Two Worlds of Espresso—Should Italian Coffee Beans Be Dark Roasted or Light Roasted?

What is Espresso Coffee?

Espresso coffee is a method of coffee extraction made using an espresso machine, which quickly extracts concentrated coffee through high temperature and high pressure. Espresso coffee is also called espresso, or Espresso.

Many people's first impression of espresso is that it's strong and bitter, but in fact, FrontStreet Coffee wants to tell everyone that a good espresso can reveal notes of fruit, flowers, spices, or even chocolate and caramel. This all depends on the coffee beans used to make the espresso.

Can All Coffee Beans Be Used for Espresso?

For pour-over coffee, any coffee beans can be used; but what about espresso? Can all coffee beans be used for espresso? FrontStreet Coffee believes that coffee beans of any roast level can be used for espresso, as it completely depends on personal preference and taste.

However, Italians do indeed prefer dark roasted espresso beans, and most people may also lean towards the flavor of dark roasted coffee beans (more bitter, with higher body), so dark roasted espresso beans have become mainstream. Different coffee beans selected can result in significant differences in the taste of the extracted espresso, some even difficult to swallow, especially SOE (Single Origin Espresso) coffees. For example, Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee beans made into single origin espresso may have a rather sharp, acidic, and stimulating taste, so choosing the right coffee beans is very important.

Everyone should know that espresso has a layer of crema on the surface, and if you choose light roasted coffee beans to make espresso, the crema might be very thin or even nonexistent. Therefore, it's generally recommended to use dark roasted coffee beans to make espresso! Dark roasted coffee beans have more intense flavors, closer to what ordinary consumers typically associate with "coffee taste," making them more widely accepted.

Dark roasted coffee also has a significant impact on crema (what we commonly call the oily layer), resulting in more crema. Crema is formed by carbon dioxide and some solid substances extracted under high pressure. Freshly roasted coffee beans contain a large amount of carbon dioxide, so the crema produced using these beans will also be richer. However, more crema isn't always better - if you try to create latte art, you'll find that the crema is difficult to push around, not smooth enough, which is what we commonly call "hard crema."

As the base for most coffee beverages, especially milk-based coffees, FrontStreet Coffee suggests that those new to espresso choose coffee beans roasted at least medium to dark level for extraction. This ensures that when the coffee is mixed with other ingredients, it still maintains its rich body.

Why Isn't Light Roast Recommended for Espresso?

Why isn't light roast recommended for espresso? Because the acidity in light roasted coffee beans is more pronounced than in medium roasted beans. If made into other coffee beverages or mixed with milk/water, without proper adjustment of extraction parameters and ratios, the resulting coffee may taste thin and lack body. If tasting espresso directly, the coffee's flavor might be sharply acidic with heavy astringency.

SOE (Single Origin Espresso)

Of course, SOE (Single Origin Espresso) is now very popular in cafés. SOE is actually the abbreviation for Single Origin Espresso, which translates to: Single Origin Espresso. It emphasizes a single origin and the espresso made from it. This term is relative to traditional Italian blended coffee, emphasizing the unique characteristics of single origin espresso and making it easier to identify the regional flavors of that origin, thus increasing the connection between origin and consumers. It refers to espresso made from coffee beans of a single origin or region, where the roast level doesn't need to be as dark. SOE pursues the unique flavors of a single region.

Blended Beans

Typically, coffee beans used for espresso are blended beans. A perfect Espresso starts with the blend. A perfect Espresso requires sweet flavors, balanced overall taste, and a perfect balance of bitterness, acidity, sweetness, and aftertaste. This is a task that single-origin coffee beans cannot accomplish, so to get a perfect Espresso, you must first have a perfect coffee bean blending formula. Blending here not only refers to the combination of coffee beans from different origins but can also refer to the coordination of the same coffee beans at different roast levels. Whether it's a blend of different origin coffee beans or the same origin beans at different roast levels, the principle of blending is only one: to achieve the final balance of Espresso coffee taste.

What Are Blended Coffee Beans?

Blended coffee, also known as mixed coffee, is the process of mixing various single-origin coffee beans together to fully utilize the strengths of each single-origin bean. Blended beans are made from coffee beans of different origins to create a more balanced flavor. For example, if one coffee bean is smooth but lacks aroma, you can add another bean rich in aroma, taking the strengths of individual coffee beans to complement each other, either complementing or enhancing in taste, thereby creating a coffee with a richer new flavor. Blended coffee is divided into raw blending and roasted blending. Raw blending refers to mixing coffee from different origins together before roasting. Roasted blending refers to mixing already roasted coffee beans. FrontStreet Coffee's blended beans are all roasted blends.

How Do Blended Beans Taste in Espresso?

Coffee is an agricultural product. The same region's different harvest seasons or even different batches within a year can produce different flavors. The disadvantage of single origin is exposed here - you can't confidently guarantee that you'll be able to drink the same single-origin coffee next year that you found delicious this year (except for coffee beans where processing method dominates the flavor, and other factors between origin and café can also cause differences in the coffee beans you purchase).

Therefore, one purpose of blending is to create a product that can be supplied long-term with stable flavor. When the quality of one of the coffee beans in the new season cannot meet requirements or changes occur, you can find similar coffee beans to replace it to achieve stability.

Sometimes single-origin coffee beans are like a person, with both strengths and weaknesses, while blending is like organizing a team, taking each other's strengths to compensate for weaknesses, thereby achieving a complementary effect.

For example, blending a sweeter coffee bean with a more acidic one to achieve a balance of sweet and sour, or adding some Brazilian beans to increase overall body - these are all purposes of blending.

Each purpose represents the flavor direction of the blended coffee. For example, if reducing costs, better quality coffee beans cannot be used, and their flavor doesn't need to be deeply explored. FrontStreet Coffee believes that creating flavors that single-origin beans cannot produce, or using high-quality, distinctive single-origin coffee beans regardless of cost, if properly formulated, it's not a big problem to outperform SOE. Therefore, the focus of blended coffee still depends on its blending purpose and unit price.

FrontStreet Coffee's espresso beverages use the Sunflower Warm Sun blend, which uses Honduras Sherry and Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Red Cherry coffee. Through continuous blending by FrontStreet Coffee's baristas, a relatively perfect blending ratio of 7:3 was achieved. The resulting espresso has distinct fruit acidity, berry flavor and aroma, and wine fragrance, with a comfortable sweet aftertaste. FrontStreet Coffee confidently believes its flavor can completely compete with SOE.

FrontStreet Coffee also has basic blends, specialty blends, and commercial blends. For single-origin options, there are over fifty different regions, whether for pour-over or espresso, you can try different flavor experiences.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Suggestions

Whether it's pour-over coffee or espresso, to brew well, you must use good coffee beans and also maintain them properly. FrontStreet Coffee has always believed that the freshness of coffee beans is a very important part of brewing. The coffee beans shipped by FrontStreet Coffee are all roasted within 5 days because FrontStreet Coffee deeply understands that bean freshness has a great impact on flavor. FrontStreet Coffee's roasting philosophy is "freshly roasted good coffee," ensuring that every customer who places an order receives the freshest coffee when it arrives. The coffee bean resting period is about 4-7 days, so when customers receive it, it's at its optimal flavor.

Of course, some customers need FrontStreet Coffee to grind the beans for them, which is also fine, but FrontStreet Coffee must remind you: if the coffee beans are ground in advance, there's no need for a resting period, because during transportation, the pressure from carbon dioxide in the package can also make the coffee flavor rounded, so you can brew a cup immediately upon receiving the coffee powder. However, coffee powder needs to be brewed promptly, because coffee powder oxidizes quickly after contact with air, meaning the coffee's flavor will dissipate relatively quickly, and the coffee won't taste as good. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee suggests buying whole beans and grinding fresh before brewing to better experience the coffee's flavor.

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