Coffee grinder

“ When Bernier visited Grand Cairo about the middle of the seventeenth century, in all the city's thousand-odd coffee houses he found but two persons who understood the art of roasting the bean.
About 1650, there was developed the individual cylinder coffee roaster made of metal, usually tin plate or tinned copper, suggested by the original Turkish pocket grinder. This was designed for use over open fires in braziers. There appeared about this time also a combined making-and-serving metal pot which was undoubtedly the original of the common type of pot that we know today. ”

“ One who has been thus favoured, after describing the mill used for grinding the coffee, speaks of another machine, called the “mixer.” The “mixer” is a wooden cylinder revolving on a spindle at an angle of 45°, and having internal arrangements to mix the coffee with such proportion of adulterating material as the ingenuity or impudence of the grinder may suggest. ”

“ It must have lain there not less than 4000 years and listened to the music of a waterfall. That is the important point. Any decent coffee beans ground in any kind of clean grinder will do. A pot that has seen more than one continent is preferred.
You then cut a square piece of white mosquito net sufficient to hold the coffee and the stone. Tie up carefully like a plum-pudding, [112] but leave seven or eight inches of string attached to it so that you can pull the coffee sack up and down in the pot at will. Vachel in this matter of coffee is a complete immersionist. ”

“ Commercial coffee-grinding machines are alike in principle in all countries, the beans being crushed or broken between toothed or corrugated metal or stone members, one revolving and the other being stationary. While all grinding machines are alike in principle, they may vary in capacity and design. The average granulator will turn out about five hundred pounds of "steel-cut" coffee in an hour; the pulverizer, from seventy-five to two hundred pounds; and the average grinding mill from five hundred to six hundred pounds. ”

“ The explanation of this is that the finer the grind, the more readily accessible are the soluble constituents of the coffee to the extracting water. Caffeol, however, in addition to being water-soluble, is extremely fugacious, so that when the grinding is carried to such a fineness that every cell is broken, the greater part of the caffeol volatilizes before the water comes into contact with it. It is therefore highly desirable that a grind be used wherein all of the cells are not broken, but a grind that is sufficiently fine to permit efficient extraction. ”

“ The first difficulty is that of a weak product, in spite of the fact that you know the right quantity of coffee, and not too much water, is used. You may be almost sure, in this instance, that the coffee is not ground fine enough, half of it, probably, being as large as rice. Alter the screw of your mill. It is harder work to grind coffee when the mill is screwed tight, and you may not find it easy to keep it screwed just right, for it will develop a perverse tendency to loosen under Delia's care, which you will know by your coffee being weak and your grocer's bill long. ”

“ The degree of granulation also, of course, affects the rate of flow. The coarser the grind the faster the flow, which permits a larger quantity of coffee to a given diameter of filter bag.
A most frequent fault in the use of the filtration method is the failure to understand the fine degree of grinding necessary to the best results. When the grind is not sufficiently fine the extraction is, of course, weak. A fine grind (like fine cornmeal) is essential. It does not retard the flow if the filter is of right dimensions. ”

“ For this reason, roasted coffee should be kept in air-tight cans, boxes, or jars. Before it is used, however, it must be ground. The grinding of the coffee beans exposes more surface and hence the flavor is more quickly lost from ground than unground coffee. Because of this fact and because ground coffee can be adulterated very easily, it is not wise to buy coffee already ground. If only a small quantity is bought at a time and it can be used up at once, the grinding may be done by the grocer, but even in such a case the better plan is to grind it immediately before using it. ”

“ When using, grind only what you need, and take care that it is not left coarse, when the strength can not be extracted, or that it is not too fine, when the liquor will be muddy in spite of you; in this, as always, experiment until you know the degree of fineness which ground coffee should have. A heaping tablespoonful of ground coffee to a cup and a half of water is the ordinary proportion for making strong coffee—the only kind which should ever be prepared, by the way, the diluting ought always to take place in the cup ”

“ Coffee begins to lose its strength immediately after roasting, the rate of loss increasing rapidly after grinding. In a test carried out by a Michigan coffee packer, [333] it was discovered that a mixture of a very fine with a coarse grind gives the best results in the cup. It was also determined that coarse ground coffee loses its strength more rapidly than the medium ground ”

“ This keeps in the aroma until the grinding lets it out. Do it quickly and faithfully, glazing every berry with the air-proof coating. When cool, shake the coffee in a sieve, that the berries may not stick together, and put it into a tight canister. Grind in a good mill—i.e., one that works well without rattling or "wobbling"—every morning as much as will be needed for the day. This was our mothers' and grandmothers' way of preparing coffee grains for making the most popular beverage known to civilized peoples, and no domestic considered herself aggrieved if required to do it. ”

“ The mixer does not blend the various coffees any more surely than a good roaster cylinder will do it, but treats batches of much larger size. This means saving a great amount of labor that would be necessary for putting the desired quantity of component coffees into each individual roaster.
A proper installation of green coffee machinery requires various bins of ample capacity, and bucket elevators by which the coffee can be sent without manual labor from one operation to another. In modern plants, all the bins and elevators are constructed of metal. ”

“ Grinding. The roasted berry is constructed of fibrous tissues formed into tiny cells visible only under the microscope, which are the "packages" wherein are stored the whole value of coffee, the aromatic oils. Like cutting open an orange, the grinding of coffee is the opening of surrounding tissue and pulp, and the finer it is cut the more easily are the "juices" released. ”

“ The best known are the Faulder and Moorewood machines. In the Uno, a popular retail machine, roasting seven to fourteen pounds at a time, the coffee beans are placed in the space between outer and inner concentric cylinders, one made of perforated steel, and the other of wire gauze, revolving together. A gas flame of the Bunsen type burns inside the inner cylinder, its heat traversing the outer, or coffee cylinder, while the fumes are driven off through the open ends. The roasting coffee may be viewed through a mica or wire-gauze panel inserted in the wall of the outer cylinder. ”

“ The separator, with its bins and elevator, may be installed independently of the rest of the plant, the graded coffee being all bagged up again and treated as new raw stock—some of it to be held for later use, or perhaps sold again unroasted. The milling machine and the mixer, however, are usually so placed and connected that the coffee can be sent from one to the other, and to the roaster feed hoppers, without any manual labor. ”

“ The machine called a pulper is for the purpose of removing the cherry skin or husk; this it does by passing it between a barrel armed with perforated copper, forming a grater, and a sharp-edged board called the chop, which by means of wedges or screws is placed at the proper distance from the barrel to ensure the greater part of the coffee being pressed against it, but not so close that any of the berries should be pricked through their parchment covering. As coffee is seldom uniform in size, much passes forward from which the husk, or pulp, as it is called, has not been completely removed ”

“ Beyond acquiring a general talking knowledge about coffees, the retailer buying his stocks roasted in bulk or package form does not generally need the intimate knowledge of his goods required by the grocer who roasts his own coffee. If he grinds the coffee for his customers he must know the type of grind best suited to the way the coffee is to be brewed, and must be able to tell the best brewing method. ”

“ But, on the other hand, unless the roasting be done very carefully, the coffee will not be good. A few burnt beans in a quart will ruin the drink. When careful attention to roasting cannot be given at home, it will be better to buy a supply already roasted, but never ground. A French small mill, which can be regulated to grind coarse or fine, can be bought for about a dollar and a half. With care it will last for ten or twenty years. Some firms put up coffee in tin cans. It costs more, but retains so much of the aroma as to be well worth the extra price. ”

“ The up-to-date cup-tester requires special equipment to get the best results. A typical installation consists of a gas sample-roasting outfit, employing at least a single cylinder holding about six ounces of coffee, and perhaps a battery of a dozen or more; an electric grinding mill ”

“ The coffee-roasting apparatus is usually a malleable iron cylinder mounted to revolve over the fire on a hollow axle which allows the escape of gases generated during torrefaction. The roasting of coffee should be done as short a time as practicable before the grinding for use, and as ground coffee especially parts rapidly with its aroma, the grinding should only be done when coffee is about to be prepared. ”

“ A tin cylinder, furnished with two movable and one stationary strainers, is set on a coffee-pot. Dry, fine coffee goes into the upper vessel in the proportion of a half-pint cupful to a quart of boiling water poured on this, and left to filter through once, twice, or three times, as a moderately or very strong infusion is desired. The pot should be made hot by scalding before the cylinder is fitted on, then stand on the hot range or hearth, while the liquid drips through the strainers. ”

“ In France, during the latter part of the nineteenth century, coffee was roasted over charcoal fires in earthenware dishes or saucepans, stirred with a spatula or wooden spoon, or in small cylinder or globular roasters of iron. Gas roasting was also practised. When roasted in large batches, the beans were cooled in wicker baskets, tossed into the air. The grinding was preferably done in mortars or in box mills of pyramid shape with receiving drawers, and was not too fine. ”

“ In this country a few years ago the use of the long sheet-iron cylinder was almost universal, varying only in the method of placing the cylinder over the fire—some sideways on a track, others endwise, sliding on a long shaft or by turning on a crane, in either case causing considerable labor and loss of time, which often resulted in the hands of the inexperienced in more or less spoiling the batch of coffee. ”

“ Whether a repouring is necessary or not is dependent upon the speed with which the water passes through the coffee, which in turn is controlled by the fineness of the grind and of the filtering medium. ”

“ The undesirable elements, being less quickly soluble, are left in the grounds in a quick contact of water and coffee. The coarser the grind the less accessible are the oils to the water, thus the inability to get out the strength from coffee not finely enough ground. ”

“ The brew is complete when it drips from the grounds, and further cooking or "heating up" injures the quality. Therefore, since it is not necessary to put the brew over the fire, it is possible to make use of the hygienic advantages of a glassware, porcelain or earthenware serving pot.
Boiled (or Steeped) Coffee. For boiling (or steeping) use a medium grind. The recipe is a rounded tablespoonful for each cup of coffee desired or—as some cooks prefer to remember it—a tablespoonful for each cup and "one for the pot." Put the dry coffee in the pot and pour over it fresh water briskly boiling. ”

“ The movable part of the roaster is hidden by the front head, a heavy casting which stands still except when moved by hand through a half-turn for feeding and discharging.
The cylinder is driven by gears at the back, revolving constantly at uniform speed. The inside of the cylinder is arranged with reverse-spiral flanges which mix the coffee perfectly and make uneven roasting impossible; and they discharge promptly every grain of coffee when the front-head opening is turned to the lower position. ”

“ Roasting enterprises on a comparatively small scale (not by consumers, but by sufficiently expert dealers) would probably be much more numerous on account of the "fresh-roast" argument, except for the fact that coffee-roasting machines can not be installed so easily as the grinding mills, meat-choppers, and slicing machines, that find extended use in small stores. The steam, smoke, and chaff given off by the coffee as it is roasted must be disposed of by an outdoor connection, without annoying the neighbors or creating a fire hazard. ”

“ There was a time when all the coffee establishments in New York sent their coffee to Prentiss & Page to be ground. Some of the places roasted by hand, others by horse power; and if by steam, it was limited, and they did not have enough to spare for grinding.
With the march of improvement, burstone mills went into the discard. The difficulty lay in finding men experienced in stone dressing to run them; and the demand grew for a better style of grinding than could be done in a mill out of face and balance. ”