How Many Cups of Pour-Over Coffee Can You Drink Per Day? Which Has More Caffeine: Pour-Over or Espresso?

Caffeine: A Blessing for Some, A Nightmare for Others

For those who need caffeine, coffee becomes essential, but the deliciousness of coffee itself also attracts a group of gourmets who don't drink it for caffeine absorption, including many who are caffeine intolerant. Especially for customers who come to FrontStreet Coffee, the vast majority are drawn by the taste of coffee.

Many people believe that coffee must contain high levels of caffeine - after all, it's called caffeine, so it must come from coffee in abundance. But in fact, tea contains more than twice as much caffeine as coffee beans. This is the first surprising revelation.

Putting aside comparisons, coffee does contain caffeine. So how much caffeine is actually in a cup of coffee, and how many cups can we drink per day?

How Much Caffeine Do Coffee Beans Contain?

First, let's understand how much caffeine coffee beans contain. Different varieties of coffee beans have different caffeine content. Taking the common Arabica and Robusta coffee beans as examples, Arabica beans contain approximately 0.9-1.4% caffeine, while Robusta beans contain about 2-4% caffeine (mostly concentrated around 3%). It's clear that Robusta beans contain more than twice the caffeine of Arabica beans.

There are also subtle differences in caffeine content among coffee beans grown in different regions. Taking Arabica coffee beans as an example, Arabica beans tested in Colombia contain about 1.37% caffeine, while Arabica beans from Ethiopia's Sidamo region contain only about 1.21% caffeine.

How Much Caffeine Is in a Cup of Coffee?

The amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee is closely related to how much coffee is used. For example, if we use 15g of coffee beans as the standard for a pour-over coffee, the total caffeine content (using Arabica with 1.3% caffeine as the calculation standard) would be 195mg. Please note that this 195mg represents the total caffeine content within the coffee beans - the actual caffeine dissolved in water will definitely be less than 195mg.

Here, please pay attention to two key points. First, caffeine is a water-soluble substance, belonging to what we often refer to as the 30% of coffee components that are soluble in water.

Second, when we brew coffee, we typically extract only 18-22% of the coffee substances. The chemical formula for caffeine is "C8H10N4O2," which is definitively a large molecular mass compound. FrontStreet Coffee has mentioned when sharing extraction knowledge that during coffee extraction, some small molecular coffee substances are extracted first, while some large molecular substances take longer to extract.

Therefore, in reality, a standard pour-over coffee using 15g of coffee grounds contains approximately 60-90mg of caffeine.

What Factors Affect the Caffeine Content in Coffee?

Let's revisit the previous point: why does tea contain twice as much caffeine as coffee beans, yet coffee is more stimulating? The answer lies in the fact that although tea has high caffeine content, its release rate is very slow, resulting in less caffeine in the same amount of water compared to coffee.

If we apply this theory to different coffee extraction methods, you'll find that the longer the immersion time, the higher the caffeine content.

Therefore, with the same coffee beans of equal weight:

Cold brew coffee > French press > Pour-over coffee > Espresso

A cup of cold brew coffee (200ml/20g beans) contains approximately 200mg of caffeine;
A cup of French press coffee (225ml/15g beans) contains approximately 120mg of caffeine;
A cup of pour-over coffee (225ml/15g beans) contains approximately 60-90mg of caffeine;
A shot of espresso (30ml/15g beans) contains approximately 85mg of caffeine.

Note: For Americanos, lattes, cappuccinos, and other coffees made with espresso as the base, the total caffeine content remains unchanged unless the recipe doesn't use a single shot of espresso.

Some might ask: if espresso has the lowest caffeine content, why do we find it more stimulating? There are two aspects to explain this. First, the concentration of espresso is much higher than other coffees, which creates a stimulating effect. Just like "tying one's hair to a beam and jabbing one's thigh with an awl" (an ancient Chinese method to stay awake) doesn't involve caffeine but can still have a stimulating effect.

Second, some coffee shops habitually use a blend of Robusta and Arabica beans, which increases the total caffeine content. Comparing different types of coffee beans would be meaningless otherwise.

How Many Cups of Coffee Can You Drink Per Day?

Generally, it's believed that ordinary adult men should not consume more than 400mg of caffeine daily, while the United States and Europe recommend that adults consume no more than 300mg of caffeine per day. At these intake levels, health problems are unlikely to occur. If we take pour-over coffee (200ml/cup) as an example, with its average caffeine content of 75mg, drinking 4-5 cups per day would not affect health.

Important Notice :

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