How does espresso make the perfect coffee fat? Is the fat of espresso really important?

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It seems that when everyone tastes espresso, they pursue the perfect coffee fat (crema)-the brown foam that floats on freshly brewed espresso. The right coffee fat has become synonymous with a good cup of coffee, but this layer contains a deeper coffee principle.

According to The Spruce, there are different opinions about the importance of coffee fat. Is it really a sign of perfect coffee? Or is it just an over-touted term, in fact, dispensable? Why does the barista care so much about its state? Before we can figure out these problems, we need to know what coffee fat is.

What is coffee fat (Crema)?

Coffee grease is a layer of coffee foam with rich taste and aroma floating on coffee. To put it simply, when the air combines with the soluble fat in the coffee during brewing, the coffee oil is produced. Some people will call this phenomenon the Guinness effect phenomenon because it has a similar foam layer to the famous Irish black beer (stout).

An espresso with a clearly visible coffee fat requires good quality, moderately ground coffee beans and a skilled barista. Compared to dripping coffee drip coffee, coffee oil gives espresso a more saturated flavor and a stronger finish.

What is the perfect coffee fat?

Each barista has his own idea of the definition of perfect coffee fat. When brewing an espresso, the coffee grease on it should not be too thin or too thick, and it can be kept in a state for about two minutes.

It's a bit complicated to flush out beautiful coffee grease because there are too many factors that affect the results. However, there are several main points that can be followed in practice:

Too much coffee fat can lead to a reduction in espresso. Many baristas pursue a coffee fat ratio of about 1/10 of the whole cup of coffee.

Both excessive extraction and insufficient extraction will affect the formation of coffee oil.

If the coffee oil defoams within a minute, it means that the extraction time is too short, or the coffee beans are too shallow to roast.

Generally speaking, the extraction time of a good espresso machine is about 15 to 30 seconds, but each machine is different.

Remember to warm the machine before brewing coffee and clean the machine regularly to ensure the quality of operation. A dirty coffee will add bitterness to the coffee it brews.

Factors affecting the formation of coffee oil

In fact, it is difficult to fully master coffee fat, because in addition to the technology that practice makes perfect, it can 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 still release soluble fat. Try to observe that if the neighboring coffee shop uses self-baked beans, then the espresso made by the nearby coffee shop is more likely to have thicker coffee fat than other businesses that do not use self-baked beans.

The roasting degree of coffee beans will also affect. Generally speaking, the deeper the roasting, the less fat in the coffee. Because a large amount of coffee oil has been released during roasting, coupled with stirring, packaging and grinding, coffee oil is more worn out. In addition, coffee beans that are too lightly roasted are not ideal. As a result, many coffee makers offer products that are roasted at a specific degree and specially used to boil espresso to ensure that coffee beans have enough oil.

The handling of coffee beans should also be taken into account. Sun-dried coffee beans usually flush out the best coffee oil because they are high in oil.

The cooking method of the espresso machine at home is also one of the factors. Many household machines have the function of automatic brewing, although it is very convenient, but compared with the manual way, automatic setting will limit the production of coffee oil. In order to make up for this deficiency, some machines will flush out the mimic coffee oil separately.

Is coffee fat really important?

Although that soft layer of coffee fat seems to be a necessary condition for a good espresso, it is not so absolute. Coffee oil does add more flavor to espresso, and drinkers also expect to enjoy the visual feast of this luxury foam when drinking coffee, but in fact, a cup of espresso without coffee oil can also be rich and delicious and full of aroma.

After all, coffee is for the satisfaction of taste buds. If there is no coffee fat on the 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 satisfactory, it is good coffee. Keep in mind that the quality of beans, the degree of baking, processing technology and machine quality determine the final product, these elements can not escape the taste test.