Understanding the sensory characteristics of Espresso Coffee

Sensory characteristics of Espresso Coffee

The warm hue of foam, the strong and wonderful fragrance, the soft and smooth liquid like velvet, and the strong and persistent taste, all of which are presented in a well-brewed cup of espresso coffee, provide the drinker with the pleasure of smell, taste and vision. Only hearing is excluded from this multi-sensory experience. Between the complex chemical composition of coffee and its multiple sensory systems, a connection is created by sipping this small cup of coffee.

Visual features

What attracts the most visual attention of a cup of espresso coffee is the foam. The beautiful scenery of the foam is made up of tiny bubbles captured by sticky liquid and tiger skin markings formed by fragments of the cell wall floating on top of the foam.

The color and texture of the foam are very important to the drinkers of espresso coffee, because for the drinkers, the perfect foam represents the perfect coffee brewing process. Any errors in grinding, cooking, temperature or extraction will be immediately revealed by the color, texture and persistence of the foam. For example, if the foam is thin and shows a light color, uneven texture and gradual disappearance, it means that the cup of espresso coffee is not extracted enough. This may be due to the coarse grinding particles or the low water temperature; coffee maker: http://www.kafeiji001.com/. If the color is dark in the above foam and there is a hole in the center, it means that the porous nature of the coffee pressed powder is too low or the powder content is too much. The reason for a cup of over-extracted espresso coffee is that if the water temperature is too high, it will appear white with bubbles; if it takes too long to brew, there will be white spots in the center of the foam.

Foam is also a cover for the aroma of coffee because it captures the volatile chemicals that make up the aroma of coffee. If the bean formula is suitable for brewing espresso coffee, the aroma will be pleasant, otherwise it will be disgusting. Foam is an amplifier that magnifies both the advantages and disadvantages of coffee.

Taste (mouth feel)

Texture is another important feature of espresso coffee. The oil droplets in coffee not only dissolve many flavor chemical molecules, but also increase the viscosity of coffee. Another form of tactile sensation is astringency, which has always been hated and thought to have something to do with drugs. The existence of astringency is related to the existence of immature beans, immature beans will contain polyphenols, these substances will cause oral mucosal bitterness and will interact with soluble proteins in saliva.

Taste (taste)

Sweetness is an important trait when appreciating a cup of espresso coffee, but sour taste is not. Consumers in different countries show significant differences in the ratio of bitter taste to sour taste of espresso coffee. Consumers in southern countries prefer bitterness and focus on texture, while in northern countries they prefer a more balanced sense of taste and think that too much bitterness is a disadvantage. This difference can also be seen in the concentration of espresso coffee, espresso in southern countries is small and strong and drinks without milk, while in northern countries, it is more diluted and served with milk or whipped cream. Unfortunately, however, it is quite difficult to brew a cup of espresso coffee with more than 50ml without over-extraction, which is why most northern espresso coffee tastes woody or astringent, which is often described by drinkers as bitter, because when a large amount of coffee is extracted, some soluble and unpalatable substances are also brought out. The degree of roasting of coffee beans can change the ratio of bitter to sour taste of espresso coffee; deeply roasted washed coffee beans have an irritating burning taste, which is usually unpopular. Very fast baking can cause an unpleasant taste with astringent, bitter and metallic flavors.