Blonde roast coffee is the most mellow coffee you will find on the market. This type of coffee uses light roasted coffee beans to brew the beverage. The coffee beans bring out the most authentic taste of coffee beans possible and give you refreshing yet a concentrated shot of caffeine.
To completely understand what blonde coffee is and if it’s for you, we need to dive into the world of coffee roasting. In this article, we will discuss what coffee roasting is, the different kinds of coffee roasts available, and why blonde roast coffee have become an obsession of coffee lovers worldwide.
Coffee Roasting
Roasting coffee has always been around and has been a keen area of interest for many coffee drinkers. When you start researching coffee roasting, you will find many variations including dark roasts, medium roasts, and blonde or lighter roast options.
Coffee roasting is the process of harvesting ripe green coffee beans and roasting them into brown or black beans, which are then grounded and used to brew coffee. The roasting process brings out the addictive and characteristic aroma and taste of different coffee beans. The roast longer a bean roasts, the higher the temperature, the less caffeine in the beans.
Types of Roast Coffee
If you feel overwhelmed when you’re standing in the coffee aisle of a grocery store and reading complex labels of coffees without comprehending them, then you are not alone. This section will help you understand the labels much more easily.
Dark Roast Coffee
The roasting temperature for this kind of coffee is high: 464°F – 482°F. When you observe them, these beans will look shiny because they have oils on their surfaces. These have a much sweeter flavor compared to all the other variations often characterized as a chocolatey and caramelized taste. French, Espresso, Turkish, and Dark French are some of the common names of this type of coffee roast.
Medium-Dark Roast Coffee
These are roasted at a temperature of 437°F – 446°F. Like the dark coffee roast, this one also has oils over the beans’ surface and a much richer taste. Some of the common names on the package labels of this type of roast include Continental, Viennese, and Light Espresso.
Medium Roast Coffee
These are roasted at a temperature of 410°F-428°F. As a result, they are more acidic in taste than the above and have a much richer flavor as well. The most common example of medium roast coffee is an average American’s daily House or Original blend coffee.
Light Roast Coffee
Light roast coffee or blonde roast coffee is made with coffee beans that are roasted at the temperature of 356°F – 401°F. Light coffee or blonde coffee is the most mellow coffee roast of all. It usually has a unique taste from the other coffee types because of the minimal roasting.
Is Blonde Roast Coffee Healthy?
One of the most asked questions regarding blonde roast coffee is whether it is healthy or not, given the fact that it is the least roasted. Well, good news for all coffee addicts! Blonde roast coffee is completely healthy, but of course, you should not consume too much caffeine.
What Does it Taste Like?
There are unique features of blonde roast coffee that you won’t find in any other type of coffee. While the coffee is not very bitter, there is a lemony flavor that you will be able to detect after taking your first sip. This is due to the acidity in the coffee beans. The coffee is extremely smooth with a mellow taste and vibrant notes.
Is Blonde Roast Coffee Strong?
We can judge the strength of coffee roasts on two different criteria: bitterness and acidity.
In the case of bitterness, darker roasts typically are much more bitter than blonde roasts making the latter a more mellow option.
Contrarily, if we look at the acidity levels in the different coffee roasts, blonde roast coffee is the strongest. As coffee beans are roasted, their acidity levels decrease. Since blonde roast coffee is heated for the least amount of time, it has the most acidity.
The concept of ‘strong’ coffee is relative to the person drinking it. While one person might find a particular blend strong, others might not find it strong enough. So, the best way to judge the strength of a coffee is by experimenting yourself!
Is the Caffeine Level in Blonde Roast Coffee Higher Than Dark Roasts?
The levels of caffeine in a certain type of coffee depend upon the roast level and how long the beans were roasted. So, a bean that has been roasting for a longer time at a higher temperature, as in the darker roast coffees, will have less caffeine as compared to blonde roast coffee. Like acidity, caffeine also breaks down at higher temperature levels.
So, the answer to the question, yes, caffeine levels in blonde roast coffee are much higher than in dark roast coffee.
Another criterion that judges the concentration of coffee is how you make the coffee. The way you brew coffee severely impacts its caffeine content. For example, espresso is much more concentrated and has higher caffeine level that a medium roast drip coffee.
Conclusion
Brewing blonde roast coffee is the same as brewing other kinds of coffee. You can experiment with your blonde roast and try various recipes by adding flavors like chocolate, vanilla and even matcha! Or be a purist and drink it black. The options are endless so if you are thinking of trying something new, then you should go for a blonde roast!
