www.caerurfacoffee.co.uk

Optiat skincare

Interestingly seen on a recent episode of Dragons Den were a brother and sister promoting their skin care company that used coffee grounds in their products? Here is an extract from their web site:

Natural, sustainable and handmade in the UK, Optiat create skincare products from quality ingredients that would otherwise be discarded. We provide ethical alternative o toxic beauty staples, such as micro beads, by using coffee grounds and other natural by products otherwise sent to landfill.

Welcome to Optiat, the nature-friendly skincare company. We take quality ingredients that would otherwise be discarded and transform them into natural, sustainable skincare products. Our products are hand-made in the UK and vegan-friendly, using only plant-based ingredients. We believe in respecting nature around us and will never, ever test on animals.

Check out - https://optiat.com/

www.caerurfacoffee.co.uk

What to do with your coffee dregs – well we at Caer Urfa Coffee put it to good use, we use the chaff the papery layer that comes off the bean at roasting on our garden, acting much like chippings. As for the coffee grounds produced after making a cup of coffee again we mix that with our compost and put that on the garden.  

It will help microorganisms beneficial to plant and vegetable growth thrive as well as attract earthworms. It’s said that coffee grounds lower the pH (or raise the acid level) of soil, which is good for acid loving plants.

Watch out for the next post where we have looked at a couple of companies that use the coffee grounds to good use.

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Caer Urfa Coffee recent visit to West Bay beautiful place to sit and enjoy a cup of coffee.

We are now trading in the monthly farmers market in the square at Wimborne Minster, a town that takes its name for the church at its heart called the Minster Church of St. Cuthburga. As we are learning about our new location we thought we would share some of our research with you.

Wimborne Minster is a town well worth a visit. For hundreds of years the Minster has been a centre for pilgrimage, prayer and worship. It contains some wonderful treasures and artifacts within an ancient building. It is located in the middle of the town centre with its two towers visible as you enter the Wimborne. The present building dates from c.1120 with many additions spanning the centuries

The foundation goes back to c.705AD when Cuthburga, sister to Ina, King of the West Saxons, founded a nunnery on the site.500 nuns are reputed to have lived at Wimborne, many of whom followed St. Boniface to the then pagan Germany, as missionaries. The Nunnery was destroyed by the Danes in 1013 but an old Saxon Chest still remains in the Minster today.

Education has always been a priority. Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry V11 founded a school at Wimborne Minster in 1497 and her parents tomb is in the church.

A Chained Library was established in 1695 although the first books were donated in 1686. The Chained Library, one of only four in the country, is open to the public from Easter to the end of October most weekdays.

www.caerurfacoffee.co.uk

www.caerurfacoffee.co.uk

Coffee Mills

After posting a recent review of grinders for the home, one of our followers mentioned to us the handheld ‘grinding mills’ are also available. So here we look at the different styles that are available.

Seen as a traditional method of grinding your coffee beans, it does require a little manual effort. Whatever style they come in, they all use the principle of manually turning a handle which turns the inner workings, usually burrs, to grind your coffee beans.

Ebay and Amazon offer cheaper versions with prices ranging from £6 to £70. We have one for the home which we bought from a second hand shop for £3. Basically it depends on your preferred style that matches your requirements and kitchen and budget. The three main styles are:

·         Wooden manufacture

·         Glass style

·         Stainless steel style

Hario small mm-2 ceramic burr hand mill (available from Amazon from £22)

Crafted out of wood, with shaft and handle made of metal, it has a tidy 28g capacity drawer which has magnets that hold the drawer unopened and in place.

Ideal for V60 dripper or coffee press this manual grinder allows you to select the coarseness of the coffee grounds by simply adjusting the ceramic burrs. While the lid on top ensures that all beans are protected from scattering all over the place while grinding.

The Small Hario hand grinder has a sturdy design which ensures that it will last and serve you for many years to come.

Trixes coffee bean hand grinder (available from Amazon from £11)

This one is combines a nice wooden look with stainless steel parts for the actual grinding process. Like other examples it also uses a small pull out drawer to catch the grinds. It can also be used to grind spices and herbs.

Measuring 16.8 x 10.8 x 10.6 cms this quality appliance should take about 2 minutes to grind enough beans to make 2 cups of coffee.

YooNeo Portable hand crank ceramic burr coffee mill (available from Amazon from £10)

Again ceramic burrs, this one is adjustable so you can grind from coarse to fine. With a quality stainless steel finish, its slim and lightweight, measuring 23.4 x 6.4 x 6.4 cms, it can grind enough coffee for up to 3 people at any one time.

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The De'Longhi KG79 £58

One of the cheapest grinders on the market is also one of the most consistent. The machine is easy to operate and even easier to clean with the upper wheel of its grinder core simple to remove. The transparent bean container holds up to 120g enough for 12 cups, with the grinder shutting off automatically once your dosage is reached. You can also choose your desired setting from fine, medium or coarse.

·         110 watts.

·         Stainless steel grinding blade.

·         12 grinding settings.

·         Bean container capacity 120g.

·         Transparent lid.

·         Removable container.

·         Size H26, W16, D13cm.

·         EAN: 8004399324541.

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We have noticed an increase in sales of our coffee ‘beans’ rather than the ready ground coffee, it proves more and more that people are buying beans and grinding them at home. This is good news as the customer has a fresher coffee and when bought from our stall or our internet site it is as fresh as it can be.

With this trend in mind we are reviewing a few of the grinders that are available on the market, depending on your budget, prices range from an affordable £22 to silly money of hundreds of pounds.

There are two types of coffee grinders:

a.     Burr

b.      Blade

Most people but not everyone prefer the burr which is made up of two revolving abrasive surfaces (called burrs), in between which the coffee beans are ground a few at a time. The distance between the surfaces can be changed, which in turn will change the size of the grind.

The main difference between the two types is that burr grinders grind the coffee to a uniform size, and you have more control over your grind than you do with a blade.

In a blade grinder there is a central blade which rotates and chops the beans as it spins.

At this point we have to say the grinders which we use are:  for the business a Mazzer (burr) retailing at £440 and at home a DeLonghi KG49 (blade) £30 both have proved their worth and we still use them daily.