The Daily Utah Chronicle - Wednesday. November Page Ten 14, 1990 Feature owe drlnkera lev increasing popularity of coffee is society's decreasing alcohol consumption. "People want a place other than bars and clubs to socialize and conduct business," Johnson said. "It's not By Linnea Lundgren Chronicle Feature Writer If your day began with a cup of coffee, you are not .done. More than half of all Americans start their day with a cup of coffee. In fact, according to the Coffee Development Group in Washington, D.C., Americans are the No. 1 coffee of consumers in the world importing about one-thir- d ill exported coffee. Thanks to Americans' love affair with the black brew, coffee is the second largest commodity (in dollar value) in international trade. (Oil is No. 1.) Americans yearn to have their While coffee-drinkin- g is the college crowd that contains first cup of the day, it of the brew. drinkers avid some of the most Utah Food Service uses 50-6- 0 of "The University Woody Musig, pounds of coffee per weekday," said. Food Services "That's a tremendous amount of coffee, but it is in great demand. Next to soft drinks, coffee comes in a close second as our most popular selling item." Specialty coffee sold at the Gazebo is becoming such a popular item at the U. that another coffee machine has been installed to meet the demand, Musig said. While specialty-coffe- e consumption is up, there is a who have been reared on coffee drinkers for warning coffee served at some institutionalized light, watery, restaurants. The coffee sold by the Gazebo is not institutionalized or weak. Believe it or not, the hardest thing for many U. coffee drinkers to swallow is how strong the specialty coffees are at the Gazebo. For many students, they take a bit of adjustment. "We weren't doing anything wrong with the coffee," Musig said. "It's just that some people are not used to operations manager for University full-bodie- numerous reasons why specialty coffees are becoming such a popular beverage. According to Sandra Johnson, owner of Grounds for Coffee, 906 S. 500 East (formally Gourmet Coffee Roasters), one reason coffee consumption is increasing is outlook. health-consciou- mats to dry under the sun. After drying, the Sift b i c After processing, the coffee beans are countries. Coffee to the Development Group, According most of the coffee imported into the United States comes from Brazil, Colombia, Mexico, exported to the 35 ft ;ft coffee-consumi- ng Angola, the Ivory Coast, w 1 1 a HOW TO BREW A GOOD CUP OF COFFEE standard roast followed by or s people. Whether it is decaffeinated or regular, coffee contains no calories, no cholesterol and no sugar," Johnson said. "A new concept in specialty coffee is the flavored coffees, such as Hazelnut, Amaretto and French Vanilla. These flavors allow you to have a 'good' treat without any salt, sugar, ethyl alcohol, artificial chemicals, the Vien KM does not make up I Middle B for qual " T Salvador, When Arabica coffee beans arrive at a specialty coffee house, they are roasted. Roasting brings out the w. peak flavor and aroma of the coffee bean. "In U. S. coffee houses, Arabica coffees tend to be roasted darker than Robusta coffees," Johnson said. There are five roasts used in the roasting process. The first roast is a light this quantity ity. El Guatemala, Costa Rica, Kenya and Indonesia. tree. t This "spurt of energy" coffee generates is only one factor that contributes to the high consumption of coffee at the U. and throughout the country. There are "Coffee is appealing to machinery removes the dry cherry husk and the parchment, exposing the coffee beans. atter blossoming, ht andor early morning classes. us cherries ripen from a dark green to a ripe red in a matter of days. The coffee tropical climates from sea level to 2,000 feet, bears more coffee cherries than the Ara- - However, the main motive behind the high consumption of specialty coffee at the U. is to keep students' eyeballs open during study sessions health-conscio- WHERE DOES COFFEE COME FROM? Coffee trees produce a fruit called a coffee cherry which tftf matures approximately six to nine two processing methods used are the wet method and the dry method. In the wet method, the pulp around the beans is loosened by placing the cherries in a large tub to ferment. Afterward, the beans are washed with water. In the dry method the cherries are spread on &' million bags or cottee produced each year come from two principal trees the Robusta and the Arabica. The Robusta tree, which grows best in tne numia, increased consumption of specialty coffees. society's hand-picke- d 89 Although some people are initially stunned by the specialty coffees, the rich, robust taste more often than not wins them over which may account for the late-nig- high-grow- n beans are situated inside the cherry under a thin, hard protective layer called parchment. Usually, a coffee ft? Aft cherry will yield two beans. According to a University Food Services pamphlet, most of the system." as to whether or not the cherry is good. This in turn results in an inferior coffee that is less flavorful and less aromatic than Arabica," Johnson said. "It is the Robusta beans that are most often used for instant and considered appropriate anymore to conduct business commercial blend coffees." "Arabica coffee beans are universally acclaimed as the over cocktails. There are an increasing number of businesspeople who are conducting business over a cup finest, most flavorful species of coffee. We roast only the coffees," Johnson said. Arabica of coffee at a coffeehouse. In fact, many European best of these coffees. in all is used specialty businesspeople have always discussed business over when fully The Arabica coffee bean is coffee." on tree Arabica The for those also affordable coffee an is steep slopes at altitudes grows ripe. luxury Specialty for a slow maturing of to feet allow which of of "Some said. in the finer 2,000 6,000 life, Johnson things seeking the world's finest coffees sell for $7.50 a pound and cost the bean. Unlike the Robusta tree, the Arabica tree is very prone approximately 10 cents per cup. Comparing the cost per to see or can soda as such to other disease, frost and drought and requires careful wine, you beverages cup cultivation. "Due to its delicate nature, the Arabica tree that the world's finest coffees are an affordable luxury." Johnson added that coffee fulfills a need for some yields only one to one and a half pounds of coffee per relaxing quiet time in Americans' stressful lives. "Sitting year compared to the Robusta tree which yields three to five pounds a year," Johnson said. down to a cup or cottee lets people After being harvested, the beans are processed. The talk, relax and enjoy a warm drink. months dark specialty coffees. It shocks their d, bosiins Mo ta r mm h French I East roast and na Roast, t h e M the Robusta very dark Italian roast. "The darker the roast, tree's coffee cherries are picked before all berries are i the more you sacrifice taste. The Italian roast has a burnt or bitter taste and some people like that," Johnson said. fully ripe, usually by a machine which While these are the classical roasts, Johnson said Grounds for Coffee doesn't discriminate calories and oils. In essence, flavored coffees are a dessert with all the flavor and none of the fat." Another health-relate- d reason which accounts for the see "coffee" on page twelve -- 7 CHRONICLE GRAPHICHolly Miller Groove monster Auntie in rhapsody at concerts I took my roommate and my two daughters to a concert last 's Sunday night. It was my pre-teen- first "rock" concert. first Actually, it was her concert of any kind. I picked what I thought was a good beginning for her Billy Joel. I was right. Gearing up to go to the concert, seeing the different types of people in the crowd, anticipating the star's first appearance onstage, are all part of the excitement of going to a concert. It got me thinking about all the concerts I've been to some good, some better, but none of them better than the first concert I ever went to. I grew up in a conservative suburb of Los Angeles (if there is such a thing in Auntie Arlene Calkins called, California) Whittier. Whittier is known for lots of things, ie.: President Nixon's birthplace and the epicenter of the last major Los Angeles earthquake. It is not known for anything more exciting than the occasional first place in AAA football. (At least, not in my day.) I mean, this was a quiet, little, Quaker town named after a quiet, poet John unassuming Greenleaf Whittier. When I was in high school, we would have the occasional guest-danc- e band come and play. Mostly, it was Rick or Larry and the boys that practiced in Rick's garage. We'd Chronicle Feature Columnist take off our shoes and dance on the gym floor in our socks. It was in the latter part of the 1960s when dances like the Swim, Pony, Frug, Jerk, etc., were popular. On this particular night, we had a guest band. It was to be a minor concert and then the guys would play for us to dance for the rest of the night. This band was up and coming. I mean, they were hot! They actually had a record out, so we were all excited to see these guys. The lead singer was from a neighboring town (or maybe it was his cousin isn't and Roll. that how it usually goes?) and played at our school as a favor and to get the exposure. This lead singer was a doll! He was gorgeous! He had more hair than any of my girlfriends and was even prettier than they were. He wore skin-tigjeans. ht Mr. Kennedy, the almost principal, cancelled the concert.but those of us on the dance committee wouldn't let him. I mean, get real! This was the age of the Beatles. This guy wasn't any hairier or sexier than John or Paul . . maybe. But, this was a . well, chance for Lowell High School to get on the map to be in on the beginning of a new era in Rock "Surely, Mr. Kennedy, sir, you would want Lowell High students to be able to hold our heads up as the innovators you want us to become?" It was a stupid statement, really, but it was all I could think of on a moment's notice. It must have worked, because Jim Morrison and "The Doors" got to play for our Friday night sock hop. I've lived a charmed life. The first concert I went to that I had to pay real money for was at the Greek Theatre in Hollywood. It cost me six bucks to sit out in the tree section to listen to Harry Belafonte I could only imagine what that see "Auntie" on page thirteen