There’s been more than a few times where I’ve walked into a coffee shop or the coffee aisle at the grocery store and felt a little overwhelmed by all of the choices. There’s a million different things to choose from, including what roast type.
I’d walk in there and pretty much go eeny, meeny, miny moe to pick a coffee. I’ve always gone towards the darker roasts because they are so much smoother and sweeter. But now I’ve learned that the lighter roasts pack all the caffeine and anyone that knows me, knows that I like to cram as much caffeine as possible into every sip of my coffee!
I knew that the color of the bean was determined by the roast, but that was really about it and I really didn’t know what it meant.
To start with, the darker a bean, the longer it’s been in the coffee roaster. A darker roast tastes smoother because it has less fiber and more sugary flavor.
A lighter roast obviously spends less time in the roaster. It has more caffeine, but along with that is a slightly bitter taste. It also has a stronger flavor because the aromatic oils and acids don’t get destroyed during the shorter roast.
Here’s a recap: Dark Roasts = Smooth and Sugary. Light Roasts = bitter and chock full of caffeine.
If you still want to know more, here’s a more in depth look.
It starts with raw or unroasted beans that are green. If you have a coffee roaster, you’re good to go and you’re probably way too overqualified to be reading this blog post. But for the rest of us, the green beans are pretty much no use.
Light Roast
They’re generally pretty poor quality and are very acidic, but don’t worry they’re full of caffeine. Here’s a few examples:
- New England Roast
- Half City Roast
- Cinnamon Roast – The cinnamon roast has a dry surface with no oils and the flavor is light bodied. I hate to say it, but I think I might like this roast or would at least like to try it.
Medium Roast
If they keep it in the roaster for a little longer, you get a medium roast. It’s traditionally a breakfast coffee with good level of acidity and clean finish. It has a balanced body of flavor, which I’m told is a good thing. I’m still trying to figure out exactly what that means. You can find it in grocery stores and is good for drip coffee makers. In other words, it’s an every day type of coffee.
- Breakfast Roast – Slightly sweeter than a light roast
- American Roast – Not as dark as European roasts and generally considered to have a good aroma.
- City Roast – Slightly darker than the American Roast
Medium Dark Roast
These beans are roasted for a longer time to bring out the natural oil of the coffee to the surface of the bean. They have low levels of caffeine and acidity. They have a bittersweet flavor with a full body. It’s commonly used in cafes and coffee shops.
- French Roast – Also goes under the name dark roast. It’s used to make espresso.
- Continental Roast – It’s slightly lighter and has a spicy body.
- Viennese Roast – It spends slightly longer in the roast than American roast and has a rich, chocolaty body.
Dark Roast
- Italian Roast – This bean spends the longest time in the roaster. It’s roasted until the bean is almost jet black so it has a smoky, well roasted taste and masks the natural coffee bean flavor.
One last note. Just because they’re called French or Italian roasts, doesn’t mean that it’s actually from there, it’s just referring to the type of roast.
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