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Is High Acidity in Coffee Beans Good or Bad_Brands of Acidic Coffee Beans Recommended_What are the Types of Coffee Acidity

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, Professional coffee knowledge exchange For more coffee bean information please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account cafe_style ) Friends who often drink single-origin coffee when they mention acidic coffee beans will mostly associate them with Yirgacheffe beans Indeed Yirgacheffe is a representative of acidic coffee Beginners who haven't tried single-origin coffee may wonder why coffee is acidic

Understanding Coffee Acidity: A Comprehensive Guide

Professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style)

In traditional perception, coffee is often bitter and unpleasant to drink. If it's also sour, it's considered a spoiled medicine. FrontStreet Coffee clearly tells you that this is not the case. Today's coffee is no longer what it used to be in our impressions. With the development of specialty coffee, the focus now is on the original flavor of coffee. Acidity in coffee is not necessarily bad—of course, there are good and bad types of acidity, and good acidity can provide a pleasant sensation!

Beginners who haven't experienced single-origin coffee might wonder: how can coffee be sour? Is sour coffee expired or low-quality? In fact, this acidity is different from that acidity. Coffee contains hundreds of acidic compounds. Today, we'll mainly introduce several types of acids in coffee that affect taste.

Where Does Coffee Acidity Come From?

The strength of coffee's acidity is closely related to coffee variety and roast level. Coffee becomes acidic because coffee beans fully absorb the fruit acids from the pulp during growth and processing. Raw coffee beans taste like fruits, and various terroirs also affect the growth and flavor of the fruit. Different soil types, climates, water, altitudes, and other factors give beans from different origins their unique flavors.

Citric Acid

Citric acid is an important organic acid. Citric acid in coffee is one of the products of coffee tree respiration. The amount of citric acid can be used to determine whether raw beans are fresh. As coffee cherries mature, citric acid content decreases and converts into more sugars. During roasting, citric acid peaks in light roasts and continuously breaks down in later stages of roasting.

Malic Acid

Malic acid exists in apples, hawthorns, grapes, and other fruits. The concentration of malic acid in raw beans is lower than citric acid, and after roasting, it drops to only 0.1%-0.4% of the raw bean weight. Malic acid is generally classified as a fragrant acid.

Tartaric Acid

Tartaric acid exists in many plants, such as grapes and tamarind, and is one of the main organic acids in wine. It's also one of the sources of astringency in coffee.

Acetic Acid

Acetic acid, also known as ethanoic acid or glacial acetic acid, is an organic acid. It's a typical fatty acid and the source of sourness and irritating odor in food. In coffee, it mainly comes from the fermentation step in post-processing. Therefore, compared to natural processed coffee, washed coffee generally has higher acetic acid content. During roasting, the pressure in the roaster helps significantly increase acetic acid content and helps maintain volatile acids, improving coffee quality. Small amounts of acetic acid give coffee a fermented aroma, but excessive amounts make coffee taste vinegary and bitter.

Chlorogenic Acid

Chlorogenic acid is a type of acid commonly found in all raw coffee beans, accounting for 6%-8% of the net weight of coffee. Coffee is the plant species with the highest chlorogenic acid content in the world. Chlorogenic acid is an important source of coffee's sourness and bitterness and has a mild neurostimulatory effect on humans. Chlorogenic acid is one of the main acidic substances in coffee. There are two isomers of chlorogenic acid: monocaffeoyl acid, which is broken down during roasting, and dicaffeoyl acid, which is not broken down. Dicaffeoyl acid makes coffee bitter and metallic. During roasting, chlorogenic acid is broken down into quinic acid and caffeic acid, both of which enhance the astringency and mouthfeel of coffee.

Phosphoric Acid

Phosphoric acid is an inorganic acid found in high concentrations in Kenyan coffee, giving Kenyan coffee its uniqueness and excellent acidity. Phosphoric acid in coffee accounts for only about 1% of the total coffee substances and mainly comes from the hydrolysis of phytic acid in soil. During roasting, phosphoric acid content actually increases as the roast level deepens. Phosphoric acid increases the brightness and sweetness of coffee.

There are many types of acids in coffee, and these are the most important ones.