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Growing your own coffee part 2

Posted on June 28, 2014 by Sara Walker

In the first part of our series on growing your own coffee, we discussed starting with a fresh coffee berry. As this isn’t commonly available to UK gardeners, it’s probably more practical to start with green coffee beans, but this must be as fresh as possible for the best chance of success. It’s not possible to grow coffee commercially in the UK, but coffee plants make a great talking point and are an attractive plant to grow as a novelty.

Plant the green beans as outlined in part one, soaking them first beforehand for 24 hours, and wait for them to germinate, which could take anything up to six months. Take care to keep the soil just damp with light but regular watering.

Once the seedlings are large enough to handle, repot them into individual pots. Fill each pot with around a third sand then topped with potting compost with a high nitrogen content. If you like, you can feed the seedlings with orchid food which has a low pH value.

Coffee plants will not grow outside in the British climate as it’s too volatile, so keep the pots in a greenhouse or conservatory. Once the plants start to grow, water them sparingly twice a week, once with a little orchid food added and once with plain water. Keep pots away from draughts, and never leave them exposed to frost or very cold temperatures.

Don’t forget that while it’s not possible to grow coffee commercially in the UK, you can order it in the UK. Here at the Wholesale Coffee Company, we stock a wide range of blends and beans from green beans to espresso, all at great wholesale prices. In addition, we stock coffee ingredients such as flavoured syrups and accessories like cups, lids and stirrers. To find out more, visit www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.

Chocolate espresso dessert pots

Posted on May 29, 2014 by Sara Walker

A cross between a chocolate mousse and a souffle, these rich little chocolate espresso desserts are simple to make and will add a sophisticated twist to any dinner party.

To serve 6 to 8, you’ll need:

225g (8oz) good quality dark chocolate, at least 70% cocoa solids
Yolks of six large freerange eggs
1 tablespoon freshly-ground espresso coffee
240ml double cream
80ml whole milk
60g (2oz) sugar

Preheat the oven to 150 degrees Celsius. Grease six to eight ramekins, depending on size.
Put the cream, milk and ground espresso in a small heavy bottomed pan and heat the mixture until just boiling.
In a Pyrex or heatproof bowl, break the chocolate into as small pieces as possible and microwave for 30 seconds to soften. Strain the milk and coffee mixture through a fine mesh sieve into the bowl, whisking until the chocolate is melted and all ingredients are completely combined. Allow to cool for 15 to 20 minutes.
In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks and sugar until pale. Add the chocolate mixture gradually, beating all the time until fully mixed.
Stand the ramekins in a large shallow baking dish or tin, and fill them all equally with the chocolate mixture.
Fill the baking dish with boiling water so that it comes about halfway up the ramekins, and carefully transfer to the oven. Bake for around 30 to 35 minutes, until set round the edges but wobbly in the centre.
Transfer the ramekins to a cooling rack until completely cold, then put into the fridge for at least three hours or overnight.
Serve garnished with creme fraiche, cream, chocolate covered coffee beans or sprigs of fresh mint.

Here at the Wholesale Coffee Company, we sell a wide range of coffee beans, ingredients and accessories all at great wholesale prices. To find our more, visit our website at www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.

Coffee and Arabia

Posted on May 27, 2014 by Sara Walker

The Arabian Peninsula (now split into Saudi Arabia, Oman, Yeman, the United Arab Emirates, Qatar and Kuwait) has a long and distinguished relationship with the world’s favourite hot drink, as it was was the first area where coffee was deliberately cultivated. By the fifteenth century it was being grown in what’s now the Yemen and a hundred years later it was being traded and grown across Persia (Iran), Egypt, Syria and Turkey.

Coffee quickly became so popular that public coffee houses, or gahveh khaneh, were set up, quickly becoming important social hubs. Activities not only included coffee drinking, but also music, entertainment, board games, conversation and an exchange of the important news of the day. The coffee houses became so important both culturally and as a quick and efficient way of exchanging information that they became known as ‘schools of the wise’, and coffee itself as the ‘wine of Araby’.

At the time, Arabia was in a unique position as thousands of pilgrims flocked to the holy city of Mecca every year on a pilgrimage, coming from all over the world. With so many people visiting from foreign lands, news of the wonderful new drink began to leak out. Arabian had a virtual monopoly in the early coffee trade, and wasn’t anxious to share its secrets. Exported beans were often boiled or parched to render them infertile, and it’s believed that for a long time no coffee at all grew outside Africa and Arabia.

In the 17th century, legend has it that an Indian pilgrim named Buba Budan managed to fool the authorities and smuggle a few fertile beans out of Mecca strapped to his stomach.

Wherever Islam went, coffee was sure to follow. With the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, coffee quickly spread to the Eastern Mediterranean. However, it is believed that no coffee seed sprouted outside Africa or Arabia until the 17th Century, as coffee beans exported from the Arabian ports of Mocha and Jidda were rendered infertile by parching or boiling. Legend has it that this changed when a pilgrim named Baba Budan smuggled a few fertile coffee beans out of Mecca strapped to his stomach. He raised them at Karnataka, India, where a shrine bearing his name still stands.

Here at the Wholesale Coffee Company, we love all things coffee and we’ve got a great range of coffee beans, ingredients and accessories for you to buy online at wholesale prices. For more information, visit www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.

How to make kokkaffe (Swedish boiled coffee)

Posted on April 28, 2014 by Sara Walker

If you were asked to name the top coffee-loving countries in the world, you might think of the USA. Or Britain, or maybe Italy or France. One country that might not immediately spring to mind is Sweden, but in fact Swedes love their coffee and drink a surprisingly large amount.

While the common types of coffee drink such as capuccinos and lattes are available, the traditional way of preparing coffee in Sweden is kokkaffe, which literally means ‘boiled coffee’. It’s very simple to make, and because it’s easy to prepare it outdoors with a fire or camping stove, it’s also very popular with hunters and fishermen. Although it’s made in a similar way to Turkish coffee, it’s much less strong and equates more to a standard UK black coffee. The secret is to use a very coarse grind of coffee, and a good quality medium roast bean.

Although special kokkaffe pots exist, it’s just as easy to use a saucepan. Simply put a heaped teaspoon of coffee per person in the pan, add 250ml of cold water per person and bring the mixture to the boil. Once it’s boiled, remove from the heat and strain through a filter into a cup or flask.

In Sweden, you can buy specific types of coffee labelled ‘kokkaffe’ for use in preparing the drink in this traditional way, but any type of coarsely roasted medium blend coffee will work.

Here at the Wholesale Coffee Company, we’re proud to stock a wide range of coffee beans suitable for all uses. We also have coffee accessories such as cups and stirrers, and coffee ingredients like milk and sugar sachets, so however you like to drink your coffee you can be sure you’ve come to the right place. For more information, please visit our website at www.wholesalecoffeecompany.co.uk.

Espresso crème brulée recipe

Posted on April 20, 2014 by Sara Walker

Crème brulée is always a popular dinner party dessert, and this espresso version adds a sophisticated twist.

To serve six, you’ll need:

350 ml double cream
125 ml full fat milk
6 large egg yolks
75 grams caster sugar
2 tablespoons Demerara sugar
To serve (optional) tuile biscuits, chocolate coated coffee beans or fresh mint sprigs

You’ll also need 50ml of freshly made strong espresso coffee, made from freshly roasted coffee beans. You could also add a tablespoon of Tia Maria or Kahlua coffee liqueur, if you like. In addition, you’ll need six ramekins or ovenproof crème brulée dishes.

What to do:

Start by preheating the oven to 140 degrees Celcius or 290 degrees Farenheit. Stand the dishes on a baking tray or fit them into a larger ovenproof dish.
Pour the cream and milk into a heavy-bottomed saucepan,and gently heat until almost boiling. Stir in the coffee and add the liqueur if using. Remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
Separately, whisk the egg yolks until pale yellow and creamy. Pour on the cream mixture a little at a time, beating well after each addition (don’t be tempted to pour it all on at once or the eggs may curdle, and you’ll end up with espresso scrambled eggs).
Add the caster sugar, and beat until fully combined, then pass through a sieve into a jug.
Divide the mixture equally between the six dishes, filling them no more than 1.5 cm from the top. Put the baking tray or dish into the oven and bake for about 45 mins until the custard is set but still slightly wobbly; it should move if you touch it with a finger. Allow to cool, then put in the fridge until required (you can prepare up to this stage the night before, if necessary).
Just before serving, sprinkle the Demerara sugar over the surface of the custards, then caramelise with a cook’s blow torch. Alternatively you can do the caramelising process under a hot grill, but in this case let the dishes come up to room temperature first or they might crack.
Serve garnished with chocolate covered coffee beans, mint springs or with a couple of tuile biscuits on the side.

Here at the Wholesale Coffee Company, we’re proud to supply a wide range of coffee beans suitable for all uses, all at great wholesale prices. For more information, please visit our coffee beans page.

What is Kona coffee?

Posted on January 24, 2014 by Sara Walker

If you’re a fan of good quality coffee, here’s something you might not have heard of – Kona coffee. Considered to be one of the world’s most prestigious coffee varieties, it’s relatively unknown in the UK.

Native to Hawaii, Kona coffee is made from beans from the Kona district, in the west of the Big Island. The coffee is grown on the fertile slopes of an extinct volcano. Hawaii may seem an unusual location for a coffee crop, and indeed the plant isn’t native to the islands. It was imported by missionaries and merchants in the early 19th century, and for a while growers struggled to get it to thrive. A few years after the beans became available, Reverend Samuel Ruggles managed to grow them successfully, using beans imported from Brazil. English merchant Henry Nicholas Greenwell was responsible for establishing Kona as a brand in its own right in the 19th century. Nowadays, the coffee is grown on hundreds of independent farms, whose owners lavish care and attention on their precious crops to produce a high quality result.

The mineral-rich soil and climate with its unique mix of sun, cloud and mild nights combine to produce a sweet, mild flavour. Coffee connoisseurs prize the beans for their complex taste, with much of the coffee having chocolaty, floral or fruity overtones.

If you’re thinking of trying Kona beans, look at the bag contents carefully before purchase. Many retailers stock ‘Kona style’ or ‘Kona blend’. Kona blend coffee is legally required to contain only 10% Kona beans, while ‘Kona style’ is not required to contain any. Look for labelling boasting a content of 100% pure Kona beans to make sure of what you’re getting.

Although at the Wholesale Coffee Company we don’t stock Kona beans, we do stock a great range of excellent value, top quality beans from all over the world. To browse our range, visit our coffee beans page.

Bespoke printed paper cups

Posted on January 20, 2014 by Sara Walker

Every modern business knows the importance of brand awareness, and cafés and restaurants often invest large sums of money on branded napkins, coasters or staff uniforms. If you’re a food business offering a takeaway service, though, you could be missing an important branding opportunity. Did you know that the takeaway paper cups offered for customers wanting hot drinks ‘to go’ can be easily branded with your own colour scheme or logo? As the cups are often carried through streets, taken into offices and left on desks all day, there’s an excellent chance of them being seen by more potential customers.

The idea of printing on paper cups isn’t a new one. Originally, the designs were printed using rubber blocks mounted on cylinders, and needed a different cylinder for each colour. As technology developed, more complex designs became easier to print with the use of flexography, a technique that uses flexible relief plates. Flexography is ideal for long print runs, and is often used to print cup runs of 10,000 or more. More recently still, newer printing techniques have meant that it’s now possible to produce smaller print runs, making having your own bespoke printed paper cups achievable for the smaller business.

At the Wholesale Coffee Company, we’re proud to supply bespoke printed cups with your own logo. Qualities start at just 1,000 cups, and we offer a wide range of cup sizes to suit all requirements.

Once you have your personalised cups, don’t forget to reinforce the corporate message with your own personalised coffee bags. Printed with your own logo or colour scheme, these bags are perfect for retailing your own house blend, or for stacking on shelves in your shop for brand enforcement.

To find out more about these fantastic, powerful marketing tools, please visit our bespoke paper cups section and customised coffee bag section.

How paper cups are made

Posted on January 20, 2014 by Sara Walker

If you like to grab a coffee on your way to the office, the chances are it’s served in a disposable paper cup. Like many everyday objects that appear deceptively simple, the paper cup is actually a precision-made piece of engineering, designed to be insulated, safe, sturdy, long lasting and completely watertight. Here’s how it’s done:

Paper cups are made from a special grade of paper called ‘cup board’. The board is made from several layers of paper, to keep it stiff and strong even when wet. The board also needs to be supple enough to be rolled into shape. Paper cups feature a ‘mouth roll’, which is a rolled edge around the rim. This not only feels more comfortable for the drinker, but also helps keep the cup rigid and in the correct shape.

The paper cups start life as one large roll of paper. One side is coated with a layer of plastic or wax, which provides a waterproof barrier and becomes the inside of the cup. Then, the rolls are printed with any logos, designs or colours required to feature on the finished product. The rolls is cut into pieces by machine to make individual cups, which are then heat sealed. Circles of paper are also machine cut then heat sealed into place for the bottom of the cup.

Originally, before modern manufacturing methods, paper cups were glued together. To make them last longer, a method had to be found of waterproofing them. This was done by dropping a small amount of clay in the bottom, which was spread up the sides via centrifugal force. Unfortunately, this had the unwanted side effect of tainting the drink, so the process of using a layer of wax or plastic instead was developed, which also helps weld the seams together.

To browse our wide range of paper cups, suitable for hot drinks such as coffee, please visit our paper cups section.

The history of paper cups

Posted on January 18, 2014 by Sara Walker

Nowadays, modern life is so busy that it’s often more efficient to grab a cup of coffee ‘to go’, served in a disposable, single use paper cup with a lid. These cups are so common now we don’t think about them, but they have a surprisingly long history.

Exactly when paper itself was invented isn’t known, but it was known to have been in use in imperial China in the second century BC. Paper cups followed soon afterwards, used for serving tea. They were made in different colours and sizes, and adorned with decorative designs just like modern-day paper cups.

These early paper cups weren’t capable of holding liquid for any length of time, and the paper cup as we know it today wasn’t developed until the 20th century. Shared water fountains and barrels in schools and public buildings generally had communal ladles or glasses, which became a matter of concern due to the health implications.

In 1908, the first commercial, disposable paper cup was invented in America. Called the ‘Dixie cup’, it was clean, hygienic and easily available, and quickly replaced the communal glasses and ladles.

As well as takeways, cafés and restaurants, many other industries use paper cups, sometimes for ease and sometimes for hygienic reasons. In some cases, the cost of a single use, disposable cup can be cheaper than the proper sterilisation and re-use of a glass or ceramic container.

Cups intended for hot drinks are made in a different way to those intended for water or cold drinks, and usually incorporate an insulated layer, both to keep the drink hot and to help protect the drinker’s fingers from heat.

When fitted with a lid, modern paper cups are a safe, easy options for taking your coffee with you, wherever you go.

To browse our wide range of paper cups, suitable for hot drinks such as coffee, please visit our paper cups section.

The story of Colombian coffee

Posted on January 16, 2014 by Sara Walker

Situated in the north west corner of South America, Colombia has had a long relationship with coffee. It’s thought that the beans were first brought to the country in by Jesuit priests, although the date of the importation varies from the 1500s to the 1800, according to different sources.

What’s sure is that the plant acclimatised very well, giving the native coffee beans a rich, smooth flavour. Colombia first exported its own coffee to the rest of the world in 1835, with a tiny offering of just 2000 bags. Now, millions of Colombian beans travel all over the world every year, and form a significant percentage of the global total.

Colombian coffee is exclusively Arabica, as the volcanic soil, dry climate and high altitude of the growing conditions provide a perfect environment.

The country boasts two main coffee growing regions, eastern and central. The central region is sometimes referred to as ‘MAM’, an acronym for ‘Medellin, Armenia and Manizales’. The eastern area is the more mountainous region round Bogota, and the beans from this area tend to be lower in acidity.

In 1927, the Federación Nacional de Cafeteros de Colombia (National Federation of Coffee Growers of Colombia) was founded to help support the small estate growers, and provide uniform controls and guidelines. Under their guidance, Colombian coffee growing has gone from strength to strength.

Although, as with any other product, commercialism has seen the advent of cheaper, lower quality grades of coffee being exported, pure Arabica Colombia coffee is still seen as one of the best in the world. It’s a very versatile coffee that can be blended to make a espresso blend, or drunk as it is.

At the Wholesale Coffee Company, we’re proud to supply expertly-blended beans from a variety of countries. To browse our range, please visit our coffee beans page.