When it comes to coffee, there is nothing as satisfying and exhilarating as a well-balanced espresso, roasted perfectly and made by the barista perfectly. The Intense flavors, caffeine kick, the crema, the aromas in air…… It’s quite an experience.
A good espresso can be enjoyed on its own and also as a main ingredient for other drinks. However, it’s not as straightforward as it seems, to get a good balance of acidity, body and sweetness and balance of flavors. It takes quite some expertise in understanding the bean ratios, roasting levels and flavor supply. Let’s take a look at what you need to know when you shopping for the best beans for espresso making.
Blending
For great an espresso, Most Baristas all over the world tend to prefer blends instead of origins when it comes to making espressos. Baristas usually use Origins usually used for manual ways of making coffee and other techniques like filter coffee, chemex etc. They also use origins for espressos as well. Origins do have a great taste when it comes to making espressos but however sometimes they lack the complexity and character an espresso requires, which we acquire when we blend the beans. A good well-balanced espresso is usually made from different beans blended together. This is what we call blended beans. Check out the blog post "What's your cup of coffee?" - it goes deeper to explain about origins and blends.
When it comes to coffee blends for an espresso there is no good or bad. Each blend has its own character that suites its specific pallets. Hence why when roasters are blending, they look and origin, flavour and market they would like to cater for. Once they have their blend. The taste is consistent throughout the year. The recipes require good expertise from the roasters to make. Different origins have difference profiles and tastes since they coming from different regions. When mixed together by experts in recipes the blend has a unique well balanced tastes. The different blends also have different tastes, which can suit different markets.
Roasting
Traditionally, espresso blends were always dark roasts, and some medium to dark. This was because when it comes to making espressos, the light roast faces a high risk of being under extracted and in the end, taste sour. So roasters tended to roast darker for espressos because the beans become more soluble. Nowadays Roasters have roasting techniques which gives them the ability to make the beans more soluble without roasting them darker. The roasting process will depend on the roaster on what roasting profile and flavour he would have to achieve. Dark roasts and medium-dark roast are recommended as perfect for espressos. Also when it comes to milk based beverages such as latte or cappuccino, you’ll need it roasted for longer in order for it to cut through the milkiness of the beverage.
Personally, at Hausbrandt we believe medium-dark roast makes great espressos. We still maintain the original character of the beans and the same time expose and use more of its potential. Medium–dark roast has a developed character and the aromas are usually matching the taste. Depending on the Origins and how its blended, we looking at flavours which range from caramel, chocolatey, spicy, bittersweet etc.
It’s quite an exciting process selecting a blend for your espressos. Here is a few recommendations from our shop:
A medium bodied coffee, with sweet, spicy notes and medium acidity. The pleasant sweetness is distinguished by notes by hazelnut and cocoa.
A full-bodied and sweet coffee. The prevailing notes are those of toasted bread and baked cakes. The aftertaste does remind of bitter cocoa and liquorice.
A full-bodied coffee which is low in acidity. Its intense fragrance reminds of toasted bread and dried fruit. A touch of Brazilian Arabica in the blend gives to the coffee sweetness and a rounded profile.
For those 100% Arabica single origin lovers. This is a great experience from the island of Columbia. 100% Arabica beans with the quality and superiority of pure Arabica coffee with the desire for smooth, balanced flavour, producing a coffee that is perfect for any time of the day. Gourmet Columbus offers a mingling of flavours and aromas that briefly transports the drinker to the distant lands of South America.
Image:
Creator - Oliver Scheuch
Copyright - Oliver Scheuch