A nice gift of beans, but how best to use them?

[EclipseRedRing]

I have just received four 1kg sealed bags of beans, two of which are shown below. All I know is that the beans were grown and roasted 'recently' on a small farm in the Philippines and two are labelled arabica and two robusta. I will try them individually at first and then possibly blend them, and that leads to my question. I will mix the beans in small amounts to experiment rather than the whole bags, but in what ratio of arabica to robusta? Would you mix the beans together and then grind, or grind them separately and then mix the grounds? Any help or advice appreciated

 

[StillShaving]

Regarding mixing, I think either approach is fine. I would personally mix them before grinding, probably mixing them at 50-50 ratio, or whatever ratio you think will if taste best.

Hope you enjoy th the coffees.

 

[Multum in parvo]

What kind of coffee are you drinking now and how are you preparing it? Most supermarket stuff is 100% Arabica (higher acidity, fruity notes, less caffeine) Robusta has darker, nutty chocolate notes and a higher caffeine percentage.

You could start with 90/10 Arabica/Robusta and work your way up.

 

[EclipseRedRing]

I normally buy Lavazza Espresso Italiano Classico 100% arabica beans in 1kg bags, grind them two days worth at a time, and then use a Delonghi Dedica coffee maker. My grinder is just a blade chopper, not even a burr grinder. A pretty basic setup but I like it. I will take your advice and start with more arabica than robusta and go from there. Thank you.

 

[TexLaw]

Most supermarket stuff is 100% Arabica

Actually, a lot of the supermarket coffee has a large amount of robusta. Maxwell House is 100% arabica, and some supermarket brands have some 100% arabica varieties, but a lot of the "basic" versions (and some other "specialty" versions) still have significant robusta. Folger's never gives away their secret sauce, but everyone knows they hit the mark somewhere around 50/50, give or take. I think Café Bustelo uses a good deal more robusto.

Basically, they all have robusto in them unless they state "100% Arabica."

@EclipseRedRing, I'd weigh the beans separately and then grind them together. If nothing else, it's easier to deal with the whole beans than the grounds. Futzing around with the grounds like that can get messy. No matter what you do, only grind what you are just about to brew.

As for ratio, you certainly have enough to play with! Without knowing how the beans were roasted, it's a little hard to give very good advice, but we can try. If you want a profile something along the lines of Folger's (hopefully, a fresher version), go with something around 50/50. The idea of 90% arabica should give you something far smoother and less bitter.

Honestly, I'd have some real fun and brew 100% batches of each. I say "batches" because I don't know how you brew. No matter, it could be interesting and, perhaps, enlightening to see what its like (and what you like).

 

[Star_Wahl_Clipper_Treker]

To be honest, I used to drink Foldiers ground coffee everyday of my life, up until several years ago that is. I don't know what Foldiers did, but it was clear that they changed their coffee formulation. Because suddenly the coffee flavor was much weaker, and didn't matter how many grounds I used, I could not get the coffee stronger, with a richer flavor.

It was then, that I switched to buying coffee in whole beans, not from Foldiers of course, it was the super market's house blend. What a world of difference that was! All the sudden I went from weak tasting coffee, to richer tasting coffee, with a good solid strong kick to it! This is the coffee that I have been drinking for many years now.

Most recently however, since getting a Hamilton Beach 49987 single serve brewer, I got into Kirkland's Signature medium roast 100% Arabica bean coffee, already grounded for my convenience. And I can tell you right now, that I absolutely love the rich and smooth flavor of this coffee. It literally mops the decks with Foldiers its so tasty lol.

 

[BanjoCowboyMartaTobes]

To be honest, I used to drink Foldiers ground coffee everyday of my life, up until several years ago that is. I don't know what Foldiers did, but it was clear that they changed their coffee formulation. Because suddenly the coffee flavor was much weaker, and didn't matter how many grounds I used, I could not get the coffee stronger, with a richer flavor.

It was then, that I switched to buying coffee in whole beans, not from Foldiers of course, it was the super market's house blend. What a world of difference that was! All the sudden I went from weak tasting coffee, to richer tasting coffee, with a good solid strong kick to it! This is the coffee that I have been drinking for many years now.

Most recently however, since getting a Hamilton Beach 49987 single serve brewer, I got into Kirkland's Signature medium roast 100% Arabica bean coffee, already grounded for my convenience. And I can tell you right now, that I absolutely love the rich and smooth flavor of this coffee. It literally mops the decks with Foldiers its so tasty lol.

View attachment 1474388

Man is gifted random beans.
Man makes 4 decent cups and the 5th is stupendous.
Man get hooked on YouTube videos and buys an Aeropress and a scale.
Man buy Baratza Encore burr grinder.
Man buys Behmor 1600 roaster.
Wife is happy. Life is good lol.

Gotta remember wife is happy and not hate the buddy who gave you good beans and made…..forced you to spend lots of money. Enjoy, I hope you get some excellent cups sir!

 

[mikhou]

Man is gifted random beans.
Man makes 4 decent cups and the 5th is stupendous.
Man get hooked on YouTube videos and buys an Aeropress and a scale.
Man buy Baratza Encore burr grinder.
Man buys Behmor 1600 roaster.
Wife is happy. Life is good lol.

Gotta remember wife is happy and not hate the buddy who gave you good beans and made…..forced you to spend lots of money. Enjoy, I hope you get some excellent cups sir!

Sounds like the guy who got into DE shaving to “save money.”

 

[EclipseRedRing]

I have tried the Filipino Arabica beans first and compared to my usual Lavazza they lack a little body although the flavour is pleasant enough - my wife says it tastes like the coffee her Father makes. One thing I have noticed is that the aroma of the beans in the bag, and also of the ground coffee, is much stronger than my usual beans and fills the entire home with coffee scent. I wonder if that is a result of the beans being roasted quite recently compared to my usual Lavazza, which I assume could have been roasted many months before reaching my cup.

 

[EclipseRedRing]

I have now tried the Robusta beans and they have a noticeably different, and stronger taste. My initial thoughts are that I prefer the Arabica but according to my wife they are double the price of the Robusta which I do not think justified. I suspect that the strongly flavoured Robusta will improve the Arabica when blended 50/50 with it as I found the latter to lack a little body. I note the Robusta bean shown on the right below is darker and smaller than the Arabica bean, with a more oily coating. An interesting and enjoyable experiment.