The Perfect Cup of Coffee

It takes more than a good quality commercial coffee maker to brew a great cup of coffee. Below are some basic Do’s and Don’ts from BUNN on how to make sure your customers receive a great cup of coffee every time.

Do make sure you are getting the good water you need. Check your water source for softened or hard water. If necessary, run your water through a water treatment filter.

Do keep all coffee stored in a clean, dry place away from heat registers and vents or extreme cold for maximum freshness.

Do know the correct operation of your coffee brewing equipment for maximum performance.

Do use only quality controlled paper filters designed to fit your brewing equipment.

Do make sure decanters and/or pots used at serving stations are cleaned every day.

Do dispose of filter and grounds immediately after brewing to prevent drip-thru of unwanted flavors trapped in used coffee grounds.

Do clean your brewing equipment regularly (especially the sprayhead area) -- at least once a week.

Don’t mix fresh brewed coffee with previously brewed coffee as this will dilute the taste and affect the flavor of the whole pot.

Don’t brew over previously used coffee grounds because all of the flavor has already been completely extracted.

Don’t re-heat for serving any coffee with a temperature below 175° F

Don’t serve coffee using beans or ground coffee past the freshness date.

Don’t let coffee "bake" on a serving station or brewer. Twenty to 30 minutes is the maximum time allowable for an open pot to deliver a perfect cup coffee.

Don’t serve coffee in pots or decanters that haven't been properly cleaned, since acids and other organic materials can taint even the best brewed coffee.

Visit BUNN’s website for more tips and information on brewing the perfect cup of coffee.

When a certain west-coast based coffee chain opened it changed the way Americans look at coffee. No longer was the drink just a quick way to get a caffeine boost in the morning; the well-known company helped turn coffee into a way of life for people.

This is evident by the number of coffee shops that have opened all across the county. Some of these shops even face each other (as a few do where I'm from). It is becoming increasingly easier to find a cup of coffee that fits your particular tastes and preferences.

This increase in coffee consumption has lead to the development of an event known as a cupping. The event is really just a coffee tasting, incredibly similar to a wine tasting event. At a cupping, a group of coffee lovers (typically a smaller group) listens to a coffee expert (usually a barista at the business) talk about different types of coffee available and then they taste a selection of different roasts and blends. After tasting each drink the participants talk about how they think the beverage tastes, any underlying flavors they may detect, and whether or not they like the drink, just as is done at a wine tasting.

A coffee tasting is a great idea for an event to bring in customers and have your staff show off their knowledge. A small tasting would even make a great customer appreciation event for your best customers. Showing the different blends you have and getting feedback from your customers shows what they really like and are more likely to purchase, which means not having to guess on what is popular when ordering new stock.

Whether you are planning a big tasting event or just serving coffee everyday, your Serv-U representative has everything you need to make the perfect cup.

How to Clean a Blackened or Burnt Coffee Pot

Steps

1. Place 1 teaspoon of salt into the coffee pot.
2. Add 2 cups of ice into the coffee pot.
3. Swish around the solution to start melting the ice. If the ice isn't melting, add a little bit of cold water into the coffee pot.
4. Continue to swish the mixture in multiple directions. You should begin to see the burned color coming off of the pot.

Tips

• If the pot is severely discolored you may have to repeat this several times, but eventually it will come clean.
• The swish motion is important. Make sure while you're swishing that you are doing this over all the discolored areas. Missing areas will not get the pot entirely clean.

Warnings

• When adding additional water, it is important that it is cold. Hot water mixed with the ice will cause the pot to crack or shatter.
• Salt and ice mixture on the skin can freeze it so make sure to keep them separate until you put it into the pot. Frostbite is painful and the skin can take several weeks to heal.
• Do not use cleanser, although it seems faster. Coffee pots often have lips that could hide a bit of the cleanser even when it is rinsed. Those bits could end up in your coffee. Think hygiene and not eating grit. This is especially important in restaurants where customers expect sterile equipment.

Things You'll Need

• A discolored coffee pot
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 cups ice
• Cold water

Article provided by wikiHow, a collaborative writing project to build the world's largest, highest quality how-to manual. Please edit this article and find author credits at the original wikiHow article on How to Clean a Blackened or Burnt Coffee Pot. All content on wikiHow can be shared under a Creative Commons license.


Serv-U proudly offers coffee makers and accessories by leaders in the industry (think the likes of BUNN brewers, Hamilton Beach urns, and Service Ideas French presses for example). 


And if you're ready to free your inner barista (hey, even McD's is doing it!), we've got a great selection of grinders and espresso machines to choose from.  You'll be producing latte art in no time!

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(Latte art pic courtesy of "adactio" on Flickr.)

It’s Monday; I’m sure you and many of your customers are in need of a good cup of joe.  But how do you get the perfect cup of coffee?  

Start with a BUNN coffee maker, and their suggestions should help you get a good start on a great brew:

DO:

--Make sure you're getting the good water you need. Check your water source for softened or hard water. If necessary, run your water through a water treatment filter. (BUNN recommends an EasyClear™ Water Filter.)

--Keep all coffee stored in a clean, dry place away from heat registers and vents or extreme cold for maximum freshness.

--Know the correct operation of your coffee brewing equipment for maximum performance.

--Use only quality controlled paper filters designed to fit your brewing equipment.

--Make sure decanters and/or pots used at serving stations are cleaned every day.

--Dispose of filter and grounds immediately after brewing to prevent drip-thru of unwanted flavors trapped in used coffee grounds.

DON’T:

--Mix fresh brewed coffee with previously brewed coffee as this will dilute the taste and affect the flavor of the whole pot.

--Brew over previously used coffee grounds because all of the flavor has already been completely extracted.

--Re-heat for serving any coffee with a temperature below 175° F

--Serve coffee using beans or ground coffee past the freshness date.

--Let coffee "bake" on a serving station or brewer. Twenty to 30 minutes is the maximum time allowable for an open pot to deliver a perfect cup of coffee.

--Serve coffee in pots or decanters that haven't been properly cleaned, since acids and other organic materials can taint even the best brewed coffee.

BUNN also has a nice resource on their site to help you determine which brewer best fits your needs.  On this page, just select the “Equipment Selection Chart” that best describes your business (table service, self-serve, or quick serve).

This past weekend, central Illinois was hit with an ice storm.  As luck would have it, I was visiting my parents’ house when the storm struck.  They live in the country, but my dad had gone into town before the storm to take care of the family business for a few hours.  When the ice hit, my mom called him with just one request—to stop at her favorite coffee shop to get coffee beans…because it might be days before they would be able to drive back into town.

Coffee?  An ice storm hit and our priority was coffee?  But I understand; that particular coffee shop has the best brewed coffee in town.  And these days, consumers are more and more willing to go out of their way for a good cup of joe. 

Coffee is becoming more popular in the US and American coffee tastes are changing.  Consumers are becoming better informed and more discriminating in their tastes.  Case in point: even McDonald’s offers a premium coffee these days (and the March issue of Consumer Reports Magazine rates its taste better than Starbucks).  But what does it take to make great coffee?

The first step to good coffee is good beans.  Shop around and do some taste testing.  Have your coffee snob friends do a blind taste test.  Once you’ve selected the beans, it’s time to brew:

• If possible, buy whole beans and grind your coffee fresh.
• Use clean equipment, free of oils and residue from washing or previous use.
• Use fresh water, preferably filtered, not just tap water.
• Brew at the correct temperature.  Ideal water temperature for brewing is 195°-200° F.  Bring your water to a boil, wait at least 1-2 minutes, and brew.

Commercial coffee makershelp you get the perfect java by holding the correct temperature.  While coffee’s flavor starts to deteriorate after only 20 minutes, it can be safely held for several hours with the right equipment.

Temperature retention for hot beverages:

• For plastic insulated servers, temperature will drop approximately 20° F in the first hour, 10° F in the second hour and 10° F in the third hour.
• For glass insulated servers, temperature will drop approximately 2° F to 5° F every hour.  Results are based on pre-heating servers with boiling water prior to use.

And how long will the temperature hold in the various coffee containers?  According to Service Ideas, Inc's website:

Q: How long does temperature hold in plastic?
A: 2-3 Hours

Q: How long does temperature hold in stainless vacuum?
A: 6-8 Hours

Q: How long does temperature hold in glass?
A: 8 Hours

So coffee holds longest in glass, but stainless steel is far more durable.  Your restaurant or bar's needs will determine which material works best for you.

A quick tip: never reheat old coffee.  It will become highly acidic and may pick up a burnt flavor.