The Coffee Ground

Coffee is the second most popular drink on the planet after water. Specialists argue hitherto at which temperature the best coffee is made: should it be poured over with boiling water or water of 87°C; they invent new coffee-grinders and percolators… Meanwhile in Uzbekistan people prefer to drink soluble coffee in the mornings as this is faster and cheaper. The history of soluble coffee began in the 1930s. During many years Brazil faced the challenge of overproduction of green coffee - after all the technology of its processing and preservation simply did not exist. Then the specialists of Nestle Company got down to business. In the period from 1936 to 1940 Morris Morgenstein, the chemist of the corporation, in his laboratory in Switzerland conducted a number of experiments on extraction of water-soluble substances from the fried grains of coffee. At the beginning its taste was not comparable to real coffee, it even received the unflattering name "ersatz-coffee". However, this product became indispensable for the army. Enormous success came to the soluble coffee during World War II: American officials includedNescafe in the daily ration of their soldiers. Why do you think was that? Because coffee is a drink that is…

Invigorative
It is proved that in soluble coffee, caffeine is 1,5 - 2 times less than in the natural. So it is health-giving just in small doses, especially to the people of mental work. Stimulating the nerve cells of the brain, caffeine increases receptivity, disposes to concentrated thinking. This is exactly why after drinking a cup of coffee we observe the inflow of strength and energy, emotional excitement. Caffeine intensifies the excretion of digestive juices, stimulates appetite and quickens digestion.

Medicinal
A cup of coffee can save the life of those who suffer from allergic reaction to nuts and bee bites. The bees in Uzbekistan are very active in spring, especially near Jizak city where they gather honey in the blooming steppe. Caffeine blocks strong allergic reactions as well as the antihistaminic chemicals do. For example, if allergy catches you unawares, it is more likely to receive a cup of coffee than to find the necessary pills. Italians always regard coffee as an effective remedy for struggle against cavity because it kills the main cause of the sickness - streptococcus. It does not matter what kind of coffee it is (ground or soluble). The most important is that it has the ferment trigonelline which gives a bitterish coffee aroma.

Rumors that coffee has a certain contraceptive effect are not groundless. It is only important to understand correctly the core of this statement of scientists. American physicians came to the conclusion that women who consume over four cups of this drink a day become pregnant more rarely than those who do not drink it at all.

Which coffee is more natural?
Some people think that soluble coffee is not a natural product. This is false. Soluble coffee is made only from natural the grains are processed in a special way. A coffee solution is made from them (a very saturated broth) - its foundation. A few types of coffee can be obtained depending on how the received concentrated product is dried. Soluble coffee is made in the form of powder, in the form of granules (agglomerated) and in the form of small triangle-shaped grains (sublimated) - they are called "splinters".

The coffee's ingredients include over 30 organic acids, vitamins of group B, iron, potassium, sodium, calcium, phosphorous, nitrogen and sulphur. Owing to this the coffee drink benefits the forming of hemoglobin in blood, promotes the maintenance of rhythm in the functioning of the heart, forms the bone tissue, contributes to the better functionality of muscular and other tissues of the organism.

If the prepared extract from the fried coffee grains and hot water is injected under pressure into a current of hot air, powdered and agglomerated coffee is obtained. The water evaporates and the drops of coffee turn into corpuscles. If they are then broken up into powder, the coffee like MacCoffee or Cafe Pele is obtained. Granules - agglomerates are the same nubbins which were not grinded but on the contrary brought together. Per se, both these types of coffee differ from each other only by the shape. It does not affect the quality of the drink (powder or granules). However they behave a little differently in the cup: the powder rises to the surface and the granules go to the bottom and dissolve well. The coffee-agglomerate is more convenient and this is why a little more expensive. Classic examples are Nescafe Classic, Jacobs and Maxwell House.

Sublimated granules are valued the most because they are produced with the most expensive method - freezing. The liquid extract is lathered, instantly frozen at a temperature lower than -
40°C and then "granulated" (broken down into pieces of certain sizes). After such "drying in frost" lighter triangle granules are obtained. Specialists affirm that such coffee preserves the maximum amount of taste and aromatic qualities, it is close to the grains in its composition. Examples of such coffee are Nescafe Gold, Tchibo Exclusive.

The quality of coffee
How to determine which drink is better? First of all, draw your attention to the pack, logo of the producer, name. One can come across imitations with a changed name but will not find immoderacy in the can which was disguised as a real containment. Coffee rapidly absorbs all the outside smells and moisture. Impermeability is not a luxury. That is why, if your can does not have a protective film with foil or canning tin cover, this is a counterfeit. The quality of coffee can be determined by the caffeine content. In the soluble coffee there is 2 - 7% of it from the total load. If a dissemination of white spots can be seen in the coffee - the caffeine has been added artificially. This coffee is dangerous. One more important factor is the acidity of coffee, which affects its taste. The term "acidity of coffee" can be considered as and analogue of determining the dryness of wine. Acidity signifies the pleasant flavor strength, emphasizes the high quality of the drink. However the acidity of coffee has nothing in common with the sour taste, inherent to coffees of bitter sorts, as well as to the badly fried coffee. A slight sourness is especially valued by connoisseurs.

The main distinguishing feature of this drink is, of course, its aroma. The coffee aroma is called the "overture to coffee". This is so indeed: we did not taste the drink yet but thanks to the aroma we already get the idea of its quality and dispose ourselves to a romantic or creative manner. Who knows how many symphonies, films, books, business-plans and successful projects were born with the aroma and taste of coffee!

Johann Strauss used to say that for inspiration he only needs an open piano, silence and a cup of coffee. The music will be born from the flavor, the silence will let it be heard, and the piano will bring it to life. Petr Tchaikovsky, a Russian composer, drank such a strong coffee that it had to be boiled separately and he did not want sugar! He believed that sugar spoils the genuine taste of the drink.

There is information that Leonardo da Vinci thought of the idea of a parachute while drinking morning coffee. The great composer Johann Sebastian Bach wrote a cantata about coffee.

Alexandre Dumas, Stefan Sweig and other writers were great admirers of coffee. A French writer Onore de Balzac drank 50-60 cups a day and once calculated that while creating one of his works, he drank 3000 cups of coffee. Another writer, Ernest Theodor Amadeus Hoffmann from Germany was sure that a work cannot turn out bad if one drinks a cup of good coffee prior to writing it, this is why he preferred to boil the drink himself, not trusting anyone with this "ritual". Many amusing facts can be cited as an example but Voltaire outdid everyone with regard to love for coffee. Once, when coffee unexpectedly finished in his house, he immediately sent all his servants after it to different parts of the city and to the man who brought it first he started paying twice as much salary as to others, explaining it thus: "He saved me from death without coffee".

For many centuries already people drink coffee and, of course, they developed the ritual of drinking it, and in the 17^th century they allotted special places on the city streets. In 1672 the first public coffee house was opened in Paris. In the course of time, the coffee houses turned into peculiar clubs where the latest political news were communicated, fiery revolutionary speeches were delivered. On the heels of Paris, coffee houses were opened in London and were the meeting places of young and venerable writers. Coffee houses largely influenced the French and English literature of the XVIII century. Also, in Europe in the end of XIX century the female servants, when getting employed, as a rule even stipulated for "coffee satisfaction". Maids and cooks tried to receive a pound of coffee grains per month apart from the coffee that they drank at the masters' houses. Another weakness of women related to coffee is divination on coffee ground. Women of various ages and level of education are prone to this weakness. I can name four women among my female acquaintances, which regularly go for divination on coffee ground. I, myself have resorted to the attendance of fortune-tellers 3 times already. You will find brief interpretations of the images on coffee grounds on our pages. I want to return to the theme of coffee-houses. For today, I can name a few addresses in Tashkent.

The most prominent coffee-house is Dolce Vita on A.Timur Street (I mean the signboard). In spring a coffee-house was opened on Pushkin Street near the Inconel business-centre and it is called "Carnaval". However, they cannot be compared to "Burjuy" (Bourgeois) coffee-house. Do you know why? There, they have delicious pastry, a vast assortment of coffee, two cozy halls (on the first and second floors) and, what was unusual for me to see, fancy gift sets with cans of coffee, cups and a coffee pot. Most stunning is Anna, the manager who knows everything about coffee. My story on coffee was written with her help because my attempts to write an article on my own were not crowned with success. Three cups of Nescafe coffee which were drunk during my creative process were not much help. In order to stimulate my brain in the next year I will drink coffee more often, and I wish that to you too.

Divination on coffee ground
If an image of a hen can be seen in the coffee ground, this means that the person spends too much time on home and works too little. Of course, the comfort of home and housekeeping mean a lot but without work a man cannot occupy a worthy place in society, deserve the appreciation and respect of those around him. If one can see the image of a snowflake on the surface of the coffee ground, this means that all the problems will be successfully solved in the near future. Of course, it does not mean that one has to sit on one's hands and do nothing. Nevertheless, the person may expect a favorable outcome of events.
If a person sees an egg in the coffee ground, this signifies hidden success. For a while yet, no one suspects that in the near future some very propitious event will occur. However success is very close, this is why one can start any affair, it will. definitely work well.

A recipe
1 glass of milk, 6 teaspoons of natural coffee, 4 - 5 teaspoons of sugar, 2 bananas, 4 tablespoons of fresh cream.
Boil the milk in a coffee-pot and pour the coffee in. As soon as it starts rising, take it off the stove for a minute, then put back. When the froth starts to rise anew, take it off the stove again. Let the coffee to settle, take off the froth, filter and dissolve the sugar. Peel the bananas and make a squash out of the pulp, mix it with cream and whip thoroughly with a mixer. Pour the cooled coffee into two tall wine glasses and put the cream with bananas on top.

A rating (according to the opinion of Time Out Tashkent magazine)
Name of the coffee-house	Interior	Atmosphere	Service	Assortment	Location	General evaluation
Burjuy(Bourgeois)	**	*** (no smoking)	***	***	**	***
Bravissimo	**	*	*	*	**	**
Dolce Vita	***	**	**	*	***	**
Carnaval	**	**	*	*	*	*