Turkish Attempts

My attempts at Turkish coffee were partially successful, I suppose. It was more a test of my new burr grinder's abilities, but I still wanted some good coffee out of the labor. I set the grind as fine as it would go, then measured out my desired amount of freshly roasted (yesterday!) Guatemalan beans, about 2 Tbs. After grinding, I was left with a fine, almost powdered sugar textured
coffee grind. I was pleased thus far. I had my Turkish coffee pot, or ibrik, on the stove boiling the purified water this whole time, that way the coffee wouldn't be ground for more than a minute or so before it was poured into the pot. For every thirty seconds coffee is left standing ground, it loses an exponentially increasing amount of aromatic qualities; again, it was imperative that this coffee be ground just before the pot began to boil.

After dumping the grounds into the small, nearly boiling, pot or water, I stirred the grounds fairly vigorously to mix them in the water. After stirring (done with my 16 month old daughter's apple sauce spoon) I placed the pot back on the stove to continue the brewing and blending process. As the temperature of the brew increased, the foam on top of the brew began to rise toward spilling over the edge. To prevent this, I had to continually lift the pot off the stove (with oven mitts because that metal handle was burning!). As soon as the brew began to consistently bubble, I knew it was done- the body went from sludge, to a more milky texture.

Overall, the Turkish was pretty good. The grind could have been a little finer, but it will do for me at home. I would recommend Turkish coffee to any coffee drinker who likes theirs black- it may not supplant your usual routine, but it's an interesting new possibility. For espresso lovers, Turkish coffee will be familiar, except in that the texture is much more coarse than espresso. A friendly reminder- STIR YOUR TURKISH COFFEE REGULARLY or you'll end up with a punishing last cup!