6
THE COFFEE
Choose your beans wisely. It is best to use premium whole beans from a trusted brand
or roaster.
Arabica beans provide the best flavors and have less caffeine and while Robusta beans
are easier to grow and less expensive, they have less flavor and higher caffeine content.
Robusta beans are sometimes used in blends to add a particular bitterness to the brew.
Beans can be roasted very lightly to provide a smooth aromatic taste or roasted dark to
provide stronger flavors, and anywhere in between.
A good roaster will be able to describe the flavors that the beans will impart to your
brewed coffee.
Note:
Experiment with different beans and different roasts to identify one or several that
suit your tastes.
• Air, light, and moisture are damaging to the delicate oils that give the coffee beans
their great flavor.
• Buy your beans in small batches to always have the freshest possible beans available.
• Store the coffee in an opaque, airtight container and keep in a cool dry place.
THE RATIO
The amount of ground coffee must be carefully measured against the volume of water
for each brew cycle. It is important to use enough coffee to avoid over extraction. A
small amount of coffee would be overwhelmed by a large volume of hot water. Lagostina
recommends using 7 grams of ground coffee per 5 oz cup of water. 7 grams can be
measured in one rounded tablespoon. If the resulting brew seems too strong you can
adjust by using slightly less ground coffee.
If you prefer a much lighter taste it is best to brew at the recommended ratio and dilute
the resulting brew with a measure of hot water. This allows the best flavor to be extracted
from the beans while avoiding over extraction of too small an amount of ground coffee.
THE WATER
The water is a critical factor in the taste of your brewed coffee. Filtered water is normally
the best choice to help avoid the minerals and chlorine that can be found in municipal
water systems. However if your water tastes good then it should be good for your coffee.
THE GRIND
For espresso coffee:
The Lagostina Fast-touch (GL300) is acceptable for grinding beans for boiler type or
steam espresso machines. We do not recommend using the Fast-Touch to grind beans for
use with pump espresso machines. Pump espresso machines require a burr type grinder
such as the GVX series or a similar professional style espresso grinder.
Burr grinders will prevent the introduction of coffee dust which can impede the flow of
water through the espresso machine.
Coffee brewing guide
Summary of Contents for GL300
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