Should coffee beans be dark roasted or light roasted? What is the difference between dark roasted coffee beans and light roasted coffee beans?
There has been a fierce debate in the coffee industry about whether a certain type of coffee should be dark roasted or light roasted. Roasters who support light roasting believe that coffee beans should be lightly roasted to maximize the flavor of the coffee. Especially some young coffee roasters are very supportive of light roasting.
Indeed, we have also noticed that with the promotion of the world's specialty coffee movement, light roasting of coffee beans seems to have become the standard and trend for specialty coffee. The degree of light roasting by some specialty coffee roasters in the United States is amazing. Those who support dark roasting believe that coffee beans can only fully complete the "Maillard reaction" after being roasted at medium-dark levels. Peet's in San Francisco, USA, has always adhered to the dark roasting style. Of course, he is also recognized as an expert in dark roasting.
●The debate between dark roasting and light roasting, I think will continue forever, because the choice of coffee roasting degree marks the roaster's (roaster) understanding of the flavor of coffee. Personally, I think dark roasting and light roasting do not need to and should not be unified across the board. Roasters have different understandings of coffee. Even coffee roasters who are both light roasts have different roasting levels and curve forms.
However, as a roaster, the choice of coffee roasting level should not only be based on the personal interests and hobbies of the roaster, but should be based on the needs of the audience. Therefore, there is a reason for light roasting and a dark roast, and there is no good or bad difference between the two. If your customers are pursuing flavor and the terroir of the place where the coffee is produced, then light roasting can allow your customers to more clearly perceive what they need.
On the contrary, if your guests like coffee that is round, full-bodied, and sweet, then a medium or even dark roast is more appropriate. However, many light-roast style roasters believe that when coffee is dark-roasted, there is no other taste in the coffee except burnt bitterness. The flavor of coffee is completely lost in dark roasting. This statement is not objective. A roaster who specializes in dark roasted coffee will not only have no smoky smell in his coffee, but customers can also perceive the flavor of the coffee. In other words, a person who only roasts coffee until it is black, produces oil, and has an extremely strong smell of smoke, is not a roaster, but a charcoal burner.
●What are the taste characteristics of light roasted, medium roasted, and dark roasted coffee beans?
Generally, lightly cultivated beans have a more distinctive light flavor, and the flavor expression is very rich. Floral aroma, fruit acid, and some tea flavors are all the flavor expressions of this type of beans. The first choices are Front Street Dingding Yirgacheffe, Front Street Oiran, and Front Street Tomato Kenya.
Medium roasting is a more balanced performance, with both refreshing flavor and thick taste, and may also show a higher sweetness. We recommend the Front Street Strawberry Candy Geisha blend, which allows you to drink the sweet flavor of roses, grapes, dried blueberries, and fruit candies.
Darkly roasted beans express more of their taste, usually with a strong flavor, such as smoky, chocolate, and woody aromas. Friends who like this type of beans generally don’t like sourness, so Front Street PWN Golden Mandheling is the first choice. It is suitable for hand brewing, French press, siphon, and espresso coffee machines. It is a very classic low-acid and burnt aroma coffee bean.
The classification of these three baking methods is only a very rough classification. In fact, many factors such as the roaster's style and the origin of the beans will affect the roasting depth. This answer is just a general statement. The barista will adjust the roasting curve according to the characteristics of each bean. The flavor of the beans will be different if they are placed in the pot with a difference of one degree or 2 seconds.
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
