When roasting coffee, there are natural boundaries that differentiate light, medium, and dark roasts. If you've ever made popcorn in a pot, you know it has to reach a certain temperature before the kernels start popping. It seems to take forever, then suddenly, if you are heating them evenly, they all seem to pop at once.
Coffee is similar, but instead of popping, the beans "crack." This quiet popping sound comes from the beans forming microcracks and slightly expanding. Coffee beans typically go through two phases of cracking during roasting. The first crack occurs when the beans release steam and expand, marking the beginning of a light roast. This usually lasts about a minute.
If you continue roasting, the beans will reach the second crack. This signals the transition to a dark roast. Medium roasts are generally achieved between the first and second cracks, depending on how long you continue roasting after the first crack.
Roasting beans to a dark roast requires more time and careful attention to avoid burning them. While darker roasts lose some density, the caffeine content remains relatively stable. However, when coffee is measured by volume (e.g., scoops), light roast beans often contain more caffeine because they are denser than dark roast beans. This is why light roasts are generally considered to have more caffeine when measured this way. Dark roasts, though, often pair better with sweeteners and fats, which is why they are commonly used for espresso-based drinks.
#coffeestr #☕
When roasting coffee, there are three natural boundaries that differentiate light, medium and dark roast.
If you've ever made popcorn in a pot, you know it has to get to a certain temperature before the kernels start popping. It seems to take forever, then if you are heating them evenly, all of a sudden they all seem to want to pop at the same time.
Coffee is similar, but instead of popping they "crack". It sounds like a quiet popping, and its the sound of the bean forming microcracks and slightly expanding. With coffee, there are three phases to "cracking". You roast it to one phase and the beans all begin to crack. This goes on for about a minute then the cracking stops. Now you have a light roast.
Keep roasting it and it will start cracking again, this is the second crack. This is now a medium roast.
The "third crack" which happens for a longer period of time, kind of like trying to pop that last layer of popcorn seeds at the bottom of the pot, and this is where the skill comes in; to dark roast it without burning it.
Because the darker roast requires more time, it deterioriates the caffeine as a result, and this is why it isn't as potent. Its also this dark roast that is more appropriate for mixing with sweeteners and fat. This is why they use espresso bean (always dark roasted) for these drinks.
#coffeestr #☕
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