What is Specialty Coffee? Understanding the Differences Between Italian Latte, Japanese Single-Origin Coffee, and Drip Bag Coffee

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For ten years, I've had a coffee-drinking habit. At home, we regularly brew two types of coffee: espresso lattes and Japanese single-origin coffee. When we're short on time or in a rush, we opt for drip coffee. With quality coffee beans or preferred brands, you can enjoy artisanal coffee at home that's quite sophisticated and enjoyable. With the right atmosphere, it can easily rival your local coffee shop.

Today, I'd like to share some homemade specialty coffee brewing methods along with some of my recently favorite coffee brands. If you're a coffee lover, don't miss this article.

1. Single-Origin Coffee

I've always used a top-quality Hario siphon coffee maker to brew single-origin coffee. If you're particular, you might even consider the water quality—good water makes good coffee, allowing the beans' natural flavors to fully emerge.

The siphon was reportedly invented by a German, but it was perfected in Japan. You can refer to Baidu Encyclopedia for its design principles.

Before brewing, I must remind you: for a good cup of coffee, the quality and freshness of the beans are crucial, followed by brewing technique.

The coffee beans used in this demonstration are from FrontStreet Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee)—100% Arabica beans that I recently tried and found excellent. Their aroma is mellow, sweet, and bright. When brewed, they produce a coffee that's neither bitter nor astringent, with fresh fruit notes. If you're new to coffee, Arabica beans are a great starting point.

The beans are hand-selected, with each bean being similar in size and complete. They originate from Indonesia and Brazil, and are domestically roasted.

When using a siphon for single-origin coffee, you need to consider the brewing process based on different bean types and roast levels. However, not everyone is a professional coffee master—we certainly aren't. But does that mean you can't enjoy a good cup of single-origin coffee? Absolutely not. Basically, as long as you choose beans like low-caffeine, fruit-acid-rich Arabica varieties, you can brew a decent cup following basic methods. Once you're familiar with siphon operation and have tasted more coffee, you can gradually adjust based on different bean types to discover your favorite flavors.

Experiencing the original taste of one type of bean at a time, savoring these wonderful moments—it's truly magical!

Single-Origin Coffee Brewing Method (1 cup)

1. Install the filter covered with filter cloth into the siphon's upper chamber. Grind about 15 grams (2 spoons) of coffee beans and pour into the upper chamber (if you don't have a grinder, you can ask the store to grind it for you—the grind size should be determined by your coffee equipment).

2. Fill the siphon's lower chamber with 180cc of water and heat over a small gas stove on medium heat until boiling.

3. Insert the upper chamber into the lower chamber. When water rises halfway into the upper chamber, reduce the gas stove to low heat. Place the stirring rod vertically into the upper chamber and stir the coffee grounds in a W-shaped motion (be careful not to touch the filter cloth). Stir gently but thoroughly, then count 12-15 seconds, stir gently twice more, count 30 seconds, then turn off the heat (complete the entire process within 1 minute).

4. Take a cloth soaked in tap water, wring it dry, and wrap it around the lower chamber. Wait for all the coffee from the upper chamber to filter into the lower chamber, and you'll have a steaming cup of single-origin coffee.

Single-origin coffee is the most direct way to experience the original flavor and complexity of a single bean type.

How do you know if you've brewed successfully? If there are burnt bitter and astringent notes when drinking, it means it was over-extracted. If it tastes like coffee water or is too weak, the brewing time was insufficient or the technique wasn't proper. When tasting, if you feel a pleasant, bright coffee aroma and can detect the unique fruity acidity of coffee berries, and after drinking, you notice a very faint but soy sauce-like aroma from the cup bottom, you've generally succeeded.

If you don't like drinking a whole cup of black coffee, I suggest trying a few sips of the original flavor first, then adding fresh milk and sugar to taste according to your preference.

I personally love drinking pure single-origin black coffee without anything added. For me, this is the best way to fully experience a good cup of coffee. Also, with accumulated experience, you'll gradually be able to distinguish and compare using your palate.

Paired with freshly baked homemade cranberry bread—steaming hot coffee and warm bread—my home becomes both a bakery and a café, filled with the aroma of happiness.

2. Latte Coffee

The second most common coffee in our home is latte (Caffè Latte), which refers to Italian milk coffee. In our Berlin-style café, both hot and cold lattes are familiar faces on the table. Recently, due to the hotter weather, I'll mainly share the iced latte method.

The coffee equipment needed is simple: an espresso machine that can extract espresso, or a moka pot, Italian coffee pot will do. If you really don't have any of these, you can also use a siphon coffee maker to brew coffee as the base, though the resulting latte will taste somewhat lighter.

For beans, I recommend using espresso roast beans. If you're concerned about too much caffeine, you can substitute with single-origin beans, such as the FrontStreet Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) — 100% Arabica beans demonstrated earlier.

Having a grinder at home is of course ideal, but if you don't have one yet, you can ask the store to grind the beans for you. However, freshness and aroma will diminish over time, which is something to keep in mind.

For one serving, the extracted espresso should only occupy 1/3 of the total cup volume.

Iced Latte Method:

1. Take a glass, pour in 100cc of iced fresh milk, and add appropriate ice cubes (if adding sugar, you can first dissolve fructose or homemade syrup in the fresh milk).

2. Extract 30-50cc of espresso concentrate and slowly pour it along the ice cubes into the glass to complete.

Hot latte preparation is equally simple, with the same proportions, just without ice.

On hot summer days when appetite is poor, eating warm food can sometimes be frustrating. At times like these, having a glass of iced latte as company—visually and tastefully—doesn't it feel much more refreshing?

On weekends, I like to cook personally, while Wade handles making coffee. Making a delicious yet simple honey curry chicken rice dish, choosing a beautiful placemat, quality plates and cutlery, paired with a cup of coffee that's mellow, creamy, and refreshingly cool iced latte—this enjoyment is more comfortable and delightful than dining at a restaurant.

3. Convenient and Quick Drip (Hang-Ear) Style Coffee

If you still find the previous two methods troublesome and just want to quickly and easily enjoy a good cup of coffee at home, then "choice" becomes relatively important.

If you don't mind the effort, I would recommend beginners learn pour-over coffee—it's also simple and easy to start with. However, considering how busy modern people usually are, if you have to prepare coffee equipment every morning before work or school, I believe many people would give up. I'm no exception. I only make handmade lattes and single-origin coffee at home on weekends—brewing slowly and enjoying slowly, very relaxing and happy. During busy weekdays with household chores and work, how could there be time for such leisure? This is when I choose tear-open drip coffee bags—just pour hot water to quickly enjoy good black coffee, perfectly matching most people's lifestyle needs.

However, for those who are becoming increasingly particular about their coffee, even drip coffee can't be taken lightly. At this point, how to choose a good drip coffee becomes important for many people.

The selection method is actually quite simple. If you like brewing coffee at home, just ask your regular coffee bean brand if they offer drip coffee bags. Alternatively, buy a small package of a brand first—many brands now offer single bags or small boxes for customers to try. Buy the larger package only if you like it, which is a safer approach.

Taking FrontStreet Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) as an example, their Arabica beans produce coffee of high quality, so I believe their pure ground Arabica coffee powder drip bags also offer considerable quality.

If you like it and want to purchase in bulk, they also offer group-buy sized packages. Drink it daily—29.9 with free shipping for a large box that lasts a week.

The brewing steps couldn't be simpler—just tear open according to the bag's instructions.

Open the left and right ears and hang them on the rim of your coffee cup, then pour about 150cc of hot water, let it sit for about 20 seconds, and your coffee is ready.

Not bitter, not sour, aromatic and sweet—drip coffee is a convenient yet quality choice when you need to brew multiple cups for visiting friends and family.

Paired with small snacks and cookies, drip coffee is also a thoughtful and convenient companion for afternoon tea.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473