Handy tome deftly tackles coffee queries

“The Little Coffee Know-It-All: A Miscellany for Growing, Roasting, and Brewing, Uncompromising and Unapologetic”

by Shawn Steiman ($22.99, Quarry Books, 2015)

Oh, peaberry, say it isn’t so. Have you been seducing coffee fans with nothing more than your exclusive petite roundness — all style, no substance?

That’s a distinct possibility, according to Hawaii coffee expert Shawn Steiman’s latest tome. Peaberry coffee is brewed from those rare little beans that grow among ho-hum-average flat-sided, larger beans. To many palates, peaberry is exceptionally delicious. It’s also exceptional in price.

In the book, Steiman says research indicates that biochemical differences in unroasted peaberry mostly disappear after roasting, and though it is during the roasting process that a distinct flavor profile would arise, he hypothesizes that such differences would be small. Meanwhile, anecdotal research found that the flavor of peaberry coffee was the same or inferior to that made from regular beans. So what gives? Steiman says there isn’t enough research to explain.

While the jury is still out on the mystery of the peaberry experience, Steiman offers plenty of scientific discussion on the bean. And that discussion defines the artistry of the book: His ability to present scientific concepts, language and discourse — think vibrating atoms, solutes (in this case, coffee solids), solvent (water) and matrix (coffee grounds) — in a style that’s conversational and easy to digest.

“I wanted to answer the questions people ask about coffee, and do it in a way that’s aligned with current scientific literature and thought,” said Steiman, who has a Ph.D. from the University of Hawaii in tropical plants and soil sciences, specializing in coffee studies. “My intent was to teach people basic science without them being bored by science. The topic helps.”

There’s plenty of practical stuff here to capture the notice of coffee lovers, from beans to roasting to brewing to the final cup. And to keep things less intimidating, each artistically illustrated chapter is just a few pages long, though that is perhaps contrived since the type size is rather small.

Other topics explored are commonly on the mind of coffee drinkers who take more than a passing interest in their beverage. For instance: “How Do I Keep My Coffee Fresh?” “What Kind of Grinder Should I Own?” “Why Does This Coffee Taste Different Than the Last Time?” plus more.

Then there are edifying chapters that will secure the status of coffee geeks: “How Do I Get the Most Buzz From a Cup?” “Why Does the Bag Say Wood and Spice but I Taste Earthy?” and of course, “Can I Drink Coffee When I’m in Outer Space?”

This third publication by Steiman follows “The Hawai‘i Coffee Book” (2008) and “Coffee: A Comprehensive Guide to the Bean, the Beverage and the Industry” (2013).

Steiman owns Coffea Consulting and is a co-owner of Daylight Mind Coffee Co. on the Big Island (with plans to expand to Oahu).

“America’s Best Breakfasts: Favorite Local Recipes From Coast to Coast,”

by Lee Brian Schrager with Adeena Sussman (Clarkson Potter, $23)

Naturally, Lee Anne Wong’s breakfast-centric Koko Head Cafe represents Hawaii in this collection of trendy morning meals. Wong introduces the nation to our beloved loco moco with the Koko Moco, a jazzed-up version made with grass-fed beef and homemade mushroom gravy.

As for the rest of the country, it seems kim chee’s reign as the latest Asian-cool item continues. Consider its appearance at two opposite ends of the continent: Savory kim chee pancakes topped with an over-easy egg appear on the menu of the Sunshine Tavern in Portland, Ore., while kim-chee’d Brussels sprouts are served with bacon and eggs all the way over in Baltimore.

The omnipresent breakfast standard, the egg, continues to be all the rage in soft-yolk form.

What’s striking about the book is its reflection of the diversity of cuisines in the U.S. The range is wide, from chao, a Vietnamese chicken-and-rice porridge by Charles Phan in San Francisco, to shrimp and grits delivered at the Hominy Grill in Charleston, S.C., to a farmers market shakshuka, a Middle Eastern dish of eggs baked on a bed of tomato sauce, at Barbounia in New York.