Why is SOE cheaper than pour-over coffee beans and which tastes better? Flavor characteristics description of SOE single-origin espresso

Understanding SOE Coffee

SOE (Single Origin Espresso) has become one of the most popular products in specialty coffee shops and chain coffee stores today. It is an espresso extracted from single-origin coffee beans, characterized by its ability to express the unique flavor characteristics of the coffee growing region, even at high concentrations.

Flavor Differences Between Pour-Over and Espresso

FrontStreet Coffee conducted a comparative experiment using their own light-to-medium roasted "Frontsteet Yirgacheffe Gedeb Cooperative Washed Coffee Beans." When brewed with medium-fine grind at a 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio and 91°C water temperature, the coffee exhibited bright citrus acidity, delicate white floral notes, and a honey-green tea aftertaste, presenting a well-balanced and full-bodied profile.

However, when ground very finely and extracted using an espresso machine at 9-10 bar pressure with 94°C water passing quickly through the evenly distributed and tamped coffee grounds, the SOE coffee displayed distinct lemon acidity, berry juice characteristics, and oolong tea-like aftertaste, though with a somewhat thinner overall body.

This comparison demonstrates that using the same single-origin coffee beans, while producing a balanced and delicious pour-over, the espresso extraction increases both concentration and acidity. Due to the lighter roast level, it lacks body, resulting in a thinner mouthfeel.

Advantages and Disadvantages of SOE Coffee

FrontStreet Coffee believes that SOE's strength lies in highlighting the unique characteristics of its origin, offering richer coffee layers. When transformed into Americano by adding water or various milk-based coffee drinks with different milk ratios, it still maintains the distinctive flavor profile of its origin region.

However, its disadvantage lies in lack of consistency. As agricultural products, coffee beans' flavors vary annually due to various natural factors. Even beans from the same region can show flavor differences, making it challenging to maintain long-term stable flavor expression in espresso. Additionally, very lightly roasted coffee beans can easily produce sharp acidity and thin mouthfeel when extracted as SOE.

Typically, espresso-based products are the bestsellers in coffee shops, and product consistency is crucial for customer retention. Therefore, many coffee shops use dark-roasted espresso blends as their default, offering SOE as an additional option. SOE products are priced differently depending on the beans, and aren't necessarily cheaper than pour-over coffee.

How to Choose SOE Coffee Beans?

Since SOE aims to express origin flavors through espresso, many coffee beans require specifically designed roast curves to achieve optimal flavor expression. Many SOE single-origin beans specifically designed for espresso extraction are available on the market. At FrontStreet Coffee, if you're looking for beans suitable for SOE, baristas typically offer two suggestions: first, purchase medium-to-dark roasted single-origin beans; second, choose beans from the SOE category directly.

Selecting from Pour-Over Single-Origin Beans

1. Frontsteet Honduras Whiskey Barrel-Aged Sherry Coffee Beans

The medium roast level gives the coffee roasted aroma while preserving berry acidity. When made as SOE, it highlights vanilla biscuit and whiskey notes. When milk is added, it presents chocolate creaminess with a captivating aroma and an overall very smooth mouthfeel. FrontStreet Coffee's "Sunflower Sunshine Blend" used in their stores is made with a 7:3 ratio of Frontsteet Honduras Sherry and Frontsteet Natural Yirgacheffe Red Cherry, perfectly blending whiskey aroma, fruit sweetness, and chocolate milk smoothness in one cup.

2. Frontsteet Costa Rica Mirasu Manor Strawberry Candy Coffee Beans

The anaerobic honey process allows the coffee beans to retain the mucilage layer for closed fermentation before drying, maximizing the sweetness. This coffee shows distinct raisin, strawberry candy, and light floral notes when pour-over brewed, but when made into espresso, it expresses rich berry jam and orange chocolate characteristics.

3. Frontsteet Brazil Queen Manor Yellow Bourbon Coffee Beans

If the above varieties don't match your preferred flavor profile, consider these Frontsteet Brazil Queen Manor coffee beans from coffee giant Brazil. The medium-dark roast presents rich nutty, creamy, and peanut aromas, with a sweet chocolate aftertaste. The extracted SOE has beautiful, rich crema, and produces very aromatic milk-based drinks.

For the same coffee beans, many merchants offer different roast curves for pour-over and SOE purposes. Typically, fruit-acid type pour-over coffees are presented with light-to-medium roasts, while SOE beans are roasted slightly darker than pour-over versions, though not so dark as to completely change their primary flavor characteristics. This allows the espresso to maintain both fruit acidity and the sweetness from caramelization, mostly controlled at medium roast levels.

Take FrontStreet Coffee as an example: both the Frontsteet Yirgacheffe Konga coffee beans and Frontsteet Huang Guai coffee beans from Ethiopia are available in two roast levels: "Pour-over Light-Medium Roast" and "SOE Espresso Roast." The former is suitable for atmospheric extraction methods like pour-over, cold brew, French press, and coffee bags, while the latter is optimized for pressure-based extraction methods like espresso machines and moka pots.

Regardless of extraction method, FrontStreet Coffee believes freshness is crucial. Using coffee beans roasted more than a month ago may have lost some aroma and developed undesirable woody flavors. FrontStreet Coffee hopes every customer can enjoy coffee at its optimal flavor window, ensuring only beans roasted within 5 days are shipped. For those wanting to create better SOE coffee, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using freshly roasted single-origin coffee beans.

Important Notice :

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