Whether you’ve been drinking coffee for years or are a newcomer to the coffee scene, you’re likely aware that light roast and dark roast are two popular roasts. But you may not know the differences between light and dark roast coffee.
Before they’re roasted, coffee beans are green fruit seeds of coffea plants, with little resemblance in color or flavor to the morning beverage we all know and love.
Roasting these green coffee beans evokes a variety of chemical, physical, and sensory changes in the beans and is ultimately what gives coffee its quintessential color, aroma, and flavor.
What is light roast coffee?
Light roast is heated for a shorter time and at a lower temperature than dark roasts. The beans can reach a temperature of between 385 degrees and 410 degrees. Beans typically pop at around 385 degrees (this popping sound is known as the “first crack”). The first crack signals that the beans have reached a light roast.
Since lightly roasted beans aren’t left on the roasting machine for as long as dark roasted beans, more moisture remains inside the bean, resulting in a denser coffee. Light roast coffees are characterized by their light brown color, lack of oil on the surface of the beans and a light body.
What is dark roast coffee?
Dark roast coffee beans stay on the roasting machine for longer and at a higher temperature than light roasted beans. To be considered dark, beans need to be roasted to a temperature higher than 430 degrees (but not much hotter than 440 degrees), which is the end of the second crack. The beans lose more moisture in this process, resulting in a less dense coffee.
Dark roast coffees are characterized by their dark brown, almost black, oil that glosses the surface and a robust, full body. Dark roast coffee typically has a bold, smoky taste since the coffee’s country of origin flavors are almost entirely roasted out.
Which roast has more coffee?
There are misconceptions about which roast is higher in caffeine. Some people assume that the darker the bean, the higher the caffeine content. Others have heard that roasting burns off caffeine, meaning light roasts are actually higher in the stimulant.
However, dark roasts tend to be slightly lower in caffeine after the roasting process
