Brewing coffee and caffeine content, what's the deal?
After a party, on a lazy Sunday, before going to work… you always wake up with a cup of coffee. In fact, at KoffiePiraat we are only really awake in the morning when we have had our cup of coffee. Partly because this is our favorite morning ritual, but partly of course also because of the caffeine in the coffee. But did you know that every cup of coffee has a different caffeine content? And that you can influence this by your coffee brewing method? This is how:
Before you make coffee
Before you even start making coffee, there are already a few factors that determine the caffeine content of your cup of coffee. This starts with the coffee bean itself. For example, Robusta coffee beans contain more caffeine than Arabica coffee beans. No wonder that Robusta beans are often used for espressos. In addition, the altitude at which the coffee plant was located also plays a role. Caffeine is a natural insect repellent! For example, the higher a coffee plant is, the fewer insects there are, the less caffeine the plant produces. Coffee from Kenya, Colombia, Brazil and Ethiopia is often grown on high mountains and this coffee therefore contains less caffeine. Furthermore, the grinding of the coffee (the smaller the grind, the more caffeine) and the temperature of the water (higher temperatures provide more caffeine) also play an important role. So before you start making your coffee, these three factors have already influenced the caffeine content, but that does not say everything.
The influence of brewing
In addition to the type of coffee bean, the height and the grind, the brewing method you use will affect your cup of coffee. A method where the coffee beans are immersed in water will yield more caffeine than, for example, a pour-over method. Here we have listed all the popular coffee brewing methods, from least caffeine to most:
Cold Brew
The name says it all: the cold brew method is cold! Due to the low temperature of this method, the coffee will contain little caffeine. This is also because with cold brews, the coffee beans are not ground finely. The finer the coffee beans are ground, the more caffeine the coffee contains. In addition, you can still make a cold brew strong. This depends on how little milk or water you add to the coffee.
French Press
When you make coffee with a French press, you always use hot water. This would make you think that the caffeine content is very high. However, this is not the case! Because the coffee beans for a French Press must be coarsely ground, your cup of coffee contains little caffeine.
Automatic and single-cup coffee makers
A coffee machine will never give you coffee with a lot of caffeine. This is mainly due to the temperature, which is never really high. In addition, the coffee beans in machines are not ground finely, which also ensures less caffeine. A single-cup coffee maker gives you a little more caffeine because it uses higher temperatures and a cup can contain a lot of coffee.
Aeropress
With an Aeropress, coffee beans are completely submerged in water, which should produce one of the strongest coffees. This is then balanced out because you use coarsely ground coffee with an Aeropress. This is how you get a perfectly balanced cup of coffee with the Aeropress method!
Pour-over
The method that most easily produces a strong coffee at home is the pour-over. Here you do not use the finest ground coffee beans (because then you only get coffee grounds) but you choose just a size coarser. Because you pour very hot water over the coffee very slowly, you can still get a high caffeine content.
Turkish coffee and Cowboy coffee
These two methods are probably not something you would use at home, but they do provide the most caffeine! With these methods, you combine boiling water with the finest ground coffee, which of course provides a lot of caffeine. But be careful! These methods also make the coffee very bitter. We therefore recommend adding lots of milk and sugar.
Of course, it's not true that more caffeine is necessarily better. With less caffeine in a cup, you can drink more cups without it becoming unhealthy! So there are advantages to all brewing methods.
Are you in the mood for a cup of coffee with a lot of caffeine? These coffee beans give a real kick:
- Kimbo Espresso Napoletano coffee beans
- Lavazza Crema e Gusto Classico coffee beans
Do you prefer less caffeine? Try these coffee beans:
- Caffè del Doge Doge Blu CAFFEINE-FREE coffee beans
