Where to Find Acidic Coffee - Types of Acidic Coffee Beans and Their Taste Profile

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FrontStreet Coffee believes that when many people enter a coffee shop to order coffee, they often feel confused when faced with single-origin coffees from various producing countries or regions. That's why baristas typically ask customers what kind of coffee flavor they prefer. As FrontStreet Coffee has noticed, many customers use words like "bitter" and "sour" to express their desired coffee flavors.

FrontStreet Coffee wonders if everyone understands these two terms. Generally speaking, the acidity or bitterness of coffee is largely determined by its genetic factors. For example, beans grown in Africa generally have more prominent acidity than those grown in Brazil, or coffee beans from Colombia might be more bitter than those from the Kenya region. However, origin can only determine part of the coffee's taste and flavor, as factors like roast level and brewing parameters also play a significant role in determining the final taste.

Simply put, lightly roasted beans will have more prominent acidity, while darkly roasted beans will have more obvious bitterness. Therefore, the same beans at different roast levels can produce coffee with very different flavor profiles. For instance, when FrontStreet Coffee roasts washed Yirgacheffe coffee beans, to highlight the acidity of FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe coffee beans, they stop roasting from the end of first crack to before second crack begins, rarely roasting into the dense second crack stage. When FrontStreet Coffee roasts their Sumatra Lintong Mandheling coffee, they generally choose to roast from the beginning to the end of second crack to highlight Mandheling's unique herbal notes.

So today, FrontStreet Coffee will introduce some coffees with pronounced acidity. When talking about coffees with prominent acidity, we must mention African coffee beans, particularly those from Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania - these regions all produce coffees with notable acidity.

Let's start with coffee beans from Ethiopia's Yirgacheffe region. FrontStreet Coffee chose this region because Yirgacheffe is famous for its lemon and citrus-toned acidity. Even for beginners just starting to explore coffee, it's very easy to detect the lemon-like acidity in this coffee. For example, at FrontStreet Coffee's shop, FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe coffee beans are very popular. When brewed using pour-over methods, besides having lemon acidity, it also carries delicate jasmine floral aromas.

Additionally, FrontStreet Coffee has recently introduced two new Ethiopian coffee beans. One is FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopia COE #22, from the Sidamo Arsi region - this is a natural processed Typica coffee. The other is FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopia TOH Washed Category Champion from the Guji Uraga region, with Ethiopian heirloom varieties. These two Ethiopian coffees undergo different processing methods - one washed and one natural - so their acidity profiles are also different.

After FrontStreet Coffee's roaster roasts these two Ethiopian single-origin coffees, FrontStreet Coffee conducts cupping within 8-24 hours. The cupping revealed that FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopia COE #22 has a relatively smooth and mellow mouthfeel, with strawberry and lychee-like sweet and sour notes. Due to natural processing, it also carries fermented wine-like aromas, creamy smoothness, and a honey-like sweet aftertaste. Meanwhile, FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopia TOH Washed Category Champion coffee has acidity that leans more toward citrus notes, with delicate jasmine floral aromas and pomelo tea-like sweet and sour sensations.

The acidity of Ethiopian coffee differs from that of Kenyan coffee. Take Kenya's Thika region Asali Honey Processing factory's Asalia for example. This FrontStreet Coffee Kenyan coffee is roasted to the same level as Ethiopian coffees - FrontStreet Coffee uses light roasting to highlight the bright acidity of Kenyan coffee beans. When FrontStreet Coffee cupped this coffee, they unanimously agreed its overall flavor features plum fruitiness and cherry tomato's fresh acidity, which is quite different from Ethiopian acidity - each has its own characteristics.

FrontStreet Coffee enjoys using pour-over methods to extract the flavors of single-origin coffees. When brewing this FrontStreet Coffee Kenya Asalia coffee, during the 30-second bloom phase with 30g of water, you'll smell the wet aroma, somewhat similar to ripe tomatoes and floral notes. Then use a small water stream to pour in a circular motion to 125g for segmented extraction. When the water level begins to drop and expose the coffee bed, continue pouring to reach 225g, then stop. Wait for the water level to drop before removing the filter. Finally, don't rinse the cup when serving, and shake the coffee pot to ensure even concentration. This Kenyan coffee has acidity similar to cherry tomatoes and plums - very bright acidity. Using Kenya's 72-hour washed processing method gives Kenyan coffee a very clean mouthfeel with juice-like sensations, and the aftertaste is rather like brown sugar flavor.

Another African country's coffee beans also have very special acidity - Tanzania. Coffee beans from this country are less commonly consumed. Generally, Tanzanian coffee is mainly grown in the Kilimanjaro and southern Tanzania regions. The coffee acidity from these two regions differs quite a bit. Coffee from southern regions has more obvious wine-like aromas with relatively mellow acidity, while Mount Kilimanjaro coffee has brighter acidity with a rich mouthfeel and carries mineral water-like sweetness. It's precisely because of Tanzanian coffee's rich texture and acidity that's less intense than FrontStreet Coffee's washed Yirgacheffe, but with intense aromatic qualities, that Tanzanian coffee is also known as the "coffee gentleman."

FrontStreet Coffee has also introduced a coffee from Tanzania's Kilimanjaro region. The coffee is grown at altitudes between 1300-2000 meters, is of the Typica variety, and uses common washed processing. Because coffee beans from this region have higher moisture content, FrontStreet Coffee intentionally extended the roasting time to ensure even heating of both the bean surface and core, using medium roast to highlight the sweetness, unique acidity, and floral and fruity aromas of this FrontStreet Coffee Tanzania Kilimanjaro Mountain coffee. The caramelization reaction was extended during first crack to make its sweetness more prominent.

However, when FrontStreet Coffee conducted cupping, they also discovered a drawback of this FrontStreet Coffee Tanzania coffee - when cooled down, its acidity is relatively medium to low and carries a slight astringency, though this isn't present when hot. The hot coffee's flavor profile leans more toward citrus, nuts, honey, and cream, while as the temperature drops, it shows more acetic acid and medium to high sweetness.

So, if you prefer coffees with more pronounced acidity, you can first consider coffees from Africa, Kenya, and Tanzania. The acidity from these producing countries is quite pleasant. Of course, acidity from other regions is also excellent, and you can choose the most suitable coffee flavor based on your personal preferences.

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee's private WeChat account: kaixinguoguo0925

Important Notice :

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

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