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Coffee Basics: A Quick and Easy Guide (Paperback)

by Kevin Knox (Author), Julie Sheldon Huffaker (Author) "To develop a knowledgeable relationship with coffee-and particularly to learn to distinguish and appreciate its flavors-one must first understand what coffee is..." (more)
Key Phrases: vacuum pot, washed coffees, roast style, Costa Rica, Latin American, United States (more...)

4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)

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Coffee: A Guide to Buying, Brewing, and Enjoying, Fifth Edition by Kenneth Davids
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The Perfect Cup: A Coffee Lover's Guide To Buying, Brewing, And Tasting by Timothy J. Castle
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Editorial Reviews

Product Description
A coffee lover's guide to the best brews—written by two industry insiders

Coffee Basics is a brief, no-nonsense guide to coffee products, appreciation, and brewing. It demystifies coffee's origins and history, explores the overwhelming amount of different varieties and explains exactly how to brew the best cup. The authors describe the regional character of coffee beans from around the world and discuss a variety of roasting equipment and brewing methods for both home and restaurant.

Lists mail-order sources for the best beans, plus great coffee drink recipes, tasting tips, and a complete coffee taster's glossary

KEVIN KNOX (Boulder, Colorado) is a Vice President and coffee buyer for Allegro. As a beverage specialist for Starbucks he was responsible for appraisals, quality standards, recipes, training procedures, and brewing equipment. JULIE SHELDON HUFFAKER (Portland, Oregon) writes for Cafe Ole and Coffee Matters magazines.

From the Publisher
Coffee industry insiders present a succinct, straightforward guide which explains just as much as readers need to know to make sense of the specialty coffee trend and increase their drinking enjoyment, buying confidence, and brewing performance. Includes mail-order sources for great coffees, recipes, and a coffee taster's glossary.

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Product Details

Paperback: 216 pages
Publisher: Wiley; 1 edition (January 1, 1997)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0471136174
ISBN-13: 978-0471136170
Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 12 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)

Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)

Amazon.com Sales Rank: #42,245 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)
Popular in this category: (What's this?)
#5 in Books > Cooking, Food & Wine > Drinks & Beverages > Coffee & Tea

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Inside This Book (learn more)

First Sentence:
To develop a knowledgeable relationship with coffee-and particularly to learn to distinguish and appreciate its flavors-one must first understand what coffee is. Read the first page

Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
vacuum pot, washed coffees, roast style, plunger pot, espresso blends, finished brew, blade grinder, darker roasts, coffee press, decaffeination process, cup quality, brewing water, brewing method, individual coffees, coffee lovers, good espresso, coffee cherries, drip coffee, brewing equipment, coffee oils, specialty coffee, dark roasts, fine coffee, coffee flavors, organic coffees

Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Costa Rica, Latin American, United States, Central American, Yemen Mocha, Guatemalan Antigua, Papua New Guinea, Ethiopian Yergacheffe, Swiss Water, Tres Rios, East African, Ethiopian Harrar, Jamaican Blue Mountain, Starbucks Coffee Company, Estate Java, North American, Brew Great Coffee, Mocha Java, Puerto Rico, Taster's Guide, West Coast

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Citations (learn more)

This book cites 4 books:

All About Coffee by William H Ukers on page 189
Espresso from Bean to Cup, The Complete Guide to Expresso, Cappuccino, Latte and Coffee by Nick Jurich on page 188
Espresso: Ultimate Coffee, Second Edition by Kenneth Davids on page 188
Coffee Technology by Michael Sivetz on page 189

4 books cite this book:

The Weedless Widow (Antique Lover's Mysteries (Prime Crime)) by Deborah Morgan in Back Matter
Bitter Harvest : A Chef's Perspective on the Hidden Danger in the Foods We Eat and What You Can Do About It by Lisa M. Holmes in Back Matter
Remarkable Service: A Guide to Winning and Keeping Customers for Servers, Managers, and Restaurant Owners by The Culinary Institute of America in Back Matter
The Joy of Coffee: The Essential Guide to Buying, Brewing, and Enjoying - Revised and Updated by Corby Kummer in Back Matter

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Pour Your Heart Into It by Howard Schultz

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Home Comforts by Cheryl Mendelson

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Start and Run a Coffee Bar by Tom Matzen

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Home Coffee Roasting, Revised, Updated Edition by Kenneth Davids

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What Do Customers Ultimately Buy After Viewing This Item?

	51% buy the item featured on this page: Coffee Basics: A Quick and Easy Guide 4.3 out of 5 stars (9) $17.05
	16% buy Coffee: A Guide to Buying, Brewing, and Enjoying, Fifth Edition 4.4 out of 5 stars (15) $12.21
	13% buy The Complete Idiot's Guide to Starting and Running a Coffee Bar 4.4 out of 5 stars (5) $11.53
	10% buy I Love Coffee!: Over 100 Easy and Delicious Coffee Drinks 4.6 out of 5 stars (9) $11.55

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Customer Reviews

9 Reviews

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4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(2)
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Average Customer Review

4.3 out of 5 stars (9 customer reviews)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

66 of 66 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars THE coffee bible!, October 21, 1999

By	T. Consing (Manila, Philippines) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I have read a number of books on coffee, but Knox and Huffaker's book is simply the all-around reference on coffee. While other book publishers include snazzy photo plates and recipes to sell their expensive books, this book gives tons of useful information on what goes into a wonderful cup of coffee. The experience and the passion that the authors (who are industry experts) have for the bean shows throughout. Because of this book, I was able to significantly enhance my family and friends' coffee drinking experience. Whether you're a novice coffee drinker or a seasoned espresso barista, this is one book that should be in your reference shelf.

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17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great coffee book, May 11, 2003

By A Customer

This book gives a good basic understanding of what coffee is all about. I especially like the specificity of information about coffees from different areas in the Regional Character chapter. For example, discussing Costa Rica's two best growing areas and how the coffees differ. I also found the opinions of which coffees are worthy of their price helpful. I read the Perfect Cup first and am glad I did because it was a good coffee overview for me. Coffee Basics was a great second book for me because I was looking for more specific information about coffees of each area. If I hadn't read Perfect Cup first I think the break down of info. on each type of coffee/regional character would have been information overload for me. If you are new or relatively new to the coffee world and are excited about learning more and more about the subtlties and nuiances present in that cup, I highly recommend you read this book.

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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Covers a lot in very few words..., February 20, 2003

By	Van H. Dai "Bookie the Worm" (Richardson, TX USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This is not exactly a great book, but then again, not exactly a bad book. It covers much about the industry of coffee and goes over the different regions that produce coffee. It describes what is and how to brew a perfect cup of coffee.

But I get a feeling of being rushed from one tidbit of information to the next. Just while I am almost within grasp of a certain concept or am about to form a picture of what it is trying to say it ends there without further detail. But it does repeat key information more than once throughout the book so you do walk away with greater knowledge than before.

If learning about coffee was compared to eating out, this book is best suited as either an appetizer or a desert. Appetizer to whet and get your brain ready to learn more about coffee, or as a desert, to catch up on and review over learned knowledge.

I guess that's why it is called "Coffee Basics" after all.

"A Perfect Cup" is a better selection in that it contains more information and better elaboration although that book is slightly dated being published in 1994. But coffee has been around way before 1994 so does it really matter?

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Great intro
This is a great introduction to the world of coffee for anyone getting into any part of the industry or if you just really enjoy coffee and want to learn more about it.

Published on July 4, 2007 by D. Dominguez

3.0 out of 5 stars A solid, useful reference
I particularly enjoyed the Chapter on Regional Character (pp 47 - 71). I disagree with description of Kenya as being a "... brooding heavyweight ..." page 39. Read more

Published on May 13, 2007 by Cameron Miller

5.0 out of 5 stars To the point -not over powering
I wanted to know about coffee. This book gave me knowledge about coffee. Easy to read and to the point. Read more

Published on March 12, 2007 by Robert G. Lackie

5.0 out of 5 stars Great source for coffee amateurs
I recommend this book for any person who wants to explore and expand his knowledge about the coffee. Its history, procedures, types of coffee, regions, recipes, etc. Read more

Published on September 26, 2005 by Maria De Los Pagan

4.0 out of 5 stars great book for beginners
Great introduction to coffee - how to brew a great cup, a little bit about the industry, the different growing regions, how to buy good coffee, how to taste coffee, information... Read more

Published on July 26, 2002

5.0 out of 5 stars More than basics and fantastic stories to know
Mr.Knox tells full stories based upon his own experiences in the industry. And I am getting improved taste of my own brewed coffee with dozens of stories to share with my friends... Read more

Published on February 22, 1999

› See all 9 customer reviews...

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