Coffee Brewing Basics
Coffee Extraction Stages Explained
How does coffee extraction work?
Coffee extraction is a process of transferring soluble compounds from coffee to water. This is done by pouring water over coffee grounds. The soluble compounds extracted from coffee include: acids, sugars, lipids, melanoidins and of course caffeine.
Different brewing methods influence which flavours are extracted more and how they are balanced. You can read more about it here:
3 Main Stages of Coffee Extraction and Flavours in Developed in Each of Them
Regardless of the brewing method, there are the same processes occurring during coffee extraction:
- Fats and acids are extracted
- Sugars are extracted
- Bitterness comes out (when coffee becomes bitter, it means that is was over extracted)
General Coffee Brewing Rules
The main factors which influence the extraction process of coffee:
- Coarseness of the grind
Finer grind will allow to extract more flavours than coarse grind - Brewing time
The longer the brewing time, the more bitter coffee gets. Short brewing time may result in under extraction and a sour taste, as only acid notes will be developed. - Coffee to water ratio
- Water temperature
Make your home brew stand out.
Advertisement
The above factors are the fundations of what you can manipulate to change the taste of your coffee to get the perfect cup. There are other things you can change, but this is where it starts.
What happens when you extract coffee too quickly?
If you don’t allow enough time you won’t extract enough sugars from coffee, only acidity will be extracted and coffee will taste sour.
What happens if you extract coffee for too long?
If you brew your coffee for too long or if water goes through coffee grounds too slowly, bitter and burned notes will become overpowering.
Related articles:
Share the coffee love:
- Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Pocket (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on Telegram (Opens in new window)
- Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)