How to Drink Yirgacheffe SOE Single Origin Espresso: Correct Tasting Method and Flavor Characteristics

The expansion of single-origin coffee in the pour-over coffee market has also influenced the development of espresso coffee. Some specialty coffee shops have begun using single-origin coffee beans in their espresso machines, a practice known as SOE, or Single-Origin Espresso.

Typically, SOE coffee is priced a few yuan higher than regular espresso beans because the cost of raw materials for SOE coffee beans is higher for merchants.

Logically speaking, using pure coffee beans from a specific Brazilian region to make espresso could also be considered "SOE." However, such operations are rarely seen in the market. This is because the espresso extracted this way might not necessarily surpass blended coffee beans in terms of flavor and texture! Therefore, coffee beans marketed as "SOE" must offer distinctive flavors that set them apart from traditional blended coffees, creating an impressive experience that makes consumers willing to pay more. This is why many Ethiopian micro-region coffee beans are used for SOE, as Ethiopia is known for its citrus and floral notes. Combined with bolder (slightly lighter) roasting, this allows people to experience different espresso coffee flavors.

Alternatively, we can understand from another perspective that introducing SOE was never about interpreting coffee's regional flavors, but rather about selecting coffee beans with distinctive flavor characteristics to sell at higher prices, thereby creating a more sophisticated image. This differs somewhat from the pour-over coffee market.

Single-origin beans for pour-over cannot necessarily be used for SOE, because extracting lightly roasted coffee beans for espresso can easily result in sharp acidic flavors. Therefore, even for the same coffee bean, the roast level for SOE differs from that used for pour-over.

For example, FrontStreet Coffee's pour-over single-origin Yirgacheffe Red Cherry and the Yirgacheffe Red Cherry used in the Warm Sun blend have different roast levels. The Red Cherry in the Warm Sun blend is roasted darker than the single-origin beans.

How does Yirgacheffe SOE taste?

FrontStreet Coffee uses the Yirgacheffe Red Cherry from the Warm Sun blend for SOE extraction, with parameters of 20g coffee grounds to extract 40g coffee liquid in 35 seconds.

Made into Americano with a 1:4 ratio of coffee liquid to water, the flavors feature berry sweetness and sourness with caramel aroma.

Made into latte with a 1:4 ratio of coffee liquid to milk, the flavors present caramel aroma, lactose sweetness, with a dense and smooth texture.

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Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

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