On the excellent qualities of coffee, and the art of making it in the highest perfection / [Benjamin Rumford].

  • Rumford, Benjamin, Graf von, 1753-1814
Date:
1812]
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: On the excellent qualities of coffee, and the art of making it in the highest perfection / [Benjamin Rumford]. Source: Wellcome Collection.

    24/70 (page 176)
    176 Of Coffee, [essay xviii. This gradual percolation brings continually a fuc- cellion of frefh particles of pure water into contaQ: with the ground Coffee, and when the lafl portion of the water has paffed through it, every thing capable of being diffolved by the water, will be found to be fo completely wafhed out of it, that what remains will be of no kind of value. It is however neceffary to the complete fuccefs of this operation, that the Coffee fhould be ground to a powder fufliciently fine, as has already been obferved. This method of making Coffee, by percolation, has been pra&ifed many years, and its ufefulnefs is now univerfally acknowledged. I do not know who was the firfl to propofe it, but being thoroughly perfuaded of the merit of the contrivance, I have > been defirous of recommending it; and I conceived that the moil effectual way of recommending it, would be to explain the mechanical and chemical principles on which its fuperiority depends. In order that the Coffee may be perfectly good* the flratum of ground Coffee, on which the boiling water is poured, mull be of a certain thicknefs* and it muff be preffed together with a certain de¬ gree of force. If it be too thin, or not fufficiently preffed together, the water will pafs through it too rapidly; and if the layer of ground Coffee be too thick, or if it be too much preffed together, the water will be too long in paffmg through it, and the tafte pf the Coffee will be injured. Another