The Spanish coffee market it's divided into two great sectors: FEEDING (stores, supermarkets, hypers, etc.) and HOTEL (cafeteria, restaurants, hotels, etc.). On the first case it's calculated around 50, 000 establishments and on the

second more than 100,000.

The type of coffee more commercialized in our country are:

  1. NATURAL TOAST
  2. DRY TOAST
  3. MIXED
  4. NATURALLY DECAFFEINTE
  5. NATURALLY INSTANT
  6. DECAFFEINATE INSTANT

Cada uno de estos tipos tiene unas características distintas independientemente de la calidad de la mezcla.

To toast or dry toast a natural grain there are more than 300 toasters in Spain. The total consumption in our country it's close to 140,000 tons of coffee, which is equivalent to an average consumption of 3.7 Kg. Per capita. This amount keeps being very low compared to the other countries in Central Europe that reach up to 12 to 13 Kg per capita.

The explanation for this differences, we would have to look for them on the quality of the coffee that is used on other countries, and the ways of preparation, and the culture or interest for the product.

Out of the studies done at Spain we can see that the young people show a moderate interest for coffee, meanwhile that it's greater their interest for soft drinks, colas, etc. The publicity in this two sectors are very different. The hotels sector are low on publicity, it is based on specialized press or direct promotions to hotels. On the feeding sector they use great campaigns on TV and press specially directed to the housewife. The Spanish consumer are used to some habits on the way of drinking and the characteristic that they value the most are plenty like it most have a good coffee fragrance to drink it, its taste must be strong, the express must have cream, must have a dark color on the cup, has to taste a little bitter, and it must have a good fragrance when the bag is opened and it must be a good green coffee selection.

As for the ways of drinking coffee they are also different according the time of the day and the place. Therefore near the 60% drink coffee on breakfast, and a 50% drink at lunch. On the other side around 50% drink usually coffee with milk.

Among the people that don't drink coffee usually the main reasons are that it has a strange flavor, they don't like the taste, health reasons, etc.

1. NATURAL TOAST.
Niveles de tuesteIt is perfectly recognized from the dry toast for the absence of the burned sugar on the grain. When it is time for good coffee, the taste of the fragrance and flavor must be more complete that the dry toasted. For a good quality natural coffee, it is suggested a medium toast to avoid the burned taste and the lack of the strength of clear coffee. Also it is very appreciated to drink coffee variety type (like one of Colombia), without mixing when a natural coffee it's drink, this is appropriate for express café, steam or filter.

2. DRY TOASTED.
This a coffee which, before the end of the toast process it is added sugar at quantities that usually aren't greater than 15% of its weight. At the temperature that it's found on the toast pot, approximately 200 ºC (392 ºF), sugar starts to melt, and forms a burned screen around the coffee. It's told that this operation was invented to protect the essentials oils from the coffee. The fact is that it has stayed like a custom, and actually it's practiced in almost all Spain; out of our country this practice is almost unknown except for Argentina, Mexico and somewhere in Portugal. The result is that this operation doesn't add to coffee neither flavor nor fragrance, it evens masks the soft fragrances of the good coffee. Mean while, the dry toast adds more color when in the cup (with milk), a darker cream in the express and the impression that it has more coffee and bitter taste.

3. MIXED.
Since it was approved the sale of grinded coffee and mix of natura with dry toast in Spain, the demand, specially at home, has been dominated by the denominated GRINDED MIX. The mixes normally used are the half natural and half dry toast. This mixes are prepared starting from the grain of coffee of each type and then it's grinded altogether. When the product it's for the hotels market it is also sold the mix on grain, although some prefer to do it themselves.

4. DECAFFEINATE COFFEE.
The caffeine is an stimulant that it's found on many plants, specially in coffee and in tea, and in less proportion in cacao seeds. The natural raw coffee or toasted has some caffeine that would be normal between 0.8% or 2.4%, according to the type and variety. On the studies done it hasn't been demonstrated that the caffeine on normal doses would have a negative effect for health. But when more three daily cups are drunk, approximately, 300 milligrams of caffeine, can produce to some people nerves disturb or insomnia. However people with this type of problems don't have to quit to coffe, since there is a decaffeinate coffee, which it would be necessary to drink al least 40 cups daily to have the same effect. The decaffeinate coffee it's obtained extracting the caffeine from the green coffee up to approximately 0.1%. The Spanish legislation allows a max amount of 0.12% for grain of grinded decaffeinate coffee, and 0.3% for the solvable decaffeinate coffee. The methods to extract the caffeine are plenty, such as: organics solvents, natural water method, carbonic anhydrite, etc.

5. INSTANT COFFEE.
The instant coffee started being produced industrially since World War II. At the beginning it was a fine dust that dissolved with some difficulty. Today most part is little grains, y it perfectly dissolves in water or warm milk. The process consists of toasting the coffee, grinded, extraction of the soluble part, dried or atomized and finally grouped. There is also lyophilized instant coffee, this consists on previously freezing the coffee extract and evaporate the water without going through the liquid state, this is achieved getting the coffee pasta freeze at very low pressures. The instant coffee has its market and although the quality is lower, it has its advantages on the preparation easiness, doesn't need a coffee machine, and has plenty of uses for baking.