Til 



COFFEE. 



Cuffcr. i dried in the sun upon mats, which are nude to imbibe 

 Na ^~."^" their moisture. The dry envelope ii tlen removed 



the fruit, by means of a large stone cylinder. The fruit 

 it again placed in the tun, (ill it is completely free of 

 ertry particle of moisture. It is tlitii winnowed, and 

 packed up in bale*. 



Gathering The English and French colonists follow a different 

 method from the preceding, in gathering their coffee. 

 At aoon as the fruit i* of a deep red colour, it is r 

 cd to be ready for being gathered. A large linen bag, 

 kept open by mean* of a hoop round its mouth, is sus- 

 pended to the neck of the negroes, who pull the berries 

 with their hands, and, after filling the bag, empty it into 

 a Urge basket. A single negro can easily collect three 

 bushels in a day. As the berries do not ripen together, 

 they arc collected at three different gatherings. Oue 

 thousand pounds of good coffee is produced troni one 

 hundred bushels of cherries just from the tree. The 

 coffee berries may now be dried in two different ways. 

 The first method U to place them in the sun in layers of 

 four inches thick, on inclined platforms, or sloping terra- 

 ces. In a few days, the pulp is discharged by fermenta- 

 tion, and in about three weeks the coffee is completely dry. 

 The skin of the berries already broken, is removed by 

 mills, or in wooden mortars. The second method is to 

 separate the grain from the pulp at once by means of a 

 mill, and the grains are then left to soak in water 2-1 hours. 

 They are afterwards placed in the sun to be completely 

 dried. The grains of coffee are next stripped of the pel- 

 licle, or parchment as it is called, by means of appropri- 

 ate mills, and it is afterwards winnowed, and mingled 

 with the grindings and dust of the parchment, in winch 

 .State it is put into bags for sale. 



Dr Titford* is of opinion, that coffee should be sent 

 home iu the whole berry, without being divested of its 

 pulp. By this means, he asserts that it will retain its 

 peculiar flavour, and will not imbibe any of the bad fla- 

 vour of sugar, rum, pimento, &c. with which it is gene- 

 rally shipped. 



On the Preparation of Coffee. 



At there is perhaps no process which is so little un- 

 derstood, and so uncertain in its results, as that of making 

 coffee, we had determined to treat this branch of the sub- 

 ject at considerable length, and had collected materials 

 for giving a full account of the various approved methods, 

 which have been founded either on theory or experience; 

 but upon examining the method which has been recently 

 published by Count Rumford in his 18th Essay, we were 

 80 much satisfied with its superiority to every other, 

 from the numerous experiments and trials which the 

 Count has made on the subject, that we have no hesita- 

 tion in giving it as the only method which is worthy of 

 being preserved. 



As it is of the utmost importance that every part of 

 the process should be carefully and scrupulously follow- 

 ed, we have preserved as much as possible the very words 

 of the Count. 



" Great care must be taken not to roast coffee too 

 much. At toon as it has acquired a deep cinnamon co- 

 lour, it should be taken from the fire and cooled : other- 

 wise much ot its aromatic flavour will be dissipated, and 

 itt taste will become disagreeably bitter. 



In some parts of Italy, coffee is roasted in a thin Flo- 

 rence flask, slightly closed by a loose cork, and held over 

 clear burning coal* with continual agitation. No vapour 

 uiues from the coffee sufficient to. prevent the progress 



Prrpiti- 

 t inn of 

 coffee. 



Count 

 Kumford't 

 method of 

 preparing 



of itt roasting from being clearly seen. The Count has Coffc*. 



adopted this process, by using a thin globular \esil of ~~ 



glass, with a lon>; ucck, which lie rloses, when charged, Rol , t j n _ 

 with a long cm k, having a mall slit on one side, to allow 

 the escape of tlr , M J projecting far enough out 



oft!* neck to be used as a handle to turn the vessel 

 round, while expoaed to the heat of a chafing dish of 

 coale. Thin vessel is laid horizontal!) , and is supported 

 by its neck so as to be easily turned round j which may 

 be done without t I.e least danger, however near the coals, 

 provided the glass be thin, and kept constantly turned. 



In order that the coffee may be perfectly good, and 

 very high flavor .. >re than half a pound of the 



grain should be roasted at once ; for when the quantity 

 is greater, it becomes impossible to regulate the heat so 

 as to be quite certain of a good result. The progress of 

 the operation, and the moment most proper to put an end 

 to it, may be judged and determined with great certainty, 

 not only by the changes which take place in the colour 

 of tiie grain, but also by the peculiar fragrance which, 

 will first begin to be diffused by it when it is nearly 

 roasted enough. 



If coffee in powder be not defended from the air, it 

 aoon loses its flavour, and becomes of little value ; and 

 the liquor is never in such high perfection as when the 

 coffee is made immediately after the grain is roasted. 

 This fact is well known to those who are accustomed to 

 coffee in countries where the use of it is not controlled 

 by the laws ; and if a government be seriously disposed 

 to encourage the use of coffee, the Count considers it as 

 indispensable that individuals should be permitted to roast 

 it in their own houses. But as the roasting and grind- Method of 

 ing of coffee takes up considerable time, the author de- preserving 

 scribes a contrivance of a canister to keep it in, which has C ro " Ilt! 

 a double cover. This vessel is a cylinder of tin, having c 

 a sliding piston within, of the same material, formed like 

 the cover of a box, but having several slits in its sides, 

 by which they are sprung outwards, and cause it to re- 

 tain its place in the cylinder with considerable force. 

 The piston, being pressed down upon the coffee, retains 

 it and defends it from the air, while the same object is 

 more completely secured by a common well fitted cover 

 at top. It may be here remarked that this kind of 

 canister has the advantage of confining the article with- 

 out including any air in the same space, except what may 

 be diffused between the particles ; but that, with this 

 exception, a well-corked bottle or other fit vessel may 

 answer the same purpose. 



Boiling hot water extracts from coffee, which has been 

 properly roasted and ground, an aromatic substance of 

 an exquisite flavour, together with a considerable quan- 

 tity of astringent matter of a bitter, but very agreeable 

 taste ; but this aromatic substance, which is supposed to 

 be an oil, is extremely volatile ; and is so feebly united 

 to the water, tliat it escapes into the air with great fa- 

 cility. 



If a cup of the very best coffee, prepared in the highest 

 perfection, and boiling hot, be placed on a table in the 

 middle of a room, and suffered to cool, it will, in cool- 

 ing, fill the room with its fragrance ; but the coffee, af- 

 U r having become cold, will be found to have lost a 

 great deal of its flavour. If it be again heated, its taste 

 and flavour will be still farther impaired ; and after it 

 has been heated and cooled two or three times, it will be 

 found to be quite vapid and disgusting. 



The fragrance diffused through the air is a proof, that 

 the coffee has been deprived of its most volatile parts; and 



Se the Tnuwtftwiu oftlie Sonetf <>f Artt, vol. i* 



