Which is better: Mandheling or Italian-style flavor coffee? The differences and characteristics of Mandheling coffee beans and Italian-style coffee beans

FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling is a coffee produced in the Sumatra region of Indonesia, belonging to single-origin coffee beans, usually used for pour-over coffee, with rich aroma and mellow taste. Espresso refers to using an espresso machine to pressurize and extract rich and concentrated coffee liquid, with strong taste.

In recent years, with the popularity of fast-paced espresso culture, various styles of coffee shops have spread across the country. It only takes two minutes to brew a small portion of rich, flavorful coffee, which has been favored by many young people. Many friends also want to buy equipment to make it at home. FrontStreet Coffee's article will discuss the differences between common espresso and pour-over single-origin coffee in coffee shops.

Understanding Espresso Coffee

Espresso refers to Espresso Coffee, which is extracted using semi-automatic/fully automatic espresso machines to produce thick coffee liquid with a layer of dense crema. With its popularity, people in various regions have used Espresso as a base to create popular categories such as Americano, Latte, and Mocha according to local tastes, all of which belong to espresso coffee.

When we extract a shot of espresso, because espresso is extracted in a very short time, we use finer ground coffee powder and press near-boiling hot water through the compact coffee puck to quickly extract soluble substances from the coffee. Pour-over coffee belongs to drip coffee, where we need to pour hot water into permeable ground coffee powder under normal temperature and pressure conditions, allowing the coffee powder to absorb and release soluble aromatic substances from the coffee over a longer period.

Due to pressurized extraction, espresso concentrates various flavors from the coffee, presenting a strong taste, so people dilute it with water or milk before drinking. Pour-over coffee has a short brewing time and uses more water, resulting in a fresh and elegant coffee liquid taste, usually consumed directly after brewing.

Espresso Beans vs. Pour-over Single-origin Beans

Due to different extraction methods between espresso and pour-over coffee, the coffee beans used should vary according to their characteristics. Imagine using the same light-roasted single-origin coffee bean - the pour-over method would present floral and fruity sweet and fresh aroma, while pressurized extraction espresso would show stimulating strong acidity. Therefore, coffee beans used for espresso will adopt a slightly deeper roast degree to produce more caramel substances to balance the taste of espresso.

So-called Espresso Blend is a coffee bean created by roasters selecting different origins and flavors of coffee beans, mixing and roasting them (or roasting separately and blending in proportions) to create espresso with rich and balanced flavor and taste. For example, the FrontStreet Coffee Sunflower Warm Sunshine Espresso Blend used in FrontStreet Coffee stores is made from FrontStreet Coffee's Honduras Sherry (whiskey barrel fermented) and FrontStreet Coffee's Ethiopia Natural Red Cherry in a 7:3 ratio. The extracted Espresso has rich crema, with obvious whiskey aroma and soft berry acidity, rich aroma, and balanced taste.

As the concept of specialty coffee continues to be emphasized, regional flavors have also become the pursuit of many coffee professionals. Currently, many stores use high-quality single-origin coffee for espresso production, which is what we commonly call SOE. As FrontStreet Coffee mentioned, if you want to extract espresso that can express regional flavors while balancing the taste, you need to adjust the roasting curve; otherwise, regional flavors lose their meaning. If we make espresso at home, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using FrontStreet Coffee's espresso blend beans or medium-dark roasted single-origin coffee beans, which helps our extraction be more stable.

Recommended Single-origin Coffee Beans for Pour-over

If you are a coffee novice just starting out, FrontStreet Coffee suggests starting with classic coffee regional flavors. FrontStreet Coffee has selected multiple classic coffee regions, covering different coffee varieties, and launched the FrontStreet Coffee Daily Bean series in 100g packages. FrontStreet Coffee Daily Beans are the "facial representatives" of major regions, allowing you to recognize the basic flavors of each region, such as FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe jasmine floral aroma, lemon acidity, wet-hulled FrontStreet Coffee Mandheling coffee's herbal spice flavors, Brazil's cream and chocolate flavors, etc.

FrontStreet Coffee's Yirgacheffe coffee, originating from Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee, differs from traditional drying methods. Yirgacheffe uses washed processing, greatly reducing coffee defect rates while bringing fresh floral aroma and bright, uplifting acidity. Due to its unique coffee flavor, it has become the "white moonlight" in many people's hearts.

As a classic mellow coffee in pour-over single-origin selections, FrontStreet Coffee's Mandheling coffee can be described as enduringly popular. Indonesia's humid and high-temperature environment led to the birth of the unique wet-hulling method, where the parchment layer covering the raw beans is "forcibly" removed before it's completely dry, so the raw beans complete their final drying in an "exposed" state, thus absorbing moisture from the air. The coffee beans carry woody, herbal, and spicy heavy aromas. After roasting, they present black chocolate and nutty mellowness, with unique pine and herbal tastes.

As the world's largest coffee-producing country, Brazil's classic cream and nut flavors have contributed to the mellow taste of many espresso blends. This FrontStreet Coffee Brazil Daily Bean is selected from Cerrado in Minas Gerais state, belonging to the Red Bourbon variety. The semi-dry processing method reduces coffee's miscellaneous flavors while enhancing the coffee's fruity aroma and sweetness.

Colombian coffee, world-famous for its smooth texture and rich nutty chocolate mellowness, uses the high-quality Caturra variety from the renowned Huila region. Its unique microclimate creates rich coffee aroma. FrontStreet Coffee's Huila Daily Bean, processed using the washed method, has chocolate, caramel, and smooth pleasant fruit acidity.

Recommended Espresso Coffee Beans

The taste of espresso is determined by the coffee beans used. To balance coffee flavors and create a mellower taste, most stores will choose medium-dark roasted blend coffee beans. FrontStreet Coffee, through continuously deep understanding of the flavor characteristics of coffee beans from different regions, uses different proportions to let the characteristics of coffee beans complement each other, balancing the flavors presented by espresso. After multiple experimental comparisons, FrontStreet Coffee has launched a total of four espresso blend coffee beans.

Classic Mellow Type - FrontStreet Coffee Commercial Blend

Robusta washed coffee beans (10%) + Colombia washed coffee beans (30%) + Brazil semi-dry coffee (60%)

The produced espresso has rich golden crema and nutty aroma. When tasting, you'll experience aromatic coffee bitterness, but more importantly, a creamy full-bodied texture. After swallowing, the bitterness dissipates, leaving a lingering aroma in the mouth, satisfying daily needs for coffee shops.

Slightly Acidic Mellow Type - FrontStreet Coffee Basic Blend

Yunnan washed small-bean coffee (30%) + Brazil semi-dry coffee beans (70%)

Yunnan small-bean coffee with soft acidity pairs with Brazil Cerrado coffee's mellow aroma, presenting espresso with caramel, nuts, and soft plum acidity. This cost-effective espresso bean is suitable for shop and home users who prioritize cost and have general flavor requirements.

Balanced Rich Type - FrontStreet Coffee Premium Blend

Colombia washed coffee beans (30%) + Brazil semi-dry coffee beans (70%)

Colombian coffee is added to the classic Brazilian coffee's nutty notes, presenting espresso with dark chocolate flavor, caramel sweetness, and full roasting aroma, suitable for daily production needs of coffee shops.

Delicate Wine Aroma Type - FrontStreet Coffee Sunflower Warm Sunshine Blend

FrontStreet Coffee Ethiopia Natural Red Cherry coffee beans (30%) + FrontStreet Coffee Honduras Sherry Barrel coffee beans (70%)

When made into espresso, the entry is very rich dark chocolate flavor with strong caramel aroma. The aroma emitted after swallowing is endlessly memorable. Whether it's Americano diluted with water or latte enhanced with milk, both present rich aroma and taste.

To ensure everyone receives freshly roasted coffee beans when placing orders, FrontStreet Coffee ships coffee beans freshly roasted within 5 days, so when you receive them, they may still be in the degassing period. Roasted blend beans need 7-10 days of degassing, then enter the full-flavor tasting period. At this time, the extracted espresso is more stable.

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