How to choose the best coffee when you go to the supermarket

For those who like coffee, but are not experts, it is always a challenge to choose the best powder in the supermarket. Some are low quality, others promise a lot, but at the time of the cup… nothing. Choosing a brand is a challenge, but it’s possible not to make a fool of yourself.

O awesome.club selected some valuable information so that a lay person can buy a coffee of at least acceptable quality when it arrives on the shelf of a supermarket.

We, who also love coffee, would very much like the price of a great quality bean or powder to be low, but that is not possible. From planting, through harvesting to roasting and packaging, everything in a good coffee is expensive. So, if that half-kilo pack is priced too low, be wary. It is probably of poor quality.

Arabica and robusta are two species of trees and knowing the difference between them is essential when choosing your coffee. In Brazil, there is only one variety of robusta, Conillon, considered of inferior quality and used to lower the price of industrialized coffees. Good coffees, in general, are of the Arabica species, hence the reason to see on certain packages the warning “100% Arabica” — without this warning, it is very likely that it is Robusta. There are several varieties in the country, with a strong and sweet body.

Having the quality seal of the Brazilian Coffee Industry Association (Abic) does not mean much without knowing how to interpret it. Abic gives scores from 0 to 10 and considers recommended for consumption only those who receive at least 4.5. Up to 5.9, the coffee is in the Traditional / Extra strong category. Next comes Superior (6 to 7.2) and Gourmet (7.3 to 10). The association’s website has a good explanation of the quality categories.

Some say that coffee is a bitter drink. Wrong. Good quality coffee cannot be bitter, even when drunk without added sugar or sweetener. If the brand you bought causes this sensation, the problem may be in the preparation (using boiling water, for example), but mainly in the product. There may be a problem with the production or roasting. In Brazil, there are many coffees with excessive roasting, which hides problems with the bean, but causes bitterness.

They are little sold in supermarket chains, because of their price well above the most common brands. What defines them is their high quality. According to the Specialty Coffee Association (SCA), specialty coffee is a beverage recognized for its unique quality and flavor and different and superior personality, with beans of controlled origin and high standards of processing, roasting, transport and preparation. It goes through technical standards from planting to cup.

First, the reason for the name: jacu is a native bird of the Atlantic Forest. Wow, and what does it have to do with one of the best cafes in the world? It turns out that for production, the grain is not removed from the tree, but from the guan feces. The friendly bird does an important job, because he doesn’t eat any grain, he consumes only the best available. Obviously it’s all very clean before reaching the consumer’s mouth. And how much does it cost? Well… a cup can reach more than 20 reais and a kilo easily exceeds 600 reais. You will hardly find this one in the supermarket.

Okay, now you can buy better quality coffee when you go to the market. Tell us how much you love coffee!