Serving People Serving Coffee Since 2005
Issue link: http://baristamagazine.epubxp.com/i/659497
F O A M : T E C H N O L O G Y THE BUZZ ON CRAFT WATER WATER EXERCISES AUTHORITATIVE INFLUENCE over the coffees we make. It can be the salvific hero or menacing villain of any drink. Whether working for good or evil, water is unquestionably a central character in the torrid saga between barista and coffee. In recent years, baristas have labored over the quality and kind of water used to brew coffee and prepare espresso. We've played with its tem- perature, assessed its alkalinity, and hypothesized the import of its chemical compounds. We've filtered and futzed until it feels like our bellies (or bladders) will burst. What is it about the water that doesn't combine forces with coffee? What about the potable sidekick—the sparkling substance we serve alongside espresso, the still water we offer customers, the carbonated concoction we turn into bubbly teas and custom sodas? For the past three years, BUNN has been exploring these very questions. Craft water—water intentionally transformed by innova- tions in filtration, cooling, and carbonation systems—is the result of extensive market research and laboratory testing aimed at creating a sustainable, efficient, effective, and delicious cold-water dispensing system. The BUNN refresh, BUNN's answer to a void in the beverage market, provides still and sparkling water with the aid of its one-of-a- kind cooling and carbonation technology. "From a development standpoint, we recognized the importance of craft water," says Rusty Angell, field correspondent for BUNN. "Everyone, everywhere needs it. From restaurants, to cafés, to col- leges and universities, water has become the beverage of now." While BUNN was certainly not the first to discover the universal appeal of water (I think Homo erectus holds that honor), they've created an innovative piece of equipment that resolves longstanding issues in cold water distribution. BUNN refresh uses the newest water filter from 3M which creates consistently delicious water. It has a four stage filter that Rusty con- tends "can take almost any water and make it taste glorious." The filter removes sediment, chlorine taste and odor, chloramines, and 99.99 per- cent of water-borne bacteria. It comes standard with BUNN refresh, but shops can use their existing filtration system if they prefer. Steve Mangigian of Zingerman's Coffee Co. in Ann Arbor, Mich., says that the primary appeal of the BUNN refresh is the quality of water it produces. "Since coffee is 98 percent water, we recognize the importance of water in our own café and as a solution for our wholesale customers," he says. "For major wholesale customers, we won't do business with them unless they have a water system capable of produc- ing water within the Specialty Coffee Association of America's specs. It only stands to reason we would incorporate the BUNN refresh units into that model of thinking." In addition to its filtration system, the BUNN refresh features BUNN's thoroughly vetted cooling technology. "We've been using this technology in our commercial juice machines for almost 20 years," Rusty says. "It's basically a self-regenerating ice bath with a recirculation pass. It draws water into a certain area of the machine and generates a giant block of ice. It then recirculates the water you're dispensing through coils that run through this ice." He says the primary appeal of this meth- od is its sustainability. Beyond the initial energy required to generate the block of ice, the BUNN refresh draws very little power and energy to keep water at a consistent 40 degrees Fahrenheit. The stable temperature supports the BUNN refresh's most notable innovation: its in-line carbonation system. The conventional ways of providing carbonated water are with a SodaStream-style carbonation system, or an endless supply of San Pellegrino bottles. Both have their faults. Having worked in cafés that blow through San Pellegrino in such volume that the baristas have to wade through a sea of recyclable bottles at the end of a shift, I can attest that bottles of seltzer can impede workflow and generate immense waste. Additionally, I've spent a fair amount of time attempting to wrestle delinquent kegs of carbonated water into submission through agita- At Equator Coff ees & Teas in San Francisco, the BUNN refresh (top photo) gets a workout, delivering sparkling or still water for a huge range of drinks. Below, Equator's Sour Cherry Rooibos Soda, which combines sour cherry jam, lemon juice, a rooibos simple syrup made in house, and sparkling water from the BUNN refresh. PHOTOS BY AKAASH SAINI 26 barista magazine