Climate Change and Coffee Farming: What the Data Shows
Arabica grows in a narrow temperature band, and that band is moving uphill. The International Coffee Organization’s summary of a 2015 modeling study projects that about half of the area …
Roasting Coffee at Home Safely: Chaff, Smoke and Fire
Home roasting has two hazards: chaff, the papery skin that comes off the bean during the roast, which is dry, light and burns; and smoke. The maker of the Hottop roaster puts the fire risk on the front page of its manual.
How to Taste Coffee: Flavor Profiles and Cupping Basics
A coffee’s flavor profile is the set of flavor, aroma and texture attributes that can be named in it. World Coffee Research’s Sensory Lexicon describes 110 of them under 17 …
Decaf Coffee Beans: Caffeine Levels and How It Is Made
Yes. Decaf beans are green coffee beans with most of their caffeine removed before roasting. They still contain some: the FDA says decaf typically has 2 to 15 mg in an …
Coffea Stenophylla vs Arabica: What the Research Shows
Coffea stenophylla is a wild West African coffee species that tastes like high-quality arabica but grows at mean annual temperatures 6.2 to 6.8 °C higher than arabica’s. In a blind tasting, …
Fair Trade vs Organic Coffee: What Each Label Guarantees
Fairtrade, Rainforest Alliance and organic are not three grades of one thing. Fairtrade sets a price floor ($1.80 a pound for washed arabica, $2.00 on contracts signed from 1 December …
Global Coffee Ceremonies: Six Documented Traditions
The best-known coffee ceremony is Ethiopia’s: coffee is roasted, ground in a mortar and brewed in a clay jebena, then served in three rounds called abol, tona and baraka. It …
Coffee Tools and Accessories: What You Really Need
Four things do almost all the work: a burr grinder, a digital scale, a way to heat and pour water, and a brewer. Everything else on the usual accessories list …
Cold Brew vs Nitro Cold Brew: Caffeine and Texture
Cold brew is coffee steeped in cold or room-temperature water for hours instead of brewed hot. Nitro cold brew is that same cold brew charged with nitrogen gas, which gives …
What Is French Roast Coffee? Color, Taste and Caffeine
French roast is a dark roast. It names a roast color, not a bean, a growing region or where the coffee comes from: any coffee can be sold as French …
How Long After a Crown Is Cemented Can I Drink Coffee?
Wait until the numbness has worn off before you drink coffee: the real hazard on the day is a numb mouth, not the crown cement.
Types of Coffee Pods and Capsules: Which Fit Which Machines
Coffee pod types come down to two physical formats: soft paper pods (Senseo, E.S.E.) and sealed capsules (Nespresso Original and Vertuo, Keurig K-Cup, Dolce Gusto, Lavazza, illy). Almost every system …
Coffee Filter Types: Paper vs Metal vs Cloth, Cholesterol
A paper filter holds back cafestol and kahweol, the coffee oils that raise LDL cholesterol; a metal filter lets them through, and cloth sits in between. If your cholesterol is …
The 4 Types of Cuban Coffee and How to Make Them
Cuban coffee comes in four main drinks: the café cubano (cafecito), cortadito, colada and café con leche. A café cubano is a small, sweetened shot with no milk. A cortadito …
How Does Turkish Coffee Work? Cezve, Grind and Foam
Turkish coffee is coffee cooked in a cezve, a small long-handled pot, and served unfiltered, grounds and all. A powder-fine grind goes in with cold water, and sugar if you …
Why Almond Milk Curdles in Coffee (and When to Toss It)
Almond milk can curdle in coffee, most likely because hot, acidic coffee (pH about 5) strips most of the charge that keeps its proteins apart, so proteins and fat droplets …
Why Does Coffee Make Me Nauseous? Causes and Red Flags
Coffee can make you nauseous in two ways: its caffeine can cause nausea in larger amounts (FDA), and it can aggravate reflux (NHS). It also raises stomach acid (Nehlig), but …
What Food Group Is Coffee? None, and Here Is Why
Coffee is not in any food group: the current U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2025–2030 (USDA and HHS), do not place coffee or coffee beans in one. They are built …
How Much Creamer in Coffee? (And Alternatives)
Start with 1 tablespoon of creamer in a 6 oz cup, taste, and go from there. That scales to 1⅓ tablespoons for 8 oz and 2 tablespoons for 12 oz. …
What Is House Blend Coffee? Nobody Regulates the Term
A house blend is a roaster’s or cafe’s own everyday blend, the coffee it sells as its default and pitches as balanced and approachable. The term has no federal legal …
