Monster Media 1994 #2/Monster Media No. 2 (Monster Media)(1994).ISO/freq_qa/caffein5.zip/CAFFEIN5.TXT

Text File | 1994-05-13 | 44KB | 1,192 lines

Archive-Name: caffeine-faq
Last-modified: January 19, 1994
Version: 1.9


Frequently Asked Questions for alt.drugs.caffeine

This group is dedicated to all beverages and products that contain
caffeine; including tea, coffee, chocolate, mate, caffeinated
soft drinks, caffeinated pills, coffee beans, etc.


 Section 1. The Chemistry of Caffeine and related products

 1.1.- How much caffeine is there in [drink/food/pill]?
 1.2.- Chemically speaking, what is caffeine?
 1.3.- Is it true that tea has no caffeine/What is theine, theobromine, etc?
 1.4.- Where can I find a gif of the caffeine molecule?
 1.5.- Is it true that espresso has less caffeine than regular coffee?
 1.6.- How does caffeine taste?
 1.7.- How much theobromine/theophylline there is in ...?

 Section 2. How to brew the ultimate caffeine drink?

 2.1.- What is the best temperature for drip coffee?
 2.2.- Quality of coffee
 2.3.- Why you should never use percolators

 Section 3. Peripherals and Secondary Storage

 3.1.- Proper care of Coffee makers...
 3.2.- How to store coffee?
 3.3.- Equipment reviews?

 Section 4. Caffeine and your Health

 4.1.- What happens when you overdose?
 4.2.- Studies on the side-effects of caffeine...
 4.3.- Caffeine and your metabolism.

 Section 5. Miscellaneous

 5.1.- How do you pronounce mate?
 5.2.- How do you spell Colombia/Colombian?

 Section 6. Coffee Recipes and other beverages.

 6.1.- Espresso
 6.2.- Capuccino
 6.3.- How to make your own chocolate
 6.4.- How to make the best cup of coffee
 6.5.- Turkish Coffee
 6.6.- Thai Iced Coffee
 6.7.- Vietnamese Iced Coffee
 6.8.- Melya

 Section 7. Administrivia

 7.1.- List of Contributors
 7.2.- Copyright



 Section 1. The Chemistry of Caffeine and related products



 1.1.- How much caffeine is there in [drink/food/pill]?


According to the National Soft Drink Association, the following is the
caffeine content in mgs per 12 oz can of soda:

Jolt                    100.0
Sugar-Free Mr. Pibb     58.8
Mountain Dew            54.0      (MD contains no caffeine in Canada)
Mello Yellow            52.8
Tab                     46.8
Coca-Cola               45.6
Diet Cola               45.6
Shasta Cola             44.4
Shasta Cherry Cola      44.4
Shasta Diet Cola        44.4
Mr. Pibb                40.8
Dr. Pepper              39.6
Pepsi Cola              38.4
Aspen                   36.0
Diet Pepsi              36.0
RC Cola                 36.0
Diet RC                 36.0
Diet Rite               36.0
Canada Dry Cola         30.0
Canada Dry Diet Cola    1.2
7 Up                    0

By means of comparison, a 7 oz cup of coffee has the following caffeine (mg)
amounts, according to Bunker and McWilliams in _J Am Diet_ 74:28-32, 1979:

Drip                    115-175
Espresso  100mg of caffeine
1 serving (1.5-2oz)

Brewed                  80-135
Instant                 65-100
Decaf, brewed           3-4
Decaf, instant          2-3
tea, iced (12 ozs.)     70
tea, brewed, imported   60
tea, brewed, U.S.       40
tea, instant            30

The variability in the amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee or tea is huge
even if prepared by the same person using the same equipment and ingredients
day after day.

Ref.

Variability in caffeine consumption from coffee and tea: Possible
significance for epidemiological studies by B. Stavric, R. Klassen, B.
Watkinson, K. Karpinski, R. Stapley, and P. Fried in "Foundations of
Chemical Toxicology", Volume 26, number 2, pp. 111-118, 1988
and an easy to read overview, Looking for the Perfect Brew by S.
Eisenberg, "Science News", Volume 133, April 16, 1988, pp. 252-253.


Quote from the lab manual:
Caffeine is present in tea leaves and in coffee to the extent of about 4%.
Tea also contains two other alkaloids, theobromine and theophylline.
These last two relax the smooth muscles where caffeine stimulates the
heart and respiratory systems.


Steve Dyer says:

Theobromine is virtually inactive.  Both caffeine and theophylline
stimulate the heart and respiratory systems and relax smooth muscle
(such as in the bronchioles).  Theophylline is somewhat more toxic
and somewhat less powerful a CNS stimulant than caffeine, but they
are more similar than different.


Other data on caffeine:

Cup of coffee    90-150mg
Instant coffee   60-80mg
Tea              30-70mg
Cola             30-45mg
Chocolate bar    30mg
Stay-awake pill  100mg
Vivarin          200mg
Cold relief tablet  30mg

The following information is from _Bowes and Church's Food values of
portions commonly used_, by Anna De Planter Bowes.  Lippincott, Phila.
1989. Pages 261-2: Caffeine.

Candy:

Chocolate                               mg caffeine
  baking choc, unsweetened, Bakers--1 oz(28 g) 25
  german sweet, Bakers -- 1 oz (28 g)           8
  semi-sweet, Bakers -- 1 oz (28 g)            13

Choc chips
  Bakers -- 1/4 cup (43 g)                     13
  german sweet, Bakers -- 1/4 cup (43 g)       15

Chocolate bar, Cadbury  -- 1 oz (28 g)         15
Chocolate milk  8oz                             8

Desserts:
Jello Pudding Pops, Choc (47 g)                 2
Choc mousse from Jell-O mix (95 g)              6
Jello choc fudge mousse (86 g)                 12

Beverages
3 heaping teaspoons of choc powder mix          8
2 tablespoons choc syrup                        5
1 envelope hot cocoa mix                        5

Dietary formulas
ensure, plus, choc, Ross Labs -- 8 oz (259 g)  10
Cadbury Milk Chocolate Bar

More stuff:

Guarana "Magic Power" (quite common in Germany),
15 ml alcohol with
5g Guarana Seeds        250.0 mg
Guarana capsules with
500 mg G. seeds          25.0 mg / capsule

(assuming 5% caffeine in seeds as stated in literature)

Guarana soda pop is ubiquitous in Brazil and often available at tropical
groceries here.  It's really tasty and packs a wallop.  Guarana wakes you
up like crazy, but it doesn't cause coffee jitters.

It is possible that in addition to caffeine, there is some other substance
in guarana that also produces an effect, since it 'feels' different than
coffee. Same goes for mate.




 1.2.- Chemically speaking, what is caffeine?

A search in CAS and produced these names and synonyms:

RN   58-08-2  REGISTRY
CN   1H-Purine-2,6-dione, 3,7-dihydro-1,3,7-trimethyl- (9CI)  (CA INDEX NAME)
OTHER CA INDEX NAMES:
CN   Caffeine (8CI)
OTHER NAMES:
CN   1,3,7-Trimethyl-2,6-dioxopurine
CN   1,3,7-Trimethylxanthine
CN   7-Methyltheophylline
CN   Alert-Pep
CN   Cafeina
CN   Caffein
CN   Cafipel
CN   Guaranine
CN   Koffein
CN   Mateina
CN   Methyltheobromine
CN   No-Doz
CN   Refresh'n
CN   Stim
CN   Thein
CN   Theine
CN   Tri-Aqua

MF   C8 H10 N4 O2

The _CORRECT_ name is the first one, 1H-Purine-2,6-diione,
3,7-dihydro-1,3,7-trimethyl- (This is the "inverted name")
The "uninverted name" is   3,7-Dihydro-1,3,7-trimethyl-1H-purine-2,6-dione


Merck Index excerpt...

Caffeine:  3,7-dihydro- 1,3,7-trimethyl- 1H-purine- 2,6-dione;
1,3,7-trimethylxanthine; 1,3,7-trimethyl- 2,6-dioxopurine;
coffeine; thein; guaranine; methyltheobromine; No-Doz.

C8H10N4O2; mol wt 194.19.  C 49.48%, H 5.19%, N 28.85%, O 16.48%.

Occurs in tea, coffee, mate leaves; also in guarana paste and cola nuts:
Shuman, U.S. pat. 2,508,545 (1950 to General Foods).  Obtained as a
by-product from the manuf of caffeine-free coffee:  Barch, U.S.  pat.
2,817,588 (1957 to Standard Brands); Nutting, U.S. pat. 2,802,739
(1957 to Hill Bros. Coffee); Adler, Earle, U.S. pat. 2,933,395
(1960 to General Foods).

Crystal structure:  Sutor, Acta Cryst. 11, 453, (1958).  Synthesis:
Fischer, Ach, Ber. 28, 2473, 3135 (1895); Gepner, Kreps, J. Gen.
Chem. USSR 16, 179 (1946); Bredereck et al., Ber. 83, 201 (1950);
Crippa, Crippa, Farmaco Ed. Sci. 10, 616 (1955); Swidinsky, Baizer,
U.S. pats. 2,785,162 and 2,785,163 (1957 to Quinine Chem. Works);
Bredereck, Gotsmann, Ber. 95, 1902 (1962).

Hexagonal prisms by sublimation, mp 238 C.  Sublimes 178 C.  Fast
sublimation is obtained at 160-165 C under 1mm press. at 5 mm distance.
d 1.23.  Kb at 19 C: 0.7 x 10^(-14).  Ka at 25 C: <1.0 x 10^(-14).  pH
of 1% soln 6.9.  Aq solns of caffeine salts dissociate quickly.  Absorption
spectrum:  Hartley, J. Chem. Soc.  87, 1802 (1905).  One gram dissolves
in 46 ml water, 5.5 ml water at 80 C, 1.5 ml boiling water, 66 ml alcohol,
22 ml alcohol at 60 C, 50 ml acetone, 5.5 ml chloroform, 530 ml ether,
100 ml benzene, 22 ml boiling benzene.  Freely sol in pyrrole; in
tetrahydrofuran contg about 4% water; also sol in ethyl acetate; slightly
in petr ether.  Soly in water is increased by alkali benzoates, cinnamates,
citrates, or salicylates.

Monohydrate, felted needles, contg 8.5% H2O.  Efflorescent in air; complete
dehydration takes place at 80 C.  LD50 orally in rats:  200 mg/kg.

Acetate, C8H10N4O2.(CH3COOH)2, granules or powder; acetic acid odor;
acid reaction.  Loses acetic acid on exposure to air.  Soluble in water
or alcohol with hydrolysis into caffeine and acetic acid.  Keep well
stoppered.

Hydrochloride dihydrate, C8H10N4O2.HCl.2H2O, crystals, dec 80-100 C with
loss of water and HCl.  Sol in water and in alcohol with dec.

Therap Cat:  Central stimulant.

Therap Cat (Vet):  Has been used as a cardiac and
           respiratory stimulant and as a diuretic.




 1.3.- Is it true that tea has no caffeine/What is theine, theobromine, etc?


From "Principles of biochemistry", Horton and al, 1993.

 Caffeine is sometimes called "theine" when it's in tea. This is probably due
 to an ancient misconception that the active constituent is different.
 Theophylline is present only in trace amounts. It is more diuretic, more
 toxic and less speedy.

 Caffeine: 1,3,7-trimethylxanthine
 Theophylline: 1,3-dimethylxanthine
 Theobromine: 3,7-dimethylxanthine

 Coffee and tea contain caffeine and theophylline, respectively, which are
 methylated purine derivatives that inhibit cAMP phosphodiesterase.In the
presence
 of these inhibitors, the effects of cAMP, and thus the stimulatory effects
 of the hormones that lead to its production, are prolonged and intensified.

Theobromine and theophylline are two dimethyxanthines that have two
rather than three methyl groups. Theobromine is considerably weaker
than caffeine and theophylline, having about one tenth the stimulating^?
effect of either.

Theobromine is found in cocoa products, tea (only in very small amounts)
and kola nuts, but is not found in coffee. In cocoa, its concentration
is generally about 7 times as great as caffeine. Although, caffeine
is relatively scarce in cocoa, its mainly because of theobromine that
cocoa is "stimulating"

Theophylline is found in very small amounts in tea, but has a stronger
effect on the heart and breathing than caffeine. It often the drug
of choice in treating asthma bronchitis and emphysema. The theophylline
found in medicine is made from extracts from coffee or tea.




 1.4.- Where can I find a gif of the caffeine molecule?


Caffein = 1,3,7-Trimethylxanthine


             CH3
              |
              N
             / \
       N----C   C==O
      ||   ||   |
      ||   ||   |
      CH    C   N--CH3
        \  / \ /
         N    C
         |   ||
        CH3   O


There is a gif picture at the wuarchive.wustl.edu ftp site or any of its
mirror sites under

multimedia/images/gif/c

caffeine



 1.5.- Is it true that espresso has less caffeine than regular coffee?


Yes and no. An espresso cup has about as much caffeine as a cup of dark
brew. But servings for espresso are much smaller. Which means that the content
of caffeine _per_millilitre_ are much higher than with a regular brew.
Moreover, caffeine is more quickly assimilated when taken in concentrated
dosages, such as an espresso cup.

The myth of lower caffeine espresso comes comes from the fact that the
darker roast beans used for espresso _do_ have less caffeine than regularly
roasted beans (roasting breaks up the caffeine in the beans). But espresso
is prepared using pressurized steam which extracts a higher percentage of
caffeine from the ground beans than regular drip.

Here's the caffeine content of Drip/Espresso/Brewed Coffee:

Drip                    115-175
Espresso                100mg of caffeine           1 serving (1.5-2oz)
Brewed                  80-135


 1.6.- How does caffeine taste?


Caffeine is very bitter. Barq's Root Beer contains caffeine and the company
says that it has "12.78mg per 6oz" and that they "add it as a flavouring agent
for the sharp bitterness"


 1.7.- How much theobromine/theophylline there is in ...?

Sources: Physicians Desk Reference and Institute of Food Technologies
from Pafai and Jankiewicz (1991) DRUGS AND HUMAN BEHAVIOUR

cocoa                         250mg theobromine
bittersweet choc. bar         130mg theobromine
5 oz cup brewed coffee        no theobromine
tea 5oz cup brewed 3min with
teabag                        3-4 mg theophylline
Diet Coke                     no theobromine or theophylline




 Section 2. How to brew the ultimate caffeine drink?



 2.1.- What is the best temperature for drip coffee?


According to chemical studies, the optimal water temperature
for drip coffee is 95-98C. According to my notes, colder
water doesn't extract enough caffeine/essential oils from
the beans, and above such temperature the acidity increases
wildly.


 2.2.- Quality of coffee


The quality of a brew depend on the following factors (in no particular
order):


   1. Time since grinding the beans.
   2. Time since roasting.
   3. Cleanliness with brewing equipment.
   4. Bean quality (what crop etc).
   5. Water quality.



Fact: Unless you are buying some major debris, bean quality is not very
important.

Fact: The prepackaged stuff you buy in supermarkets _is_ major debris,
(in general).

Many times "inferior beans" are due to (a) adultered beans, either with the
skin of the coffee bean or with peanut derivatives, (b) old grounds and roast.


 2.3.- Why you should never use percolators.


Percolators violate most of the natural laws about brewing coffee.

   1) Don't overextract the oils and flavour.- Percolators work by
      taking coffee and reheating it and throwing it over the grounds
      over and over and over again.
   2) Never reheat/boil coffee.  This destroys the flavour. For best
      flavour, boil the water, pass it over the grounds and retain the
      heat.  Don't reheat it.

Violating these rules may not sound like much, but these are about the
only rules there are.  The effect of a percolator is to keep passing
boiling water/coffee over the grounds until there is no flavour left and
the flavour in the coffee is so dead that it's a worthless waste.



 Section 3. Peripherals and Secondary Storage



 3.1.- Proper care of coffee makers...



It is very important that you wash your coffee maker pot and filter
container thoroughly at least once a week. Bitter oils stick to the
glass container and plastic filter holder.

I used to wash the plastic filter container and rinse the glass pot.
Coffee started to taste bad. When I was told to wash both thoroughly
with plenty of soap the flavour improved instantly. Note: To the
naked eye rinsed and soap washed pots look the same (clean that is).

Some drip coffee makers require periodic cleansing with a solution
of water and vinegar.




 3.2.- How to store coffee?



One should always store coffee beans in a glass, air tight container.
Air is coffee's principle enemy.  Glass is best because it doesn't retain
the odors of the beans or the oils, which could contaminate future
beans stored in the same container.

For consumption within:

  1 week:  room temperature is fine
  2 weeks to a month:  refridgerate
  Over a month:  freeze them

This prevents the chemical reactions that produce stale beans
and lifeless coffee.



 3.3.- Equipment reviews?





 Section 4. Caffeine and your Health



 4.1.- What happens when you overdose?


From Desk Reference to the Diagnostic Criteria from DSM-3-R (American
Psychiatric Association, 1987):

Caffeine-Induced Organic Mental Disorder
305.90 Caffeine Intoxication

A. Recent consumption of caffeine, usually in excess of 250 mg.
B. At least five of the following signs:
        (1) restlessness
        (2) nervousness
        (3) excitement
        (4) insomnia
        (5) flushed face
        (6) diuresis
        (7) gastrointestinal disturbance
        (8) muscle twitching
        (9) rambling flow of thought and speech
        (10) tachycardia or cardiac arrhythmia
        (11) periods of inexhaustibility
        (12) psychomotor agitation
C. Not due to any physical or other mental disorder, such as an
   Anxiety Disorder.


Basically, overdosing on caffeine will probably be very very unpleasant but
not kill or deliver permanent damage.  HOWEVER, People *do* die from it.

summarized from the Manual:

TOXIC DOSE:  The reported lethal dose is 10 grams, although one case
        documents survival after ingesting 24 grams.  In small children
        ingestion of 35 mg/kg can lead to moderate toxicity.
        The amount of caffeine in an average cup of coffee is 50 - 200 mg.
        Infants metabolize caffeine very slowly.

SYMPTOMS:  A. ACUTE caffeine poisoning gives Early symptoms of anorexia,
        tremor, and restlessness.  Followed by nausea, vomiting,
        tachycardia, and Confusion.  Serious intoxication may cause
        delirium, seizures, supraventricular and ventricular tachyarrhythmias,
        hypokalemia, and hyperglycemia.
           B. CHRONIC high-dose caffeine intake can lead to nervousness,
        irritability, anxiety, tremulousness, muscle twitching, insomnia,
        palpitations and hyperreflexia.

        For blood testing, cross-reaction with theophylline assays will
        detect toxic amounts.  (Method IA)
        Blood concentration of 1-10 mg/L is normal in coffee drinkers,
        while 80 mg/L has been associated with death.

TREATMENT:  A. EMERGENCY MEASURES
        1. Maintain the airway and assist ventilation. (See Appendix A)
        2. Treat seizures & hypotension if they occur.
        3. Hypokalemia usually goes away by itself.
        4. Monitor Vital Signs.
            B. SPECIFIC DRUGS & ANTIDOTES.
        Beta blockers effectively reverse cardiotoxic effects mediated
        by excessive beta-adrenergic stimulation.  Treat hypotension or
        tachyarrhythmias with intravenous propanolol, .01 - .02 mg/kg. ,
        or esmolol, .05 mg/kg , carefully titrated with low doses.  Esmolol
        is preferred because of its short half life and low cardioselectivity.
            C. DECONTAMINATION
        1. Induce vomiting or perform gastric lavage.
        2. Administer activated charcoal and cathartic.
        3. Gut emptying is probably not needed if 1 & 2 are performed
promptly.

Appendix A, Performing airway assistance.
        1. If no neck injury is suspected, place in the "Sniffing" position
        by tilting the head back and extending the front of the neck.
        2. Apply the "Jaw Thrust" to move the tongue out of the way without
        flexing the neck:  Place fingers form both under the back of the jaw
        and thrust the jaw forward so that the chin sticks out.  This should
        also hurt the patient, allowing you to judge depth of coma. :)
        3. Tilt the head to the side to allow vomit and snot to drain out.
From conversations on alt.drugs.caffeine:

The toxic dose is going to vary from person to person, depending primarily on
built-up tolerance.  A couple people report swallowing 10 to 13 vivarin and
ending up in the hospital with their stomaches pumped, while a few say they've
taken that many and barely stayed awake.

A symptom lacking in the clinical manual but reported by at least two people
on the net is a loss of motor ability: inability to move, speak, or even
blink.

The experience is consistently described as very unpleasant and not fun at
all,
even by those very familiar with caffeine nausea and headaches.



 4.2.- Studies on the side-effects of caffeine.



        OAKLAND, California (UPI) -- Coffee may be good for life. A major
study has found fewer suicides among coffee drinkers than those who
abstained from the hot black brew.
        The study of nearly 130,000 Northern California residents and the
records of 4,500 who have died looked at the effects of coffee and tea
on mortality.
        Cardiologist Arthur Klatsky said of the surprising results, ``This is
not a fluke finding because our study was very large, involved a
multiracial population, men, women, and examined closely numerous
factors related to mortality such as alcohol consumption and smoking.''
        The unique survey also found no link between coffee consumption and
death risk. And it confirmed a ``weak'' connection of coffee or tea to
heart attack risk -- but not to other cardiovascular conditions such as
stroke.
        The study was conducted by the health maintenance organization Kaiser
Permanente and was reported Wednesday in the Annals of Epidemiology.


 4.3.- Caffeine and your metabolism.

Caffeine increases the level of circulating fatty acids. This has been shown
to increase the oxidation of these fuels, hence enhancing fat oxidation.
Caffeine has been used for years by runners and endurance people to enhance
fatty acid metabolism. It's particularly effective in those who are not
habitual users.

Caffeine is not an appetite suppressant.  It does effect metabolism,
though it is a good question whether its use truly makes any difference
during a diet.  The questionable rationale for its original inclusion
in diet pills was to make a poor man's amphetamine-like preparation
from the non-stimulant sympathomimetic phenylpropanolamine and the
stimulant caffeine.  (That you end up with something very
non-amphetamine like is neither here nor there.)  The combination drugs
were called "Dexatrim" or Dexa-whosis (as in Dexedrine) for a reason,
namely, to assert its similarity in the minds of prospective buyers.
However, caffeine has not been in OTC diet pills for many years per
order of the FDA, which stated that there was no evidence of efficacy
for such a combination.


From Goodman and Gilman's The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics:

"Caffeine in combination with an analgesic, such as aspirin, is widely used
in the treatment of ordinary types of headache.  There are few data to
substantiate its efficacy for this purpose.  Caffeine is also used in
combination with an ergot alkaloid in the treatment of migrane (Chapter 39)."

"Ergotamine is usually administered orally (in combination with caffeine) or
sublingually [...] If a patient cannot tolerate ergotamine orally, rectal
administration of a mixture of caffeine and ergotamine tartarate may be
attempted."

"The bioavailability [of ergotamine] after sublingual administration is also
poor and is often inadequate for therapeutic purposes [...] the concurrent
administration of caffeine (50-100 mg per mg of ergotamine) improves both the
rate and extent of absorption [...] However, there is little correspondence
between the concentration of ergotamine in plasma and the intensity or
duration
of therapeutic or toxic effects."

"Caffeine enhances the action of the ergot alkaloids in the treatment of
migrane, a discovery that must be credited to the sufferers from the disease
who observed that strong coffee gave symptomatic relief, especially when
combined with the ergot alkaloids. As mentioned, caffeine increases the oral
and rectal absorption of ergotamine, and it is widely believed that this
accounts for its enhancement of therapeutic effects."

Finally, I'll add that adding small frogs to your coffee enhances absorption
of several psychogenic tannins, a useful technique for studying temporary
insanity.





 Section 5. Miscelanous



 5.1.- How do you pronounce mate?


MAH-teh. MAH like in malt, and teh like in Gral. Patten.


 5.2.- How do you spell Colombia/Colombian?



 Section 6. Coffee Recipes and other beverages.


 6.1.- Espresso


  After living in Italy ( Rome ) for two years and living off
   espresso, Mr. X have found American espresso doesn't cut it.
   Heres how to do it.


          First : Get GOOD DARK roasted espresso beans, imported
          Italian brand if you can find it.

          Second : PACK your strainer real full.  Pack it hard.
          your instructions will say NOT to pack it, but don't listen.

          Third :  DON'T USE TOO MUCH WATER.  Espresso in Italy
          is as thick as syrup.  VERY THICK.

          Add two spoons of sugar, it's a sweet, THICK liquid
          in Italy.

          Drink fast.

          Enjoy.

          If using a stove top espresso machine, clean after EACH use,
          paying attention to the seal and strainer.

   =1= For best results, get arabica beans that have been roasted
dark ("Italian Roast" is darkest) and are oily-looking.  Other
roasts are for other types of brewing:  espresso machines won't
draw the earthy flavour of Sumatran out, for example.  A small
amount of other beans might add a nice note to the flavour,
though (I've had surprising success adding a few of Thanksgiving
Coffee's "High-Caffeine Pony Express" beans, which are actually
robusta beans from Thailand).

=2= Grind those beans until they're very fine, but not quite a
powder.  Put them into the appropriate piece of your machine
and tamp it down (but don't pack all the grounds in tight).

=3= Watch the espresso as it drips down.  Does a nice layer of
foam form on the top?  If it does, all is well; that foam is
made from the flavourful oils.  If not, go to the coffee roaster
and demand quadruple your money back.

=4= Never make more than 2oz at a time.  If you're making two
cups of espresso, make two separate shots.  This is important.
The idea is that the water rushes through and draws out only
the most flavourful part of the grounds.  More than 2oz and
you're drawing out less flavourful stuff and diluting your
espresso.  If you're really hardcore, make only 1oz at a time;
this is called _caffe_ristretto_.



 6.2.- Capuccino



Disclaimer: People prepare capuccino in many different ways, and in their
very own way each one of them is correct. The following recipe, which is
commonly used in Latin countries, has been tasted by several of my
North-American friends and they unanimously agreed that capuccino prepared
using this recipe tastes much better than the standard fare in USA/Canada.



Start with cold milk (it doesn't really need to be ice-cold), use
homo milk or carnation. 2% or skim is just not thick enough.

Place the milk on a special capuccino glass with a capuccino basket.
(capuccino glasses have a thinner bottom).

Aerate the milk near the top, within 2cm (1 in) of the top. Move the
glass down as the milk aerates. It is a good idea to have an oscillating
motion while aerating the milk.

Stop when the milk starts boiling or have it boil, let it cool down
for a second or so (literally), and aerate again (it is harder to get
a nice froth after the milk has boiled).

AERATING THE MILK IN ANOTHER CONTAINER, THEN POURING IN A GLASS AND
ADDING THE FOAM WITH A SPOON IS SACRILEGE.

Anybody who has done so should make a pilgrimage to San Francisco's
Girardelli's.  Otherwise entry to heaven will be denied (god, is after
all, Italian. At least the catholic one).

If you need to aerate the milk on a separate container, aerate
exactly the amount of milk required for one cup, so no need to add
foam with a spoon.

Once the milk has been aerated, promptly clean the aerator with a wet rag.
Failure to do so will quickly result in rotten milk flavour coming from
the aerator.

Another warning on similar lines applies to restaurant type coffee
machines: leave the aerator valve open when powering the machine up and
down. When the machine is off a partial vacuum is formed in the
boiler that will suck milk residue into the boiler. This then coats the
inside of the boiler and can cause bad smelling steam until the boiler
is flushed. Some machines have a vacuum bleed valve to prevent this
problem but many don't.


Wait for the steam pressure to build up again (for some capuccino makers
wait time is near zero, for others it maybe as long as 60 secs).

Prepare the espresso coffee, you may add it directly on to the glass
if possible or use a cup and then pour it from the cup on the milk.

According to Jym Dyer: In Italy, the milk is added TO the espresso, not
the other way around, that way the milk is floating; on top, where you
then add the sugar, and stir it up.

Capuccino tastes better when is really hot, and has two coffee teaspoons
of sugar. (small teaspoons, like the ones in expensive silverware).

Then accompany said cappuccino with a warm tea bisquet or english muffin
with marmalade, or alternatively with a baguette sandwich or panini.




 6.3.- How to make your own chocolate


MAKE YOUR OWN CHOCOLATE:

Here's the recipe for making a real chocolate beverage. Important steps are
in all CAPITALS.

Ingredients:

   1-2kg (2-4pounds) of cocoa beans.
   A manually operated grinder.

Instructions

   Sift though the beans removing any impurities (pieces of grass, leaves,
etc).

   Place the beans in a pan (no teflon) and roast them. Stir frequently.

   As the beans roast they start making "pop" sounds like popcorn. Beans are
ready when you estimate that approx 50-75% of the beans have popped. Do not
let the beans burn, though a bit of black on each bean is ok.

  Peel the beans. Peeling roasted cocoa beans is like peeling baked potatoes:
The hotter they are the easier it is to peel the darn things, at the expense
of third degree burns on your fingers. (Tip: Use kitchen mittens and brush
the beans in your hands). If the beans are too hard to peel roast them a bit
longer.

   Grind the beans into a pan. They produce a dark oily paste called "cocoa
paste".

   The oil in the cocoa has a bitter taste that you have to get used to. I
like it this way, but not all people do. Here are the alternatives:

 WITH OIL, which gives you a richer flavour:

   Spread aluminum foil on a table and make small pies of chocolate, about
1/4 of an inch high, and 6 inches in diameter. Let them rest overnight. The
morning after they are hard tablets. Remove them from the aluminum foil and
rap them in it. Store in the freezer.

 WITHOUT OIL, some flavour is gone, less bitter, weaker (whimper) chocolate:

   Put the paste inside a thin cloth (like linen), close the cloth and squeeze
until the oil comes out. If you manage to get most of the oil out, what is
left is high quality cocoa powder, like Droste's.

What is left now is either bitter tablets or bitter cocoa powder.

You can now make a nice beverage as follows:

  Boil a liter of milk (or water, like in ancient Mexican style. Like water
for chocolate, "Como agua para chocolate": you know).

  When the milk is warm (not hot) add a chocolate pie in pieces. Stir with a
blender (but be careful! the blender's electric cord should NOT touch the
pot or any other hot thing around it).

  When the chocolate has dissolved add 1/2-3/4 cups of sugar (depending how
sweet you like your chocolate) and blend in fast. MAKE SURE THE SUGAR IS
COMPLETELY DISSOLVED IN THE CHOCOLATE OTHERWISE IT WOULD BE BITTER NO MATTER
HOW MUCH SUGAR YOU MAY ADD AFTERWARDS.

  Add a teaspoon of cinnamon or NATURAL vanilla flavour (artificial vanilla
flavour with chocolate results in an awful medicine like flavour) if you like,
and blend again.

  Let the mixture boil, when it starts to get bubbly quickly remove the pan
from the stove top, and rest the bottom against a soaked cloth. Put again on
stove top, it should get bubbly almost immediately, remove once again and
repeat one last time. This aerates the chocolate which enhances the flavour.

  In a mug, put about 1/2-3/4 of the chocolate mixture, and add cold milk,
until the temperature and/or the concentration of the flavour is right for
your tastes. Accompany with French Pastries. Yum Yum!!


Enjoy!




 6.4.- How to make the best cup of coffee?


The best coffee I ever tasted was while in the coffee growing regions
of Mexico, in the state of Veracruz, in the town of Coatepec.

The quality of the coffee was mostly due to the method of preparation
than to the quality of the grains (which is at about the same level as
an average colombian coffee).


Here's how to make it:

Grind the coffee grains from coarse to _very_coarse_.


Boil in a _pan_ a litre of water (four cups).

When the water is boiling, turn off the stove and add 8-12
table spoons of coffee (2-3 spoons per each cup).

Add two-three teaspoons of sugar per cup (for a total of 8-12
spoons of sugar).

Stir _very_ slowly (the water is so hot that the sugar dissolves
mostly on its own).

Let the coffee rest for about 5 minutes.

Strain the coffee using a _metal_strainer_!  Like the ones used
for cooking. The strainer should be like the ones used by granny
for making tea. The diameter is a bit smaller that a cup,
with a semi-sphere shape.

This coffee has grit in the bottom, even after being strained.
Therefore DO NOT stir the pot or the cup. If the coffee is shaked,
let it rest for about five minutes. Needless to say, do not
drink the last sip of coffee from the cup: it's all grit.

If you want to add milk, add carnation.

WARNING: This coffee may fool you 'cause it has a very smooth taste but
is extremely strong. Caffeine content per millilitre is right there with
espresso, but you can't tell!

NOTE: For some strange reason, when preparing this coffee I tend to
have a success ratio of about one out of two attempts. I still don't know
what I'm doing wrong, since, as far as I can tell, always repeat the
same steps. Perhaps sometimes I don't let the coffee rest long
enough.


 6.5.- Turkish Coffee


From Schapira, The Book of Coffee and Tea:

Turkish coffee is prepared using a little copper pot called ibrik.

Use a heaping teaspoon of very finely ground coffee and one heaping teaspoon
of sugar (to taste).  Use about 3oz of coffee.

The trick of it is to heat it until it froths, let it sit a little and allow
it to cool until the froth settles, heating it to the same point a second
time and serving.


 6.6.- Thai Iced Coffee


Make *very* strong coffee (50-100% more coffee to water than usual), use
something like Cafe Du Monde which has chicory in it. Pour 6-8 oz into cup
and add about 1 Tbs sweetened condensed milk.  Stir, then pour over ice.

You'll have to experiment with the strength and milk so you get lots of
taste after the ice/water dilutes it.


My version comes from a newspaper article of many years ago, and simply
calls for grinding two or three fresh cardamom pods and putting them in
with the coffee grounds.  Make a strong coffee with a fresh dark roast,
chill it, sweeten and add half-and-half (that's what I saw the chef using
at the last Thai restaurant I went to) to taste.

This is a derivation-from-memory of a recipe that I first read some two
years or so ago for Thai iced coffee (that lovely stuff that I can
drink for hours on end while I'm slurping down panang and pad thai):

Makes 1 8-cup pot of coffee

6 tablespoons whole rich coffee beans, ground fine
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander powder
4 or 5 whole green cardamom pods, ground

Place the coffee and spices in the filter cone of your coffee maker.
Brew coffee as usual; let it cool.

In a tall glass, dissolve 1 or 2 teaspoons of sugar in an ounce of the
coffee (it's easier to dissolve than if you put it right over ice).
Add 5-6 ice cubes and pour coffee to within about 1" of the top of the
glass.

Rest a spoon on top of the coffee and slowly pour whipping cream into
the spoon.  This will make the cream float on top of the coffee rather
than dispersing into it right away.

To be totally cool, serve with Flexi-Straws and paper umbrellas...

One other fun note: I got a fresh vanilla bean recently and put it to
good use by sealing it in an airtight container with my sugar.  The
sugar gets the faintest vanilla aroma and is incredible in Real
Chocolate Milk (TM) and iced coffee.

One final note: this would probably be even better with iced espresso,
because the espresso is so much more powerful and loses its taste less
when it's cold.


Strong, black ground coffee
Sugar
Evaporated (not condensed) milk
Cardamom pods

Prepare a pot of coffee at a good European strength (Miriam Nadel
suggests 2 tablespoons per cup, which I'd say is about right).  In
the ground coffee, add 2 or 3 freshly ground cardamom pods.  (I've
used green ones, I imagine the brown ones would give a slightly
different flavour.)  Sweeten while hot, then cool quickly.

Serve over ice, with unsweetened evaporated milk (or heavy cream
if you're feeling extra indulgent).  To get the layered effect,
place a spoon atop the coffee and pour the milk carefully into
the spoon so that it floats on the top of the coffee.

The recipe I have calls for:

1/4 cup strong French roasted coffee
1/2 cup boiling water
2 tsp   sweetened condensed milk

Mix the above and pour over ice.

I'd probably use less water and more coffee and milk.

There is also a stronger version of Thai coffee called "Oleng" which is very
strong to me and to a lot of coffee lovers.

6 to 8 tablespoons ground espresso or French roast coffee
4 to 6 green cardamom pods, crushed
Sugar to taste
Half-and-half or cream
Ice cubes

Put the cardamom pods and the ground dark-roast coffee into a coffee
press, espresso maker, or the filter of a drip coffee maker (if using
a drip-style coffee maker, use half the water).  Brew coffee as for
espresso, stir in sugar.

Fill a large glass with ice and pour coffee over ice, leaving about
1/2 inch at the top.  Place a spoon at the surface of the coffee and
slowly pour half-and-half or cream into the spoon, so that it spreads
across the top of the coffee rather than sinking in.  (You'll stir it
in yourself anyway, but this is a much prettier presentation and it's
as used in most Thai restaurants.)

As with Vietnamese coffee, the struggle here is to keep from downing
this all in ten seconds.





 6.7.- Vietnamese Iced Coffee


Same coffee as above.
Sweetened condensed (not evaporated) milk
Ice

Make even stronger coffee, preferably in a Vietnamese coffee maker.
(This is a metal cylinder with tiny holes in the bottom and a
perforated disc that fits into it; you put coffee in the bottom of
the cylinder, place the disc atop it, then fill with boiling water
and a very rich infusion of coffee drips slowly from the bottom.)

If you are using a Vietnamese coffee maker, put two tablespoons of
sweetened condensed milk in the bottom of a cup and put the coffee
maker on top of the cup.  If you are making espresso or cafe filter
(the infusion method where you press the plunger down through the
grounds after several minutes of infusion), mix the sweetened condensed
milk and the coffee any way you like.

When the milk is dissolved in the coffee (yes, dissolved *is* the
right word here!), pour the combination over ice and sip.

Thai and Vietnamese coffees are very different.

Ca phe sua da (Vietnamese style iced coffee)

2 to 4 tablespoons finely ground dark roast coffee (preferably with chicory)
2 to 4 tablespoons sweetened condensed milk (e.g., Borden Eagle Brand, NOT
  evaporated milk!)
Boiling water
Vietnamese coffee press [see notes]
Ice cubes

Place ground coffee in Vietnamese coffee press and screw lid down on
the grounds.  Put the sweetened condensed milk in the bottom of a
coffee cup and set the coffee maker on the rim.  Pour boiling water
over the screw lid of the press; adjust the tension on the screw lid
just till bubbles appear through the water, and the coffee drips *slowly*
out the bottom of the press.

When all water has dripped through, stir the milk and coffee together.
You can drink them like this, just warm, as ca phe sua neng, but I
prefer it over ice, as ca phe sua da.  To serve it that way, pour the
milk-coffee mixture over ice, stir, and drink as slowly as you can manage.
I always gulp mine too fast. :-)


Notes

A Vietnamese coffee press looks like a stainless steel top hat.  There's
a "brim" that rests on the coffee cup; in the middle of that is a cylinder
with tiny perforations in the bottom.  Above that rises a threaded rod,
to which you screw the top of the press, which is a disc with similar
tiny perforations.  Water trickles through these, extracts flavour from
the coffee, and then trickles through the bottom perforations.  It is
excruciatingly slow.  Loosening the top disc speeds the process, but also
weakens the resulting coffee and adds sediment to the brew.

If you can't find a Vietnamese coffee press, regular-strength espresso
is an adequate substitute, particularly if made with French-roast beans
or with a dark coffee with chicory.  I've seen the commonly available
Medaglia d'Oro brand coffee cans in Vietnamese restaurants, and it
works, though you'll lose some of the subtle bitterness that the
chicory offers.  I *think* Luzianne brand coffee comes with chicory and
is usable in Vietnamese coffee, though at home I generally get French
roast from my normal coffee provider.

Of these two coffees, Vietnamese coffee should taste more or less like
melted Haagen-Dasz coffee ice cream, while Thai iced coffee has a more
fragrant and lighter flavour from the cardamom and half-and-half rather
than the condensed milk.  Both are exquisite, and not difficult to make
once you've got the equipment.

As a final tip, I often use my old-fashioned on-the-stove espresso maker
(the one shaped like an hourglass, where you put water in the bottom,
coffee in the middle, and as it boils the coffee comes out in the top)
for Thai iced coffee.  The simplest way is merely to put the cardamom and
sugar right in with the coffee, so that what comes out the top is ready
to pour over ice and add half and half.  It makes a delicious and very
passable version of restaurant-style Thai iced coffee.




 6.8.- Melya


Espresso
Honey
Unsweetened cocoa

Brew espresso; for this purpose, a Bialetti-style stovetop will
work.  In a coffee mug, place 1 teaspoon of unsweetened powdered
cocoa; then cover a teaspoon with honey and drizzle it into the
cup.  Stir while the coffee brews; this is the fun part.  The
cocoa seems to coat the honey without mixing, so you get a dusty,
sticky mass that looks as though it will never mix.  Then all at
once, presto!  It looks like dark chocolate sauce.  Pour hot
espresso over the honey, stirring to dissolve.  Serve with cream
(optional).  I have never served this cold but I imagine it would
be interesting; I use it as a great hot drink for cold days, though,
so all my memories are of grey skies, heavy sweaters, damp feet
and big smiles.
------------------------------------------------------------