Coffee Vocab: BITTER

The best way to sharpen your descriptions of coffee you enjoy or dislike is to know the tasting terminology...
You have already learned acidity in one of our previous posts, now on to bitterness. Bitterness is one of the four basic tastes, perceived at the back of the tongue. This flavor is present in low-quality or over-extracted coffees (it must have not been a Vienna Coffee Company's coffee). The term is often, incorrectly used to describe burnt flavors.

Webster's describes bitter as...
being or inducing the one of the four basic taste sensations that is peculiarly acrid, astringent, or disagreeable and suggestive of an infusion of hops

So if your current coffee gives you a bitter taste in your mouth, don't become bitter yourself...
try Vienna Coffee Company's specialty coffees!

"bitter." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2008.
Merriam-Webster Online. 20 November 2008

IT'S HERE! 35 kilo roaster



WOW! This has already been an eventful week for Vienna Coffee Company and it is only Wednesday; two new babies yesterday and a new 35 kilo roaster this morning.

Mid morning, 3 large boxes were transported into the VCC roastery carrying pieces of our new roaster ready for assembly. With an excited buzz in the air, John started taking out each part delicately piece by piece. As he pried the sides off of the boxes his eyes lit up and his mouth was drawn up in a huge grin like that of a young boy opening his gifts. The anticipation of this monster machine (in comparison to our current roaster) has been mounting for weeks, and thank goodness it has finally arrived.

Unfortunately, due to the busyness of this season, we will not have the roaster in working condition until after the holiday season, but we will keep you posted as soon as it is. We'd love to have you tour the roaster as soon as we have it up!

COFFEE INDUSTRY NEWS: Starbucks net income drops 97%

For news on the coffee industry...

New York Times stated on Nov. 10, 2008, "In a sharp economic downturn, fewer people are in the mood to indulge. On Monday, the chain reported net income dropped 97 percent, capping a turbulent year in which the company tried to get ahead of the economic slowdown by closing stores and laying off employees."

Also, "Starbucks is now slowing the proliferation of its stores, which made it ubiquitous in American cities, but also a source of comedy to many. The company plans to end the 2009 fiscal year with 225 fewer company-owned stores than at the beginning of the year."

For whole story click here.
On a side note, if going to Starbucks each day is getting hard for you, Vienna Coffee Company invites you to make your own specialty drinks at home with our selection of Espresso coffees. We also are a supplier of at home espresso machines. Likewise, supporting the small local coffee shops around you is always a big help to your local economy, especially during the economic downturn!
(These are images of Grounded in Maryville, Tennessee and Brown Cup Coffee Co. in Lenoir City).