How to Make Americano Coffee: The Correct Coffee-to-Water Ratio and Comprehensive Americano Brewing Guide with Taste Description

The Evolution of Espresso Coffee

As times have evolved, coffee development has continuously progressed. Having experienced two waves of coffee culture, while we find ourselves in the third wave of specialty coffee, espresso remains important. The craft of making espresso is an essential skill for every barista, and nearly every coffee shop serves espresso-based beverages. FrontStreet Coffee often refers to espresso coffee as a series of coffee beverages made with espresso as the base. Today, let FrontStreet Coffee share how to make Americano coffee.

The Simplicity and Complexity of Americano

Americano coffee can be considered the simplest espresso-based beverage because it consists of only two components: espresso and water, with iced Americano adding ice cubes. The simplest part is also what tests technical skill the most - Americano coffee often serves as the best test of a barista's espresso extraction technique.

Compared to milk-based coffees like lattes, Americanos allow you to best perceive the inherent flavors of the coffee beans because there's no milk affecting the coffee's taste. Many barista friends, when visiting other coffee shops, will choose Americano - firstly for convenience and speed, and secondly to gauge the establishment's quality standards. To get back on track, we just mentioned that Americano preparation is simple, requiring only water and espresso, so you simply need to pour the espresso into water.

The espresso component needs to be extracted according to the characteristics of the beans, as different beans have different extraction parameters. Baristas must adjust daily based on the bean's condition to ultimately determine parameters that are compatible with different categories like espresso, Americano, and latte, allowing these coffees to perform at their best.

FrontStreet Coffee's Extraction Method

Taking the Sunflower Warm Sun Blend coffee beans used by FrontStreet Coffee as an example, through FrontStreet Coffee's serving experience, this coffee bean reaches its optimal flavor profile after 12-14 days of bean resting. FrontStreet Coffee's espresso extraction recipe is: extract 40g of espresso liquid from 20g of coffee grounds, with a time of 30 seconds.

When making hot Americano coffee, FrontStreet Coffee preheats the cup with hot water, then adds hot water, and finally pours the extracted espresso. The Americano ratio generally ranges from 1:6 to 1:8. After multiple adjustments, FrontStreet Coffee has chosen a 1:6 ratio, meaning 40g of coffee liquid mixed with 240g of hot water.

Similarly, when making iced Americano, FrontStreet Coffee pre-cools the cup with ice cubes, then adds water, and finally pours in the espresso. Because ice needs to be added, FrontStreet Coffee's iced Americano uses a 1:7 ratio - 40g of coffee liquid mixed with 280g of iced water mixture, containing 180g of ice cubes and 100g of water.

Does Removing Crema Make It Taste Better?

When making hot Americano coffee, you'll notice a layer of foam floating on the surface of the coffee - this is what we commonly call crema. This crema comes from the oils produced during espresso extraction. We know that espresso consists of three parts: the heart, the body, and the crema. Espresso crema forms when carbon dioxide from the coffee grounds is dissolved into the liquid under the high pressure of the espresso machine. As the extraction ends, pressure returns to normal, and the carbon dioxide in the coffee liquid begins to return to the air while being trapped by the fats in the coffee - this is how crema is formed.

What would happen if we removed this crema? FrontStreet Coffee tried making two cups of Americano, one with crema removed as a control group. Using FrontStreet Coffee's store's Warm Sun Blend coffee beans, the cup with crema removed was cleaner with a smoother mouthfeel, while the cup retaining crema had a slightly thicker texture. Both cups showed distinct dark chocolate notes with subtle whiskey barrel aromas and gentle acidity - the difference wasn't actually significant. If you prefer a cleaner taste, removing crema is recommended. If you need continuous production, keeping the crema is more advisable.

Connect with Coffee Experts

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style). For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee's private WeChat: qjcoffeex

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473