Who doesn’t like to wake up to the smell of a freshly brewed coffee in the Morning?
Do you know what it takes to make this perfect cup of pleasure?
Dominican Coffee is a wonderfully rich-flavored and dark roasted coffee. The pride and joy of the Dominicans. Most of us have their coffee black/ negro in a small cup with lots of sugar/ azucar.
When on one of Outback’s Adventures excursions with us, you visit a typical house, (read more about it later) where the family offers you thimble-sized cups with sugar already added. If you do not like sugar in your coffee then you will be shocked with your first taste. Give it a try!
It does taste wonderful and will give you back the bounce in your walk you lost while strolling in the hot Caribbean sun.
The coffee grown in this Caribbean region is a darker type coffee that has a soft, sweet flavor called “Arabica”. It is unique, as it does not have the bitter taste that many dark roast coffees seem to have.
The coffee from Dominican Republic ranks high in full flavored coffee, but the price for these organic produced goods are very reasonable.
Organically produced coffee from The Dominican Republic
It takes about 4 years for a plant to start producing.
First comes the sweet scented flowers, and then the little beans start growing, quite fast, where the flower once was. It will take about 35 weeks for the flower to turn into a green bean then red. When the coffee “cherry” is ripe it is bright red, firm and is shiny.
The coffee is grown mostly in full shaded areas with maybe 10% of it grown in the sun, that’s why farmers mix the crop with cocoa and palm trees as well as plantains and bananas to provide the much needed shade.
This is very good for the environment because the shade trees provide habitats for many species of birds, lizards and even orchid plants.
About 90% of the coffee produced in Dominican Republic is organic and environmentally friendly because most growers do not use chemical pesticides or fertilizers in the growing process.
As the Dominican Coffee production is usually a family business, the farmers like Chappie in Punta Cana and Papo in Puerto Plata are processing the coffee themselves in what is called a wet mill / beneficios humedos.
This way only the ripe beans are picked saving the unripe to be picked when they are ready. They are sorted to get the good beans out of the bunch. The good beans float in water the bad stuff sinks.
Then they are separated again according to density of the bean, this is how the bean is graded. The better the coffee the denser the bean. Then the beans are fermented outside the house on a concrete floor over the next days.
Depending on the weather and humidity this can take up to a few days, depending also on the bean type.
The dried beans do not have the typical flavor or smell yet, this magic happens in the process of roasting. On the countryside this is mostly done over open fire, where the beans are located in an iron pot and steered for approximately 45 minutes to an hour, cinnamon sticks are added for additional flavor.
Of course you can ask Mister Chappy here how he makes his coffee extra delicious!
Than everything is bagged and sealed air tide, since oxygen is the biggest killer of the fantastic flavor. Generally the best method is to grind the coffee right before preparing, the next cup of coffee. For longer storage keep the coffee in an air sealed container and the freezer.
What is the best way of preparing this liquid gold?
Get yourself an espresso coffee maker like the one pictured here,as this has proven to be the best for making your Dominican Coffee.
With its patented octagonal shape it makes this maker easy to spot in any little shop. There are many other methods of preparation that would do it, but the coffee just doesn’t taste the same.
You need: fresh roasted and fresh ground coffee and hot brewing water.
Over the centuries experience and experiment has taught that the best liberation of aroma and extraction of flavor is accomplished if the water is just off-boiling as it reaches the ground beans. (92º-96º C).
That is why the “long espresso” brewer used by everyone in the Dominican Republic makes such good coffee. Boiling water is forced up the inner tube by pressurized steam. When the water hits the ground coffee, the temperature is perfect.
Finally, do not brew more coffee than you are going to drink right then and there. Brewed coffee left to cool or even left warming on a hot plate loses body and flavor very rapidly. You will just be wasting the quality you paid for and worked hard to achieve.
Now sit bag on your shady terrace, kick off those shoes and lean back…relax and enjoy the perfect cup of coffee. While you are drinking our rich coffee, close your eyes.
Enjoy the wonderful aroma and envision the bright Caribbean sun while you are enjoying the best coffee in all the world.
Remember, how much it takes to get that aromatic black liquid into your hands, as many people do not realize how much was involved to give you that morning or after dinner pleasure!
We want to thank you for taking home this unique artisan and organic products. You did not only bought a great souvenir from your stay on our island, be assured that you help with this purchase also the local families and their countryside business.
When opening one morning the coffee container and you realize you are running low on these magical beans, than you know it is time again to come for a visit to our beautiful island, the Dominican Republic.
