What Is Coffee Supposed to Taste Like?

[Deactivated] on 25/12/2019 - 00:32
Last edited 25/12/2019 - 00:33 by 1 other user

I have been drinking coffee with a hint of bitter taste that are masqueraded by tons of sugar for years now from baristas, starbucks, gloria jeans, to mcdonalds, HJ, 7-11, woolworths drive through.

Recently googled is coffee bitter and a ton of articles implying that if coffee is bitter then it's bad quality coffee or burnt.
Ever since i was mad aware of the term "coffee", i'd assume its bitter dark liquid.

Any suggestions on what coffee should taste like, is the bitterness normal on cappuccino.

Food & Grocery Coffee

Comments

  • MS Paint on 25/12/2019 - 00:36
    +9

    International Roast is the benchmark. Black, no sugar.

    • [Deactivated] on 25/12/2019 - 00:36

      is it bitter

      • MS Paint on 25/12/2019 - 00:39
        +10

        Is it coffee is the real question.

      • the Unforgiven on 25/12/2019 - 08:45
        +3

        It is bitter, not as bitter as the rest,just use less coffee & more sugar plus milk if you like or can have milk.
        I have used International Roast for decades, it is cheap & not as bitter as the rest

    • SteveBuscemi on 25/12/2019 - 07:29
      +1

      You're a monster.

  • endotherm on 25/12/2019 - 01:48
    +12

    It's naturally a little bitter, but if extracted properly it should have a creamy texture. You should be able to detect flavour notes (a bit like wine). I wouldn't rely on any of those places listed for a decent cup of coffee, they are mostly amateurs working in mass-production shops using cheap/old coffee beans. They just provide a hot/black watery liquid as that is what most people expect. If the coffee is reasonably fresh, and not over-extracted, you will be able to taste it. If you extract it or too long, you go past extracting the oils and flavours and start extracting bitter waste products from the grounds. You should only extract about a shot-glass sized serving for a single serve. It can be topped up with hot water or milk, but DON'T keep pushing water across extracted grounds, it will get more and more bitter. A good shot should have a light coloured "crema"/oily cream on top of the extraction. The darker the crema gets, the more bad stuff you are extracting — you should have stopped earlier. Even if you love sugar like me, you should be able to drink the shot without adding anything. If it tastes bitter like sucking lemons, the coffee was crap to start with. Old coffee will taste rancid as the oils go off. I don't know what state you are in but you should be able to find a typical Italian style coffee shop or restaurant and give a proper coffee a try there. The only downside is you might not be prepared for the strong hit of coffee/caffeine you will experience. Maybe start with a cappuccino or flat white and go from there in intensity.

    • bai tu on 25/12/2019 - 04:18
      +2

      On top of extraction, how the beans are roasted can also make a difference. Chains like Starbucks tend to over-roast their beans.

      • crashloaded on 25/12/2019 - 09:21

        On top of this, how long the beans have been ground for also has an impact. The general consensus Ive read is that a coffee bean should be extracted within 2 minutes of being ground or it starts to go stale.

    • [Deactivated] on 25/12/2019 - 15:34

      how can you taste burnt beans, too bitter?

      • John Kimble on 25/12/2019 - 15:35
        +1

        Um…it tastes burnt.

      • endotherm on 25/12/2019 - 18:17

        You know the difference between sweet melted liquid chocolate, and burned chocolate? One is heavenly silky, and the other tastes like dry Milo granules have been mixed with charcoal. You'll know. You are allowed to roast them longer for a deeper darker roast flavour, but go too far and all you'll be doing is setting fire to them. By the way, you can also destroy milk when frothing it for cappuccino by applying too much heat/steam by exceeding 70°C. It will also taste burnt.

  • Azrael169 on 25/12/2019 - 03:50
    +3

    Find a cafe nearby that does cold brew. Go and get some cold brew coffee and you will have your answer.

  • mbck on 25/12/2019 - 09:32
    +1

    Try vietnamese coffee. You may get a little diabetes after though

    • [Deactivated] on 25/12/2019 - 09:57
      +1

      quite enjoy it,
      reason why i like mocha

    • bai tu on 26/12/2019 - 03:36

      And heart palpitations. Great for pulling all-nighters though!

  • Baysew on 25/12/2019 - 10:33
    +7

    The coffee is bitter at Hungry Jacks.

    • [Deactivated] on 25/12/2019 - 15:33

      hahahaha

  • Boioioioi on 25/12/2019 - 10:48
    +2

    I think all coffee is a little bitter. You sound like someone more accustomed to sweet drinks so it is probably exacerbated to your taste buds. I used to be like that. Always took 2 sugars in my tea and coffee. I cut the sugar cold turkey due to wanting to become more fit. Now I enjoy my coffee with milk and no sugar and I don't notice the bitterness at all. I think you just need to build a bit of a tolerance. Similar to alcohol.

  • jazzninja on 25/12/2019 - 10:54
    +2

    Dark chocolate is bitter. That doesn't mean it's bad or poor quality, that's just a flavour. Same with rocket (lettuce) and many other foods. Coffee has a bitter component to it and westerners are not usually keen on bitter as a taste because we're not really used to it.
    When I did some coffee training, I was taught to aim to balance: bitterness, sweetness and acidity. Good espresso coffee has all of these aspects.
    I agree with endotherm and suggest that you steer clear of the mass-produced market. Go somewhere that advertises "specialty" coffee and where the baristas know what their beans are, when they were roasted and what their brew ratio is… That is, if the staff know what they're doing, they will likely do it better than those who were just shown how to use a machine.
    Milk makes a massive difference, and otherwise good coffee can be spoiled by poorly steamed milk poured without care.
    Maybe use Beanhunter reviews to find a good coffee shop and ask them to help you try/learn really good coffee.
    I started drinking hazelnut lattes to "get into coffee", then after a while found I could enjoy coffee without syrup. I took a while to start liking black coffee and still prefer white. I can now enjoy espresso (no milk or water), but it wouldn't be my first choice. The point is that your tastes develop over time as you're exposed to things. It won't happen overnight, but it will happen.

  • nubzy on 25/12/2019 - 11:04
    +1

    It shouldn't be bitter. A well extracted shot of espresso should be rich and full of flavour but not bitter. Good coffee doesn't need any sugar added.

    • Hiroko on 25/12/2019 - 22:14

      this ^

  • HardlyCharly on 25/12/2019 - 12:06

    Yes every coffee is bitter, that's why it's coffee. It's desensitisation, coffee drinkers have gotten so used to it over time that they will only really notice if it's extremely bitter. I can't even eat dark chocolate because it's too bitter and the most I can handle when it comes to coffee is iced coffee which is still almost too strong to me.

    • [Deactivated] on 29/12/2019 - 19:38

      i actually like dark chocolate, the darker the better imo, the 90% lindt one taste the best.
      If i remember correctly, i saw a 98% one at lindt store

  • Diji1 on 25/12/2019 - 12:15
    +1

    Not a coffee snob but the way it's been explained to me is almost all coffee is too old, aged improperly because of cost and therefore tastes like shit.

    iced coffee

    Hasn't that got a lot of sugar?

  • ganymede on 26/12/2019 - 03:42
    +1

    Tank : Here you go, buddy; "Breakfast of Champions."

    Mouse : If you close your eyes, it almost feels like you're eating runny eggs.

    Apoc : Yeah, or a bowl of snot.

    Mouse : Do you know what it really reminds me of? Tasty Wheat. Did you ever eat Tasty Wheat?

    Switch : No, but technically, neither did you.

    Mouse : That's exactly my point. Exactly. Because you have to wonder: how do the machines know what Tasty Wheat tasted like? Maybe they got it wrong. Maybe what I think Tasty Wheat tasted like actually tasted like oatmeal, or tuna fish. That makes you wonder about a lot of things. You take chicken, for example: maybe they couldn't figure out what to make chicken taste like, which is why chicken tastes like everything.

    Apoc : Shut up, Mouse.

    OP, you are in the Matrix mate.

    • bai tu on 26/12/2019 - 03:48

      So that's why my coffee tastes like chicken! I knew it!!

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