Crema's answer: is the gold foam on espresso really that important?

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It seems that everyone tastes espresso in search of the perfect crema-the brown foam that floats on top of freshly brewed espresso. Just the right amount of coffee fat has become synonymous with a good cup of coffee, but this layer contains a deeper coffee principle.

In fact, the importance of coffee fat is different. Is it really a sign of perfect coffee? Or is it just an over-hyped noun that is actually optional? Why does the barista care so much about its condition? Before you can figure out these questions, you need to know what coffee grease is.

1

What is Crema?

Coffee grease is a layer of coffee foam that floats on top of coffee and has a strong taste and aroma. Simply put, the high temperature and pressure of the brewing process combine the air with the soluble fats in the coffee, and coffee fat is produced. Some people call this phenomenon the Guinness effect because it has a similar foam layer to the famous Irish stout.

An espresso with visible coffee fat requires good quality, moderately ground coffee beans and a skilled barista. Coffee fat gives espresso a more saturated flavor and a stronger finish than drip coffee.

2

What is the perfect coffee fat?

Every barista has his own idea of what constitutes perfect coffee fat. But at the very least: when brewing an espresso, the coffee fat on top should not be too thin or too thick, and it should last about two minutes.

It's a bit complicated to make a nice coffee fat, because there are so many factors that can affect the outcome. But in practice, you can follow a few main points:

Too much coffee fat will lead to a reduction in the total amount of espresso. Many baristas aim for a coffee fat ratio of about one-tenth of the whole cup.

2, excessive extraction and insufficient extraction will affect the production of coffee oil.

If the coffee oil is defoamed within one minute, it means that the extraction time is too short, or the coffee beans are roasted too lightly.

In general, a good quality espresso machine extraction time is about 15 to 30 seconds, but each machine is not the same.

Remember to warm up the machine before brewing coffee, and clean the machine regularly to ensure the quality of operation. A dirty coffee machine adds bitterness and impurity to the coffee it produces.

3

Factors Affecting Coffee Oil Production

In fact, it is difficult to fully master coffee fat, because in addition to the technique of practice makes perfect, it will also be affected by the following reasons:

How fresh are the coffee beans used for brewing?

Fresh coffee beans produce more coffee fat because they continue to release soluble fat. Try observing that if a neighboring coffee shop uses home-baked beans, the espresso brewed by the home-baked coffee shop may generally have a thicker coffee fat than that brewed by another shop that does not use home-baked beans.

The degree of roasting of coffee beans also affects

Generally speaking, after the second explosion stage of roasting, the deeper the roasting degree, the less coffee fat. Because a large amount of coffee fat has been released during the roasting process, plus stirring, packaging and grinding, coffee fat will be further lost through oxidation. In addition, too light roast, not fully reacted coffee bean fat content is not ideal. Therefore, many coffee companies offer products that are specially roasted to make espresso to ensure that the beans have enough fat.

The way coffee beans are processed should also be considered

Coffee beans that are naturally sun-dried usually flush out the best coffee fat, because sun-dried beans have a higher fat content and are more preserved.

Home espresso machine brewing is also one of the factors

Many home appliances have a one-button operation, automatic brewing function, although very convenient, but compared with semi-automatic brewing operation, automatic settings will also limit the production of coffee grease. Some machines compensate for this by flushing out a separate mimicry of coffee grease.

4

Is coffee really important?

While that gentle layer of coffee grease may seem like a prerequisite for good espresso, it's not so absolute. Coffee fat does add more flavor to espresso, and drinkers expect to enjoy the visual feast brought by this luxury foam when drinking coffee, but in fact a cup of espresso without rich coffee fat can also be rich and delicious, with aroma overflowing-for example, SOE, which has become more and more popular in recent years, often does not have very rich and gorgeous coffee fat due to roasting degree, but still does not damage its delicious taste.

After all, coffee is for the satisfaction of taste buds. If there is no coffee grease on your coffee, don't be depressed or disappointed that you haven't been able to make a good cup of coffee. As long as it tastes good, it's good coffee. Remember, the quality of beans, baking degree, processing technology and machine quality determine the final finished product, these elements can not escape the taste test.

For many people, coffee has become a necessity. Whether psychological or physical, you need to immerse yourself in the charm of this dark drink at some point in the day. And behind this cup of drink, there are many unknown small details hidden. After understanding coffee fat, you can experience this brown foam more carefully when you drink espresso next time. Will it feel different again?