Coffee connoisseurs may know their aromas from their arabicas and even be able to explain the optimum water to grounds ratio for the perfect piccolo but are they overlooking one of the most important factors in a cup of coffee: the type of milk used?
Scotland’s largest independent dairy company, Graham’s The Family Dairy, has teamed up with the award-winning Artisan Roast to help consumers match milk with their preferred coffee serve. By pairing different varieties of milk with different styles of coffee, the collaboration has delivered the Great Graham’s Coffee Guide, the definitive online guide to great coffee.
The takeaway coffee sector sells more than £6.3 billion worth of coffee each year. Approximately 60% of those coffees is made up of the milk, which goes into our lattes, cappuccinos and flat whites. Depending on the server, a latte might be more than 80% milk. While every barista is mad about their beans, there has, until now, been much less focus on milk, the ingredient that makes up most of our daily mocha.
That could all change in the light of the findings from the collaboration between Artisan Roast and Graham’s The Family Dairy. Darryl Docherty, manager of the Artisan Roast café in Edinburgh’s Bruntsfield, experimented with the Graham’s range of milks in different styles of coffee.
The results clearly showed that different varieties of milk had a pronounced effect on the flavour of the final serve. For example, Darryl found that when making flat whites ‘the reduced fat content of Graham’s semi-skimmed allows our house blend to sing through the milk. In the cup we get syrupy chocolate and amaretto, finished with a beautiful butterscotch linger.’
Similarly, Darryl found that the low fat content of Graham’s organic skimmed milk allowed more of the coffee’s character to come through in the small, but mighty, piccolo. Graham’s Gold Jersey milk was perfect for making lattes as the creamy texture and butterscotch sweetness worked with Artisan Roast’s Janszoon blend to make a lavish milkshake.
To help consumers make the most of their mocha, Graham’s The Family Dairy has launched its online guide to great coffee. Backed up with barista tips, recipes and rules for keeping coffee fresh, the Great Graham’s Coffee Guide matches its range of milks to the most popular coffee serves. From amazing mochas to fabulous flat whites, the guide sets out the ground rules for making the best artisan coffee.
Carol Graham, Marketing Director of Graham’s The Family Dairy explained: “Our love affair with coffee is growing every year and as a business we are supplying numerous cafés and coffee houses throughout Scotland. But we wanted to create something specific for our nation of coffee lovers to enjoy which resulted in, Graham’s Great Coffee Guide.
“Our friends at Artisan Roast have been educating us during caffeine fuelled afternoons, while we have been sharing our own insight into the fat and protein content of our different milks that subsequently impact the serve and taste of every cup. Graham’s produce milk to suit every taste while Artisan Roast create coffee to cater for every palate – the perfect combination.”
Darryl will be demonstrating how Graham’s The Family Dairy can perfect the nation’s coffee at a tasting evening taking place in its Brunstfield café in Edinburgh on Wednesday 5 March 2014.
