FAQ Search Results

Yes, Melitta Barista Classic Crema Forte beans are made specifically for fully automatic bean to cup machines. Melitta developed the entire Barista range for exactly this, so you do not need any special settings to get a full cup with a rich crema.

These are whole, unground beans that go straight into the bean hopper. Start with your machine's standard grind setting, then go a little finer if you want a stronger cup, or slightly coarser if it turns out bitter. They also work beautifully in an espresso machine with its own grinder.

Honest answer: the exact method Lavazza uses for the Decaf My Easy Day Classico is not printed on the pack, and it is not in the product information we receive from the manufacturer either. So we are not going to guess.

There are four common ways to decaffeinate coffee: Swiss Water (water and filters only), the CO2 method (using liquid carbon dioxide), ethyl acetate (a natural solvent derived from sugar cane) and dichloromethane. With every method the green beans are thoroughly rinsed, dried and roasted afterwards, and the law sets strict limits on what may remain in the finished product.

Want certainty for this particular blend? Drop our customer service a line and we will check with Lavazza for you.

Just about any machine that handles whole beans, so both a bean to cup machine and a semi automatic espresso machine with its own grinder.

Pellini Espresso Bar No 4 Crema Tradizionale has a medium roast, which makes the blend friendly to bean to cup machines: you get a lovely creamy crema without the beans being too oily for the grinder. On a semi automatic you simply play with the grind size until the espresso tastes exactly the way you like it.

Want to use it in a moka pot or filter machine? That works fine, you just grind the beans yourself, a little coarser than for espresso.

A small amount, because decaffeinated coffee is never one hundred percent caffeine free. Under European rules, roasted coffee may only be called decaffeinated if it contains no more than 0.1 percent caffeine on a dry matter basis.

In practice that works out at a few milligrams per cup, compared with around eighty milligrams in a regular coffee. For most people that is negligible, even for an evening cup. If you are extremely sensitive to caffeine or following medical advice, keep that small residual amount in mind and have a quick word with your doctor.

The difference comes down to the roast and the intensity. Melitta Barista Classic Crema Forte is the stronger of the two: medium to dark roasted, full bodied, with notes of dark chocolate, roasted nuts and caramel.

The regular Barista Classic Crema is medium roasted and therefore softer and rounder, with chocolate, light nutty notes and a mild finish. Everything else is much the same: both are Arabica and Robusta blends, both come in a 1 kilo bag and both build a lovely crema.

Like your coffee bold and intense? Go for the Forte. Want a cup you can drink all day long? Then the regular Crema is your friend.

The number refers to the blend, and every blend has its own character.

• No 4 Crema Tradizionale: medium roast, creamy and balanced, with notes of dark chocolate and a hint of liquorice.
• No 9 Cremoso: aromatic and rich in flavour, the slightly fuller choice.
• No 82 Vivace: traditional and fine in taste, but noticeably more powerful in the cup.
• No 3 Gran Aroma: 100% arabica, medium to dark roast, with chocolate and honey.

Not sure which to pick? The No 4 is the most approachable all rounder and works just as well black as with milk.

A Neapolitan espresso such as Passalacqua Miscela Napoli is roasted darker and longer, with more body and hardly any acidity. Northern Italian blends usually get a shorter roast and often contain more Arabica, which makes them finer, fruitier and a little brighter.

Miscela Napoli is made up of eighty percent Arabica and twenty percent Robusta. That Robusta delivers the sturdy body, a thick and stable crema and the slightly sweet, chocolatey character you taste in every bar in Naples. The cup is intense and round, with little bitterness despite the dark roast. If you are used to a light northern blend, this is a real step towards strength and warmth, and exactly why enthusiasts keep coming back to it.

Dry, dark and at room temperature, in packaging that closes properly. The Pellini bag has a valve; seal it with a clip after opening or transfer the beans to an airtight storage tin.

Do not put the beans in the fridge. Coffee absorbs smells and moisture, and you will taste that later in your cup. A cupboard near your machine is ideal, as long as it is not right next to the oven or in direct sunlight.

Does a kilo last you longer than a few weeks? Then keep part of it separately in a second, well sealed tin and only open that one when the first is finished.

These beans are purely naturally roasted, with no sugar involved. Melitta Barista Classic Crema Forte consists only of Arabica and Robusta beans, roasted medium to dark, so it is not torrefacto.

You taste the difference too. Your cup is strong and full bodied, with notes of dark chocolate, roasted nuts and caramel, but without the burnt, sugary edge that torrefacto brings. The crema keeps a lovely creamy colour as well. Still prefer a sweeter coffee? Just add a spoonful of sugar yourself, then you decide exactly how much.

A little, but less than you probably expect. The Lavazza Decaf My Easy Day Classico is a medium roast with a soft, rounded flavour and light notes of chocolate and almond, so you are still brewing a proper cup of coffee.

Where you do notice it is the crema. Decaffeinating costs the bean part of its oils and soluble compounds, which is why the crema layer on a decaf is often thinner or fades faster. Decaf beans also look naturally darker, even though they have not been roasted any darker.

Want a fuller crema? Use a slightly larger dose or grind a touch coarser, and pull your shot in roughly 25 to 30 seconds.

We only stock the No 4 Crema Tradizionale as whole beans, in the 1 kilo bag.

Looking for ground Pellini? Then have a look at Pellini Top ground coffee in a 250 gram tin. That is a different blend (100% arabica), so expect a different flavour profile than the chocolate and liquorice of the No 4.

Set on having this blend ground? Then grind the beans yourself. That actually has an upside: freshly ground coffee gives noticeably more aroma than a pack that has been open for a while. Set your grinder fine for espresso and a little coarser for a moka pot or filter coffee.

Yes, and this is exactly where Melitta Barista Classic Crema Forte shines. Thanks to its full body and firm roast, the coffee flavour holds up in milk, even under a generous layer of foam.

That means you still taste the dark chocolate and caramel in your cappuccino, flat white or latte macchiato. Espresso, caffè crema and americano work just as well. Do you mostly drink your coffee black and prefer it mild? Then the regular Barista Classic Crema is the better pick. For milk drinks, go for the Forte.

Passalacqua Miscela Napoli suits any machine that works with whole beans: a bean to cup machine with a built in grinder, or an espresso machine with a portafilter combined with a separate grinder. These are unground beans in a 1 kilo bag, so they cannot be used in pod or capsule machines.

In a bean to cup machine this blend performs very well. Set the grind a little finer and the strength a little higher for a truly Neapolitan cup. On a manual espresso machine it shows its best side, with a thick and stable crema. No espresso machine at home? It also works in a moka pot, in which case you grind the beans a bit coarser.

Any machine that works with whole beans. These beans are made for bean to cup machines and for classic espresso machines with a separate grinder, which is exactly what the medium roasted Classico profile is built around.

If you own a grinder, they also work beautifully for filter coffee, a French press or a moka pot. Just grind noticeably coarser than you would for espresso. What will not work is a capsule or pod machine, since those need capsules or pre ground coffee.

Drinking both regular and decaf? A second grinder is handy, and otherwise simply purge your grinder with a small handful of beans so the flavours do not mix.