration, the coffee essences may be lost, but these are captured and returned to the processed coffee.

FLAVOURED COFFEES
While coffee connoisseurs may turn up their noses at the idea of spoiling the flavour of their sacred brew, flavoured coffees (and lattes) are often the first step for many new coffee drinkers and should be appreciated as such. There are also definitely moments when a chocolate or cinnamon flavoured coffee may be just right. Coffee is a wonderful taste itself, but also acts very well as the platform for many other flavours. Flavouring coffee is actually an old trick. In the Middle East, it is traditional to add cardamom to coffee, while the practice of adding cinnamon has been widespread in Mexico for many years. Flavours are usually added directly to the coffee beans just after roasting them, often by tumbling in drums to coat them with flavour. Another way to make a cup of flavoured coffee is to add syrup to brewed coffee. This makes an ideal summer coffee drink, which can be served cold, as can iced coffee which has been chilled with either, ice cubes or crushed ice. Although not always considered as a "flavour" the most important flavouring added to coffee the world over is milk. Although milk is not added to Arabian coffee, and coffee purists tend not to add milk, many people find coffee more palatable with its addition.

Now comes the unanswerable question: which is the perfect blend of coffee? This is like asking for the perfect performance of OthelIo, or the perfect sunset. It has no answer. Personal taste counts for everything. Taste and the occasion should be the primary factors. Dark roast, rich coffee for heavy meals with red wine. Lighter coffees for fish and white wine.

Some like their black morning coffee heavily acidic, light-bodied and mellow tasting. Others like brisk, light coffee with good body. Many prefer a darker roasted coffee these days with a caramel flavour. Others want an all-round coffee, best provided by a blend.

Here, then, are a few hints on coffee combinations:

A good middle-of-the-road combination of flavour, strength and aroma could be made almost entirely of South & Central American beans, which generally have a smooth body and an aromatic flavour. A stronger coffee with a rich bouquet might be a blend of high grade Brazilian and Ethiopian Harrar beans and darker roasted. By combining any of the lighter roasts, with either a light or dark french roast, one creates a Viennese blend. This combines all the taste superiority of the lighter roast with the hearty tang of the darker roast. Similarly, by adding a French Roast to Mocha Java, you might have the ultimate coffee, which is rich, strong and has an outstanding flavour.

On a general basis, the Central American coffees have a lot of snap and acidity. Tanzania and Sumatra add body and richness. Mexican and Guaternalan coffees add sweetness. For those who wart more sweetness and a unique flavour, search out an aged coffee such as Indian Monsooned Malabar or Bali Negara. Distinctive flavour and aroma comes from African, Indonesian and Colombian coffees. The rich, winey, almost chocolatey flavour comes from Ethiopian Mocha, Kenya, or, if you wish to splurge, Arabian Mocha (made with prized (and hard to find) North or South Yemen coffee).

When it comes down to it though, that great philosopher- and great coffee drinker- Fredrich Nietzsche has the last word. "All of Life", he wrote, "is a dispute over taste and of tasting".