When times are tough, some coffee lovers bypass shops and brew their own at home

McClatchy Newspapers

FRESNO, Calif. — The recession hasn’t been kind to you coffee lovers.

Faced with thinner wallets, fewer of you head to coffee shops for a daily fix. As a result, you’re buying coffee from supermarkets and local roasters, then trying to duplicate the experience at home.

“Sales at supermarkets are way up,” said Ryan Beckley, a co-owner of Mavericks Coffee House and Roasting Co. in Visalia, Calif. Maverick’s sells its roasted coffee at some Save Mart supermarkets in Fresno and Tulare counties, as well as at Whole Foods Market in Fig Garden Village.

Tazzaria Coffee & Tea in downtown Visalia also sees the trend. “Our bulk bean sales are way up,” co-owner James Jessen says. “People are taking the beans home and brewing their own. The economy has kind of driven that.”

The trend comes at a time when more folks than ever are picky about coffee. “They used to say, just give me drip or French press,” Jessen says. “Now they say, I want this single-origin coffee.”

To help these coffee lovers get the most out of their home-brewing experience, some roasters are holding classes.

Jo Ann Sorrenti, owner of Sierra Nut House in Fresno, Calif., does not charge students. She plays a video about coffee cultivation, then walks students through the process of making a great cup — from roasting to serving.

Of course, different roasters have different philosophies, so it pays to talk to a number of them. Here are some tips from the local ones. Shawn Steiman, a Hawaii-based coffee scientist and consultant, rounds out their advice.

How to buy coffee beans

For the best flavor, skip the big brands at the supermarkets. They’ll let coffee sit on the shelves for months.

You want freshly roasted products. Buy only enough coffee to last two to three weeks, since it degrades quickly.

“When you start to drink coffees that are three weeks old instead of two months old, you’ll eventually be able to tell the difference,” Steiman says.

Get these products directly from local roasters. If they stock other stores, ask how often they add new products. For example, Maverick checks its displays in Save Mart and other stores once a week, Beckley says. Anything roasted more than three weeks ago gets pulled off the shelves. Also, ask your roaster about a coffee’s flavor, acidity, aroma, aftertaste, and sweetness — all characteristics used by the coffee industry to evaluate products.

“Roasters should have an awareness of what their coffees taste like and how they differ,” Steiman says. They should also guide you to a roast you’ll enjoy. Some delicate coffees will have a more complex flavor at a lighter roast, while others will benefit from a darker roast.

Whole bean or ground?

A key decision while buying coffee is choosing whole bean or ground products. Ideally, you’ll want to buy whole beans, because they maintain their flavor far longer than ground coffee.

But, if you don’t know how to properly grind coffee, let your roaster do it.

Sorrenti recalls a time when she ground coffee too fine for her French press. It was so hard to push the plunger, she broke the glass.

She asks customers what brewing methods they use at home. Then she’ll choose a grind that fits their methods, as well as the coffee’s flavor.

If you prefer to grind your own coffee, then choose between two types of tools: the blade grinder or the burr grinder. Blade grinders are inexpensive, but they don’t grind the coffee as evenly as a good burr grinder, which costs upward of $100.

How important is the difference in flavor? It depends on your ability to taste it, Steiman says. “It might be subtle.”

How to store coffee

Roasters have a variety of opinions on this topic. Sorrenti, for example, refrigerates ground coffee for a week. “In a week’s time, it doesn’t lose flavor,” she says.

Jessen doesn’t like the refrigerator because food inside can transfer odors to coffee. He prefers storing coffee in an airtight container in a cool, dark area. Ground coffee will last for a week, while whole beans will last two to three weeks.

Or, if you freeze coffee, take out only what you need, let it come to room temperature, then brew it, Jessen says.

Scientists are just as varied in their opinions. “There is no definitive answer,” Steiman says. “We haven’t agreed on one.”

He recommends storing coffee in airtight packaging. Once you open the bag, transfer the coffee to an airtight glass or ceramic jar.

Ground or whole bean, drink it as quickly as possible. For some coffee, “floral and berry notes are there for a week and a half and then they just disappear,” Steiman says.

Ways to brew coffee

Steiman details 15 ways to brew coffee in “The Hawai’i Coffee Book: A Gourmet’s Guide from Kona to Kaua’i” (Watermark Publishing). Among them are the ever-popular automatic drip coffeemakers, French presses and cold-brew tools.

“They’re all good, but just different,” he says. “And different is not a bad thing.”

Most brewing methods require water heated between 195-205 degrees. But you don’t have to use a thermometer to get a good cup.

For example, when using a French press pot, Steiman boils water until it bubbles vigorously, takes it off the heat, and waits about 20-30 seconds before brewing coffee.

He does find that automatic drip coffeemakers often don’t bring the water to a high enough temperature. His recommendation: Buy a Technivorm. They can cost upward of $200, but “it’s an awesome brand,” he says.

Drip coffeemakers also bring up the question of which filters to use: gold, stainless steel, white paper or brown paper. Some folks, such as Sorrenti, can taste the chemicals from white paper in her coffee. She likes the gold filters because they last a long time, and they don’t impart off flavors.

Also experiment with the amount of coffee and water. A good starting point is the Specialty Coffee Association of America’s recommendation of .46 ounces of coffee for 8 ounces of water.

“I play around daily with that,” Steiman says. “Go up and down as you like.”

One popular way of making coffee doesn’t follow any of these rules. It’s the cold brew method, done with the Toddy system or a new tool called the Hourglass.

With this method, coffee grounds are steeped overnight in cold water, resulting in a smooth-tasting coffee concentrate that will keep for weeks. (Ask Sorrenti about the Toddy if you’re interested.)

Whichever method you use, however, always use water that doesn’t have any off flavors.

“Since brewed coffee is 95-98 percent water, using bad tap water will produce bad coffee,” Steiman says.

And be sure to clean your equipment well after each use. Coffee leaves an oily residue that can turn rancid. Steiman prefers using soap and water, while Sorrenti uses distilled vinegar and water. In any case, wash everything well to eliminate any off flavors.

Iced or hot, flavored or not, there are a myriad of ways to drink coffee. Be sure to follow these rules:

If you’ve filled your cup from a French press, it’s best to pour the extra coffee into a thermos — or simply use a bigger cup. Coffee continues to brew in a French press, Steiman says, and after about 8 minutes it is downright bitter.

“And don’t let coffee sit on a heater for more than 15 minutes,” Steiman says. “The constant heat causes important flavor components to be lost.”