THE BEST COFFEE FOR YOUR AUTOMATIC COFFEE MACHINE?

Today’s post responds to a change that we are seeing in the consumption of our coffee-loving customers. Many of them once bought a capsule coffee maker, the kind that became fashionable a few years ago.

Now they are putting them aside to acquire an automatic coffee machine. The reasons? Ecological, economic factors (capsules are not cheap), consumer factors – they want to see and know what coffee they are drinking – or all three.

The point is that they have bought an automatic coffee machine. They come to tell us that it has broken down due to using roasted coffee. Even some of these machines have been damaged after a few months of use, with the additional problem that these failures are not covered for the appliance warranty since it occurs due to misuse of the appliance. Yes, misuse.

So we want to explain. If you have one, take note.

What coffee do I use in my automatic coffee maker?

The first thing you have to know – and that you will have deduced from what we have just told you – is that you cannot put any coffee in your coffee maker. The best type is natural coffee, and you should never use roasted.

The difference between a natural coffee and a roasted one is something that every consumer should know:

Natural coffee

It is one to which no type of substance has been added in the roasting process. The grain is the only ingredient. Its two main varieties are Arabica and Robusta; they can come from different countries but, in general, the main producing areas of the world are in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

Roasted coffee

It is the one to which sugar has been added in the roasting. Before the end of the process, sucrose or glucose syrup is added in a maximum proportion of 15 kg of sugar per 100 kilograms of coffee, and it is burned.

This burnt sugar gives your cup of coffee the characteristic dark colour that at the same time detracts from the flavour of the infusion, providing more significant bitterness, thereby covering the original nuances of coffee’s smell and taste.

It is curious because roasted coffee emerged during the 17th century due to the belief that this roasting system maintained the natural properties of coffee for longer. Over time it has been proven that it is false since it does not extend its properties.

The burnt sugar from the roast, with the heat given off by the grinding wheels, turns into a kind of sticky caramel, which gradually adheres to the internal mechanism of the coffee maker, causing excessive and dangerous friction.

If you put a handful of roasted coffee beans in your hand, wait a few seconds and move it slightly so that the heat generated by your body melts this caramel, you will see how when you release the beans, your palm will be black and sticky.

The most striking thing is that in our country, the coffee that is most consumed is roasted, perhaps, for this reason, we drink so much coffee with milk. Coffee makers bought in Spanish stores usually have a notice indicating that they are not used with roast, but coffee makers destined for other countries do not have such a notice.

The advantages of using automatic coffee machines

The best thing about automatic coffee machines is their easy use, as simple as putting the cup and pressing the button to prepare the drink. In a few seconds you will have freshly ground and hot coffee, you have to worry about adding the beans and water.

You can use natural, Arabic or robusta coffees with your machine, from the origin that you like the most or make your blends. A useful tip: buy in specialized places.

And although automatic coffee machines are indeed much more expensive than capsule ones. If several coffee consumers are living in your house, we assure you that, in the medium term, the investment will be better for your pocket due to the price of the beans. For these machines, unlike capsules. In this post, you can see a comparison that we made of the use of the two types of machines.

For all this, we recommend that you consider the option of acquiring an automatic coffee maker if you do not already have one. And please, do not consume roasted coffee, your arteries and your heart will thank you.

Right now, as I write this, I am having a coffee made with a 10-year-old coffee pot with no breakdown.