What is Black Coffee? What's the Difference Between Black Coffee and American Pour-Over Coffee?

What is black coffee?

Black coffee is pure coffee with no milk, sugar or other added ingredients. Common examples include Americano, pour-over, iced drip, cold brew, or pure black coffee extracted with devices such as a moka pot or a French press. Among the various types, the most popular is iced black coffee, better known as iced Americano.

What does iced Americano taste like?

The ingredients for an iced Americano are very simple: espresso, ice and water. Because no milk, sugar or other ingredients are added, an Americano lets you taste the original flavor and aroma of the beans, which also places higher demands on the flavor and quality of the espresso. FrontStreet Coffee uses its own roasted "Sunflower Warm Sunshine Blend," which combines 70% Honduras Sherry coffee with 30% Yirgacheffe Natural Red Cherry coffee. The whiskey, vanilla and cream flavors of the Sherry complement the tropical fruit and fermentation notes of the red cherry, creating a rich coffee aroma and a smooth mouthfeel.

When preparing an iced Americano, FrontStreet Coffee grinds the beans and extracts espresso at a 1:2 coffee-to-liquid ratio, using 20 grams of coffee to extract 40 grams of liquid, which is then diluted in water. We prepare 120 grams of ice and 120 grams of room-temperature water, and it tastes best before the ice fully melts. FrontStreet Coffee's iced Americano presents a refreshing and pleasant sweet-and-sour taste that even friends who do not regularly drink black coffee find easy to accept.

Why is iced Americano so popular?

The reason the Americano is so highly sought after is not only its moderate concentration and approachable taste, but also the fact that drinking an appropriate amount daily aids digestion, reduces greasiness and helps with bloating. In the warmer Guangdong region, iced Americano also helps locals cool down and quench thirst, making it a summer essential. Because it is very low in calories and can boost metabolism, drinking one an hour before exercise helps burn fat, which makes it a recommended beverage for many fitness enthusiasts.

FrontStreet Coffee still needs to remind everyone, though, that only a pure Americano offers certain health benefits. If you add syrup, condensed milk or coffee creamer, it brings additional calories, and long-term consumption is not good for your health.

Is Americano healthy?

Whether Americano is healthy is an enduring global topic, but the current medical consensus is that moderate consumption has no adverse health effects and does not increase the risk of certain cancers; it can even be beneficial to the body. FrontStreet Coffee suggests that no more than 3 cups of black coffee per day is beneficial and harmless to health, though this should be tailored to each individual's constitution. When we experience insomnia or gastrointestinal discomfort after drinking coffee, we should not consume excessive amounts of caffeine.

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

For a black coffee that shows what a single origin can do, FrontStreet washed Yirgacheffe is a fine place to begin. Its white jasmine, bright citrus and lemon acidity and tea-like body are exactly what made Yirgacheffe a household name, and its approachable price makes it a common first specialty bean for newcomers.

If you want the same region with more tropical fruit, FrontStreet Yirgacheffe Red Cherry is a fully ripe, all-red cherry sun-dried lot, so it keeps the classic Yirgacheffe profile while adding the tropical fruit that sun-drying brings, with citrus acidity, a berry-juice quality, honey sweetness and creamy smoothness.