There are billions of coffee lovers around the world. Whether it’s the comforting routine of brewing a cup at home or the need for a coffee shop next to the office, it has permeated our daily lives.

However, something as popular as coffee is fraught with mysteries. It’s a mix of facts, myths, and general rules of thumb that leaves some ambiguity as to what is actually the right way to do things.

How should I store coffee? Are you brewing correctly? Is decaf coffee completely decaffeinated? We spoke to Dr. Christopher Hendon, a computational materials scientist, who answers your most pressing questions about your cup of joe.

1. Pre-ground coffee and instant coffee actually have different levels of caffeine

Realistically, one of the best things you can do to make coffee at home is to grind your own beans. However, this is time consuming and can be quite expensive depending on the equipment.

If you opt for pre-ground coffee from the supermarket instead, will you succumb to the caffeine surge, or will it be exactly the same?

“No appreciable amount of caffeine is lost in the grinding process. However, pre-ground coffee sold in supermarkets typically contains less Robusta than Arabica,” says Hendon. According to him, the two main types of coffee beans used in commercial coffee production are Robusta and Arabica. Arabica beans are low in caffeine.

“But the problem with this is that it’s hard to know exactly what’s in a coffee blend. Since they don’t usually say it on the label, supermarket coffee is the best choice, following your own preferences. .”

Instant coffee is a different story. Depending on the processing method, it’s quite low in caffeine (often less than half) than any form of coffee powder.

2. Coffee should not be stored in the refrigerator

What is the meaning of life? Is free will an illusion? Should coffee be stored in the refrigerator? A question that philosophers have been asking for decades…perhaps. We don’t have an answer for the first two of his, but we can address the third.

and attempt is the keyword here, but it’s surprisingly difficult to understand. The question of where to store your coffee is hotly debated and there are many caveats, so let’s get straight to the point.

The main problem with storing coffee in the refrigerator or freezer is moisture. Coffee grounds should be kept dry, but the refrigerator isn’t necessarily the driest place. Therefore, if you store coffee in the refrigerator, it should be stored in an airtight container to avoid moisture.

“Coffee is primarily a kind of nasal sensory experience. When you take a sip, a lot of the flavor comes from the tongue and the back of your nose. The molecules that give you that experience are very volatile and easily evaporate. Coffee “loses those molecules over time if you keep it outside, and higher temperatures accelerate that process,” Hendon says.

There are a few things to note here. First, this only applies to people who are concerned about optimal flavor, and probably only high-quality beans that they plan to grind at home.

Next, you need to store your coffee at a low enough temperature to make a difference. In other words, your refrigerator isn’t cold enough to store your coffee. A freezer is required to achieve this result.

So, is it worth it? In addition to the aforementioned benefits, freezing coffee beans allows for a coarser grind than room temperature coffee, allowing you to grind the coffee in a more uniform manner.

It’s worth mentioning that these are somewhat minor details and not all experts agree on this. What most people advise is to store your coffee in a cupboard or somewhere at room temperature. As with most things when it comes to coffee, it’s all about experimenting to get the best results.

3. Cold beer doesn’t contain a lot of caffeine.

The cold brew is popular as it is perfect for coffee on a summer day. It’s often said that cold brew has a much higher caffeine content than regular hot coffee, but is that actually true?

“Hot coffee contains about twice as much caffeine. The reason is that temperature limits the amount of caffeine that can be extracted at lower temperatures. The higher you go, the more You can get out of it,” Hendon says.

“It’s not that it doesn’t have a lot of caffeine, but it’s not because of the brewing method. It’s because when you make cold brew concentrate, the ratio of coffee to water is very high.”

Concentrated cold brew beer is rarely offered. Usually diluted with water or mixed with milk, the average cold brew has less caffeine than a hot drink.

4. Coffee cannot be burned

A common complaint about coffee is that it’s “burnt.” This could be from a coffee shop or a cup made at home. So, is this taste caused by boiling the coffee in too hot water?

Once the coffee is roasted, it is dropped into a heated drum and over time the coffee begins to cook, turning yellow and then brown. If you simmer it for too long, it will eventually turn black.

This black bean is a dark roasted coffee. To reach this point, the beans must be cooked to about 220°C. This is a temperature well above the boiling point of the water used to make coffee.

“When you brew coffee, you can never bring that coffee back to the temperature it reached when roasting, so it’s impossible to burn the coffee during the brewing process,” says Hendon.

“However, the coffee comes out of the roaster, and burnt-tasting molecules may already be in the coffee. Depending on how you brew it, you can enjoy these flavors and Some coffee shops prefer these flavors and they are popular among many people.”

If you often drink coffee with a burnt flavor, but that’s not the flavor you like, a lighter roast will make it less likely to feature that flavor.

5. Decaf does not mean caffeine free

Just like non-alcoholic beer, decaffeinated coffee is still coffee, and it will contain small samples of caffeine, one of coffee’s main components. But is it a tangible amount?

“Depending on how the coffee is processed, the decaffeination process is in principle very close to 100% removal of caffeine. However, all the samples we have tested to date still contain some amount of caffeine. volume,” says Hendon.

In other words, coffee may contain some caffeine, but not enough to be noticeable or to affect the person drinking it.

6. Light and dark roast coffee have similar caffeine levels

When you browse the coffee aisle at the supermarket or scan the menu at your local coffee shop, you probably want to consider light or dark roast options.

Which is best for the most intense caffeine? Some say dark roast is better here, but it doesn’t really matter.

“scientific literature This suggests that even if there are variations between crops and beans, all of them will come out if washed. There’s not much of a difference here,” says Hendon.

“There seems to be variation in caffeine depending on roast profile and region, but it’s certainly not consistent enough to be noticeable.”

The only difference from roast is the flavor. Lighter roasts are often more delicate, but more complex. However, darker roasts are often said to have simpler tones and “deeper” flavors. This can taste like the more bitter of the two.

7. Coffee taste greatly Depends on the bean

Coffee has a very personal taste, and not everyone likes the same taste. There’s intense flavor, fruity-tasting beans, good old fashioned black coffee, and of course the infamous Frappuccino…but what exactly is the best coffee, scientifically speaking?

“Coffee associations around the world have score sheets to identify high-quality coffee. Two of the most important parameters are perceived acidity and sweetness,” says Hendon.

“In fact, the ones that tend to score very high each year are Colombian-Panamanian and Ethiopian, which taste like a bouquet of sour flowers. These tend to fetch the highest prices and average It’s completely different from high-end coffee.”

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