Specialty coffee turned out to be "sour"!

After many people come into contact with specialty coffee, they realize that coffee is not bitter, but sour? Acidity is the most controversial attribute in specialty coffee. Although many specialty coffee lovers and competition judges like good acidity, acidity often makes people wonder. Let us analyze why specialty coffee is sour.

Coffee is originally a fruit seed

Coffee is originally a fruit seed. The ripe coffee beans have a layer of sweet pectin in the peel before they are hulled. The green coffee beans fully absorb the pectin in the pulp, so that the coffee beans will retain the sweetness and sourness of the fruit before roasting. Therefore, it is normal for coffee to have a fruity aroma and sweet and sour flavor.

What is acidity

Lively, full-bodied, sharp, bright, fruity...These words are often used to describe acidity, but because acidity has many aspects, it affects the flavor and aroma, forming stone fruits, sweet peaches, and apples.

Acidity can affect the taste. As long as a professional cup tester can identify whether the acid leaves a irritation in the mouth, if there is no irritation, it means that the acidity is very low or there is no acidity. Acidity is also a chemical compound, which affects the taste of coffee. As long as you understand the chemical composition of coffee, you can help the roaster or brewer get a better flavor.

Someone once said: "The acidity can give full play to the flavor of a cup of coffee, and it can also make the flavor imbalance."

Some raw beans are naturally acidic

The natural acidity of some coffee is relatively high, which may have a huge impact on the origin, variety, processing method, and the climate of the planting environment.

1. Place of origin. The soil properties and acid content of each production area are different. For continents, African coffee beans usually have high sucrose, as well as obvious fruit acid and fruity aroma; followed by Central and South America, which has a milder and non-irritating Soft and sour; Asia is lower.

2. Variety. Variety affects the sourness of coffee greatly. For example, from Arabica species, its chlorogenic acid content is lower, thus reducing the acidity of coffee.

3. Climate & Altitude. Most delicious coffee is grown at higher altitudes, but in fact the degree of influence of temperature is greater than altitude. Coffee will mature more slowly in a colder temperature environment, which promotes the development of more flavor. When coffee is brewed, even coffee grown on the same mountain, higher altitude coffee will have more acidity and aroma than coffee grown in warmer climates.

4. Treatment method. It is very troublesome to remove the pulp and other substances outside the coffee fruit. The removal process is called treatment method, and the treatment method will deeply affect the coffee flavor. Sun-treated coffee will expose the whole fruit to the sun, adding to the overall sweetness and greatly improving the acidity.

In summary, acidity is still a complicated issue. In addition to the above-mentioned variables, the roasting degree and brewing method will affect its strength and weakness. So try to taste different coffees to find out the flavor you like. Do you plan to equip some customized coffee cups, hand crank coffee grinder, small household coffee grinder, manual coffee grinder, burr coffee grinder and other coffee making machines to personally study the taste of coffee? Welcome to visit our official website to buy all kinds of coffee bean grinder, electric coffee grinder, antique coffee grinder.