Celebrating Coffee - Bean To Cup
Contrary to popular belief, coffee is not just simply coffee. It is a dynamic and intimate relationship! It’s not all produced the same way, neither is it roasted brewed or consumed in the same manner. At Grand Parade, we focus on transparently sourcing consistently high coffee and roasting each single origin to its best flavor profile.
Where Is Coffee Grown?
Coffee grows pretty much all over the equatorial zone. We typically source coffees grown at high elevations as altitude has been known to produce some of the most amazing and aromatic coffees in the world. Our coffees are sourced from the high mountains such as Kenya, Ethiopia and Colombia.
How Is My Coffee Sourced? Is It Sustainable?
Considering you probably drink coffee more than once a day, it makes it even more important to have answers. You have probably heard of the terms Fair Trade, Direct Trade or Ethically Sourced. Traditionally, coffee goes through different buying brokers before it gets to your cup. Why is this important? If there are multiple stages in coffee purchasing, every buyer tags on a margin and unfortunately the farmers holds the short end of the stick!
Most coffee farmers are poorly rewarded! We working hard to change that - The Grand Parade way is to partner with sustainably conscious farmers and buy direct from them, paying them premium, above fair trade prices. So what does sustainable mean? Your coffee is produced organically without harmful pesticides, processed with clean water and stored in temperature and humidity controlled environments. It also means fair worker practices.
How Is My Coffee Roasted?
Small batch roasting is an artisan craft, a beautiful intersection of science, love, and dedication. We understand that each coffee needs to be treated differently. By roasting our in small batches, we are able to test multiple roast profiles and find the perfect cup profile for your morning brew!
How should I Brew My Coffee?
This is probably the most exciting part of our coffee journey, because this is where you get to taste the final result. There is an equal amount of focus on how each individual coffee is ground and brewed using varying brewing method.
Pour Over Coffee Brewing Method
We favor this slow and ritualistic pour over style of coffee brewing because it brews a juicy and aromatic cup of coffee. Some might say they don’t have the time and would rather use a single serve Keurig pod to brew a cup fast! Now, would it taste the same as a pour over? Probably not. Why, because sometimes coffee has to be carefully measured, ground and poured, hence the beauty of slow manual coffee brewing.
First, determine your coffee to water ratio to brew to the right level of concentration - not too strong or too weak. Figure out the right grind size for each brew - experiment your grind size to hit that sweet spot. Remember that different brewing methods will require different grind sizes. Lastly, perfect the time in between pours to achieve optimal extraction where the coffee is juicy and aromatic.
Check out our Brew Guides [ Kalita Wave, AeroPress Hario V60 ] to perfect your brewing ritual. Instructions start with calibrating the optimal water to coffee ratio that fits your taste. Generally, we recommend a 1:15 water to coffee ratio. Basically, coffee will go through different stages of extraction from the initial pour of the blooming stage.
Brewing coffee at home reminds us of Ethiopia's coffee ceremony - a once in a lifetime experience! A part of everyday life for the locals, coffee is roasted, ground and brewed all in the same sitting. Every step is rich with tradition, culture and the aroma of freshly roasted coffee. Coffee is brewed in a clay pot called a “jebena” and served in small espresso cup sized “fenjals.”
To get you started check our our Brewing Tutorials.
Happy Brewing!
