Aside from its delicious taste coffee is popular for its energizing effect and many variations. These days we can get coffee based beverages in coffee shop near our place. Aside to be made into beverages, coffee these days is also popular being made into cakes and other dessert. There are currently several methods to brew coffee, some of them are drip coffee or also called pour over and espresso. Pour over is recently famous because it is pretty easy to prepare it. While espresso is famous because it strong distinctive taste. In this article we will give you a brief information about drip coffee and espresso and how the differ from each other.
Drip Coffee
Drip coffee is a method to brew coffee by pouring hot water over roasted ground coffee beans enclosed with a paper filter. Drip coffee can be prepared manually by hand which is called pour over or with a drip coffee machine. The pour over method is been hyped for quite some time, it is no wonder, this method is practically easy to perform and the chance to ruin it is pretty low. A good drip coffee machine also can do the same, if you don’t have much time in the morning and are not mind to spend more money, it is recommended to get on of it.
The key to brew a good drip coffee is a perfect combination of the ground coffee, brewing time, and the water temperature. You can also add your personal preference such as, roast type, where the coffee came from, and what kind of filter you want to use. All these things can affect your coffee taste and do not afraid to try them. When you want to make drip coffee, it is best to use spring water since it has a balance minerals. The coffee ground must be ground fine enough to let the water get through the coffee ground but not as fine as espresso. It is recommended to use burr grinders to grind your coffee. Blade grinders can’t produce the exact same coffee particles unlike burr grinders. The water temperature to brew drip coffee is between 195 and 205 degree Fahrenheit. The standard amount of coffee ground used in drip coffee is 2 tablespoon for six ounces of water. You also have to pay attention on the brewing time, the ideal time needed to brew drip coffee is 5 minutes. The lower your water temperature is the longer you will need to brew your coffee.
Espresso
Espresso is a coffee drink prepared by forcing out a small amount of nearly boiling water under pressure through a finely ground coffee beans. Espresso consistency is commonly thicker than any other type of brewing methods, and has crema on top which look like a creamy foam. As a result of pressurized brewing method, the flavors and chemicals inside espresso are very concentrated. Espresso is the base of making various coffee beverages such as, caffe latte, cappuccino, caffe macchiato, caffe mocha, and flat white or caffe Americano. There is another type of espresso which is served cold called espresso freddo. This type of espresso is commonly served in Southern Europe. It was conceived in Greece and popular through it neighboring countries. The way to prepare it is by stirring 2 shots of espresso in a can together with sugar and a couple ice cubes until the can is cold. Then the coffee is poured in a glass full of ice cubes.
Espresso contains more caffeine compare to many other coffee beverages, but because it was commonly served using a smaller cup, the caffeine will still less than a mug of standard brewed coffee. Espresso is made using a finely ground coffee. The crema in espresso is produced by emulsifying the oils in the ground coffee into a colloid. Espresso is made using a machine, which made it named espresso shot. This term was referring to the lever of espresso machine, which require pulling down a handle attached to a spring loaded piston, forcing the water through the coffee using high pressure. When making espresso any bean and roast level can be used, it does not requiring a special type of bean or whatsoever. However the main ingredients still be the most important to affect the final taste.
Drip Coffee vs Espresso
| Drip Coffee | Espresso |
|---|---|
| - Is prepared by pouring water on top of coffee ground in a filter | - Is prepared by forcing hot water through grounded coffee beans |
| - The ground coffee bean used is coarser than espresso | - The ground coffee bean used is finer than drip coffee |
| - Can be made without machine | - Made with an espresso machine |
| - Commonly served in a regular cup | - Commonly served in smaller cup |
Conclusion
Drip coffee and espresso are quite often mistaken to each other. But if given second glance, you can easily differentiate them. Like it have been said above, drip coffee is made by pouring hot water on top of coffee in a filter. While espresso is made using an espresso machine, since it required a high pressure water to extract the coffee, resulting in a thick consistency and crema on top. Espresso is said to have stronger flavor than other brewing method, but since it was served in a small cup the caffeine content is still lesser than a regular cup of drip coffee. Both of them are equally delicious but if you want to prepare them yourself at home, drip coffee is surely easier to make.