Glossary


Glossary

Arabica A type of coffee species which grows generally above 3000 ft and produces a rich tasting bean relatively low in caffeine mostly grown in Latin America
Automatic Machine A traditional espresso machine where the amount of water that is used to make the espresso is pre programmed
Backflushing Where a blank filter is used to clean the grouphead on a traditional coffee machine
Bean-to-Cup Machine A machine that offers a variety of preset black and white coffee options at the push of a button. Often used in self service situations.
Blend Espresso is always a blend of different coffees where the roaster is looking for a specific end result with body, acidity and sweetness coming from the mix of different beans
Blind Filter Used on your espresso machine to back flush. When used allows a build up of pressure in the grouphead which when released forces cleaner and water through the head and out into the drain
Burrs The blades in a grinder that crush the beans to a uniform size suitable for the preparation of the coffee
Crema The initial light coloured creamy liquid that comes out when making an espresso
Cupping Coffee tasting to evaluate the characteristics within different coffees
Degassing The time roasted beans need to release the CO2 trapped inside of the bean when ground, usually a few hours at most to rest and settle and give their best taste.
Dose The amount of coffee put into the filter basket
Espresso The small amount of coffee made by a machine forcing water through ground coffee under pressure
Extraction The amount of coffee released from the beans, usually depends on the finess of the grind.
Frothed Milk Milk that has been expanded by using steam.
Grinder Machine used to crush beans to a size suitable for coffee making
Grouphead Part of the espresso machine where the portafilter is attached to have water forced through the coffee
Hopper Container attached to a grinder to store the whole beans until ready to grind
Portafilter The handle with filter basket used to make espresso coffee
Puck Coffee bean residue left in the filter basket after the extraction of the espresso
Robusta A type of coffee species grown mostly in wet areas of the eastern hemisphere, high in caffeine and can be quite harsh to taste
Steam Wand The pipe attached to the espresso machine used to heat and froth milk
Steamed Milk Milk that has been stretched and heated using a steam wand
Tamper Used to flatten, compress and remove the excess air from ground coffee when making espresso