Burr or blade, conical or flat, hand or electric, steps and retention: what matters in a grinder for filter coffee, and why light roasts show the difference most.
Fruity describes an aroma, sour a taste. What roasters' tasting notes mean, why a cup turns sour and what to try if you want coffee that tastes less sharp.
Button or barista? What a bean to cup machine and a manual espresso machine ask of your beans, your time and your cleaning routine – and what a cup costs.
Sugarcane, Swiss Water, Mountain Water, COâ‚‚ or DCM: how each method takes the caffeine out, which one UK roasters name and what the law says decaf may contain.
Espresso, omni or filter roast? What works in a bean to cup machine, why oily beans clog the grinder, and what Ninja, Sage, De'Longhi, Philips, Jura, Melitta, Smeg and Miele ask of your beans.
Landraces instead of named varieties, washing stations instead of farms, washed or natural: what is behind Ethiopian coffee and what UK roasters charge for it.
Two harvests a year, Castillo and Pink Bourbon, sugarcane decaf and infused experiments: what lies behind Colombian coffee and what UK roasters charge for it.
There is no single best coffee bean, but six questions narrow a long list down to the few coffees that suit you: brew method, flavour, roast, process, price per kilo and freshness.
