I had the opportunity to taste some very expensive and seriously delicious coffee yesterday. Peet's Coffee is bringing some of their blends to grocery stores in Philadelphia, and so they've come to town with their coffee educator Erica Hess to promote the availability of their products around the City of Brotherly Love.

My first exposure to Peet's coffee was Christmas when I was 14 years old. My cousins, knowing that I was getting an espresso maker from my parents, brought with them a pound of espresso roast from Peet's down from Berkeley as a gift. I remember it as excellent coffee and the fact that its availability was sort of limited in those days made it seem that much more special.
We got to taste three varieties of coffee yesterday, Major Dickason's blend (their most famous), a dark, oily French Roast (my standard choice) and the Panama Esmeralda, which sells for right around $50 a pound. It was citrus-y, delicious and reminded me that coffee doesn't need a dollop of cream to taste wonderful.

The best part of the tasting for me wasn't actually the opportunity to taste the coffee but was instead the fact that I got a bunch of coffee tips directly from a coffee professional. Erica is passionate about coffee and knows her stuff. She is a fan of the French Press and recommends using two tablespoons of beans, ground fairly coarsely for every six to eight ounces of water. For the 32 ounce press she was using during the demonstration, she used ten tablespoons of beans. It seems like a lot to me, but she said that by using more beans you avoid over extracting the beans, which is what can make coffee bitter. If using that amount of beans makes coffee that's a little too strong for you, try adding a little hot water into your cup. Never add more hot water into the press, as that will lead to that dreaded over extraction and no one wants that.

She also reminded me of something that I had once known and then forgot, which was that you never want to pour rapidly boiling water over your beans. Always let the kettle sit for 20-30 seconds before introducing the water to the grounds. When filling up a French Press, fill it halfway and then wait, letting the grounds bloom a little before finishing the pour. When all the water is in, give it three minutes to steep before plunging. Use steady, even pressure when plunging so that you trap all the grounds. Follow those instructions and you'll have a great cup of coffee every time (although you might go broke using 10 tablespoons of beans for every pot).