When opening a coffee shop, the choice of Italian blended beans directly determines the basic dish. A cup of latte, a cup of Americano, all rely on this bag of beans. Selecting beans for commercial use is completely different from that for home use. It’s not just about what you think tastes good. You also have to consider the three dimensions of oil performance, cost control and product stability. The core advantage of Italian blended beans is stability. The meaning of blending is to use beans from different production areas to complement each other and smooth out the seasonal fluctuations of single-origin beans. Brazilian beans provide a nutty and chocolate base, Colombian beans bring sweetness and mellowness, and Mandheling adds herbal and earthy layers. When several production areas are put together, the flavor framework becomes stable. The most taboo thing about commercial blending is frequent recipe changes. If a customer is used to a certain flavor and suddenly changes it, they may not be able to tell the difference, but they just feel "something is wrong." Therefore, when choosing beans, you should check whether the roaster has a long-term and stable supply chain, rather than just looking at whether this batch of samples is good or not. Fat is another lifeline for commercial Italian cuisine. Good oil means that the golden layer of oil on the surface of the concentrate is thick and dense. It not only looks good, but also directly affects the fusion effect of milk coffee. Beans with good fat will have clearer latte lines at the junction of milk foam and coffee liquid when making latte, and the taste will be smoother. If there is a production area with outstanding oil performance in the blended beans, such as Mandheling or some Brazilian sun-dried beans, the entire cup of oil is guaranteed. Cost accounting is an unavoidable topic in commercial bean selection. How many cups of concentrate can be obtained from one kilogram of beans? Based on 18 grams of powder, one kilogram can produce approximately 55 cups. If the beans cost 30 yuan per kilogram, the cost of each cup of coffee beans is less than 60 cents. Including milk, cup materials, water and electricity labor, the comprehensive cost of a cup of latte is between 7 and 9 yuan. Therefore, when choosing beans, you don’t have to blindly pursue low prices. The key is to look at cost-effectiveness. Some beans are cheap but yield less cups or have poor oil content, which in turn increases the overall cost. In commercial scenarios, attention should also be paid to the freshness management of beans. Beans with a roasting date that is too old will have obvious fat decline, but beans that are too fresh will have strong off-gassing, severe channeling during extraction, and unstable products. It is generally recommended to raise commercial beans for 7 to 10 days before using them after they arrive. During this window period, the oil and exhaust gas will be in a relatively stable state. If the store consumes a lot of beans, it is recommended to make an agreement with the roaster for weekly or bi-weekly delivery to ensure that the beans are always within the appropriate tasting period. In the final analysis, choosing commercial Italian beans is to find the blend that is "stable, delicious, and inexpensive" and then stick to it for a long time. There is no need to update every quarter, but you must ensure consistent quality control.
The bean combination of the Italian blend is also worth paying attention to. The Mamba blend is a combination of Mandheling and Brazil. The two flavors support each other and have both mellowness and sweetness. There are also some blends that add a small amount of rose beans to increase the oil and body. If the coffee is positioned as a coffee with traditional taste and acceptable to the public, a blend containing a small amount of rose beans would be more suitable. But if it is a boutique store, the 100% Arabica blend will be more in line with the brand's tone, and the oil and flavor levels will not be inferior to traditional blending.
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
