If you want to know how your coffee will taste when you will sip from your cup then you must try to know the roast level of your coffee. Besides that, the following are a few factors that will also contribute to your coffee taste:
- Country of origin
- Climate where coffee plants were grown
- Green processing method
- Roasting method
- Grinding and brewing method
- Coffee varietal
From the Source: Coffiery.com too, you can find reviews about various kinds of coffee as they spend lots of time tasting many different varieties of coffee and offer their opinion.
Let us try to know how different levels of roasting can offer you a different taste of your coffee in the subsequent paragraphs.
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Light roasts
Typically, light roasted coffee will be :
- Light brown
- No visible oils present on the bean surface
- Crisp acidity
- Mellow body
- Bright, fruity/floral flavors and aromas.
Coffee of lighter roasts will preserve the original flavor of coffee beans. Few ultra-light roasted coffee may have an unpleasant taste with a tea-like consistency and body. Typically, this is due to inadequate roasting time.
Roasting for a little longer can result in a more developed flavor profile where the original flavors of the bean will shine through.
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Medium roasts
This variety of medium roasted coffee is:
- Medium brown color
- Have an oily surface
- Medium acidity and body
- Well-rounded
- Having a balanced flavor profile.
By roasting coffee beans to this level will preserve many of the original unique flavors of the coffee, at the same time bring out the deep caramel sweetness of coffee.
Commonly such coffees are referred to as Medium roasts, City Roast, or American Roast. Typically, most people consider coffee a “Medium” roast when it will be roasted beyond the first crack, but will not reach up to the second crack, within a temperature range of 422° to 435°.
Dark roasts
Dark roasted variety of coffee will be :
- Dark brown to black color
- Often may have an oily surface
- Low acidity
- Heavy body
- Reveal deeper and darker flavors.
When coffee beans are roasted to this level then it will tend to lose many of their original characteristics. Some coffee may lend themselves quite well to a deep roast and highlight their chocolatey, nutty, caramel flavors.
When the beans are roasted to this level then its flavors and aromas of the process of the roasting become much more pronounced, and also the taste of such coffee may tend to be somewhat smoky.
Commonly dark roasted coffees are known as Full-City, French Roast, Vienna, or Italian Roast. Most of the darkest coffees are usually roasted to their finished temperatures that range between 435° and 455°.
The coffee in this range will be roasted to the second crack, however, the final temperature of the roast will decide whether they will get cracked in the roaster or the cooling tray. With bean meter ratings, such coffee will be identified as 7, 8, or 9. Here 9 is the darkest coffee.