How to Make a SOE Coffee? Differences, Characteristics, and Flavor Profiles Between SOE and Blended Beans

SOE, in recent years you've often seen this term in coffee shops. What is SOE? When you suddenly want to drink one, how can you make a satisfying SOE?

What is SOE?

SOE stands for "Single Origin Espresso," which is espresso from a single origin. This concept exists in contrast to blended espresso. To put it simply, SOE is a general term for espresso made from roasted beans from a single producing region. There's no blanket statement about the variety of green beans, roasting information, extraction plan, nor does it represent any quality of coffee beans. Espresso extraction is just one method of extraction and doesn't guarantee it will taste good!

Because espresso amplifies the flavors in coffee, whether good or bad, and single origin coffee comes from a single region, its flaws are also relatively easy to magnify. Factors like roasting and grind size all affect the flavor, so making a good SOE requires certain technical skills in various aspects. In this regard, blended coffee beans can provide more stable performance.

Nowadays, the overall quality of coffee beans has improved, and more and more coffee shops are starting to use SOE coffee beans as a gimmick. To let customers taste the difference between SOE and regular blended coffee, the coffee beans not only need to be of good quality but also roasted lighter. This way, when you drink it, it's no longer burnt and bitter, but has some sweet and sour notes.

Does Light-Roasted SOE Taste Too Acidic?

In the past, many theories claimed that light-roasted beans are not suitable for making espresso, that they would be too acidic and taste bad. Indeed, espresso made from light-roasted beans is more acidic than that from dark-roasted beans; this is based on the properties of roasting degree. Another point is that espresso extraction plans are fixed. In pour-over coffee, different brewing parameters are already distinguished for light and dark-roasted beans, but in espresso, the standard method is still used for extraction, so it's reasonable for sharp acidity to appear. If you want to extract espresso with good flavor, you need a clear approach.

Clarify Your Purpose

One point many friends haven't figured out is what you're extracting this espresso for: drinking directly, diluting with water, or adding milk. This will affect the entire extraction plan. For example, for direct drinking, the espresso needs to be softer; for diluting with water, the espresso flavor needs to be more comprehensive; for adding milk, the espresso needs to be stronger.

(Why don't dark-roasted coffee beans need to focus on these? Actually, they also need attention, but often one parameter fits all three types of drinks, so there's no need to create 2-3 extraction plans. This is why it's said to use medium-dark roasted beans for making espresso—because it's hassle-free.)

Apply the Extraction Formula

First, use the standard formula as usual for researching grind size: coffee-to-liquid ratio of 1:2, time 25-30 seconds. The reason for using this formula first is mainly to determine a grind size. Although you might still need to fine-tune the grind size later, it won't be too far off.

(If you usually use medium-dark roasted espresso beans, then grinding light-roasted SOE basically requires adjusting to a finer grind setting. For example, FrontStreet Coffee's daily use of Warm Sun Blend has a grind setting of 2.1, with the same amount of coffee and time, while light-roasted Kenya coffee uses a grind setting of 1.6. Moreover, due to density changes caused by roasting, the same weight of light-roasted coffee powder will have less volume than dark-roasted. So you also need to determine the final amount of coffee based on your portafilter capacity.)

Adjust According to Flavor and Purpose

The coffee extracted using the general formula should not have major issues with grind and flow rate. If there are flavor problems, you need to target the specific issue.

For example, the most common problem is that it's too acidic and the aftertaste is too short. This problem is generally the easiest to solve. First, observe whether the flow rate at this grind setting is reasonable—for instance, which second does the first drop of coffee liquid appear? If it's 4-5 seconds, you can adjust to a slightly finer grind; if it's 7-8 seconds, then no adjustment is needed.

Next is to extend the extraction amount, usually by 10-15g. Because the sharp acidity and short aftertaste in coffee liquid are mainly due to low extraction rate of the coffee beans, increasing the coffee extraction amount will make the espresso taste less stimulating, gradually balanced, and highlight the sweetness. Of course, this method will make the coffee less concentrated and is generally suitable for direct drinking or diluting with water to make Americano. For example, FrontStreet Coffee's extraction parameters for Kenya coffee beans are 20.6g to extract 55g of coffee liquid in 34 seconds. Direct drinking gives a soft, berry-like sweetness, and when made into Americano, it becomes full-bodied, solid plum and tomato acidity.

For making milk coffee, mostly adjust the grind to be finer to compensate for the low extraction rate. Subsequent adjustments should not be constrained by the formula's data. Even if the extraction time exceeds 30 seconds, if the resulting milk coffee tastes good, that's acceptable. This solves the problem of insufficient coffee flavor in SOE milk coffee. If there's acidic astringency in the milk coffee, you still need to extend the extraction amount to solve it.

The second common problem is that coffee liquid extracted using the formula has unpleasant flavors, such as grassy taste, almond taste, burnt bitterness, etc. It's best to use the "divide into three" method to check where the problem lies. Suppose the target coffee liquid extracted is 40g, then we use three cups to separately catch the front, middle, and back sections of the coffee liquid, each about 13g. Taste the three cups separately to see which one has unpleasant flavors. If only the back section has them, then you just need to reduce the extraction amount. If the first cup or all three cups have them, you need to adjust the grind size.

The third problem is that the coffee liquid is too weak and has no flavor. This is a problem many friends have reported to FrontStreet Coffee. FrontStreet Coffee has also summarized some issues: most friends think that espresso grind size is a fixed value, as long as one bean's setting is adjusted, other coffee beans can also use it universally. This is actually not the case. So if there's a problem of too weak or thin coffee liquid, it's generally because the grind size is not accurate. Of course, if you want to compare the richness of light-roasted SOE beans with traditional dark-roasted espresso beans, it really can't compare.

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