Coffee review

Can you find the three signs of coffee from the taste? How does astringency come from? how to solve the problem of over-extraction of coffee?

Published: 2025-08-21 Author: World Gafei
Last Updated: 2025/08/21, The first point is that coffee has an overwhelming bitterness which is a misunderstood state of flavor. The best coffee in the world still has a bitter taste, usually in dark chocolate, spices or wood. These lower notes make the taste more rounded, balance sharper acidity, and are usually pleasant when the cup is full. This is not the bitterness we are talking about.

The first point is that coffee has an overwhelming bitter taste.

Bitterness is a misunderstood realm of flavor.

The best coffee in the world still has a bitter taste, usually in dark chocolate, spices or wood. these lower notes make the taste more rounded, balance more sharp acidity, and are usually pleasant when the cup is full.

This is not the bitterness we are talking about.

We are talking about face-to-face bitterness. It doesn't add depth or complexity to other flavors-it eclipses them.

The bitterness is caused by the extraction of a pile of bitter chemicals from the ground. Except for caffeine, these chemicals are usually extracted after all other substances.

Deep-roasted coffee tends to contain more of these bitter chemicals from the start. So, if you buy coffee beans from a super dark roaster, your coffee will always be overextracted.

The second point is the light and tasteless feeling.

The bitterness of overextraction is not only overwhelming. Sometimes it can completely kill other flavors, making your coffee lifeless, dull and boring.

Have you ever had a sip of coffee that you thought would be good, only to find it particularly dull? As long as your beans are not old and stale, this may be the result of over-extraction.

Underextracted coffee may also have a thin, dull taste, but this is a different story. In this case, a strong sour taste occurs because other flavors that promote balance have not yet been extracted from the ground.

The third point is that it tastes like dry sandpaper.

Have you ever tasted coffee that makes your tongue feel dry and hoarse? Do you think the coffee completely sucks all the moisture out of your mouth?

This is called astringency. This is the same as what happens when drinking black tea or dry wine, but in coffee it is a typical sign of overextraction.

This feeling is usually caused by polyphenols, which are common micronutrients in all types of plants. These chemicals taste bitter and bind to saliva proteins, absorbing the natural lubricant of the tongue and making it feel dry.

Sometimes it can be so strong that your tongue feels like sandpaper. Sometimes, when you swallow, you can almost feel something gently scratching the back of your tongue.

This is not very pleasant, and this is an obvious example of over-extraction.

For coffee over-extraction, Qianjie gives you three suggestions to solve the problem:

Design the extraction time. It is important to know that the length of extraction time is the main reason here. If you invade the coffee fast enough, you will not be able to extract enough sugar from the coffee beans. On the other hand, if the coffee is soaked for too long, it will cause the coffee to become bitter.

The degree of grinding occupies an important position, you need to try a lot of different degrees of grinding on the coffee caused by what kind of impact, repeated deliberation, to find a balance.

Properly change the ratio of powder to water

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