The bane of the life of a ‘coffee roaster’ is explaining the difference
between dark roast coffee and strong coffee. Darker coffee roasted to
a higher temperature, does not mean a stronger coffee in fact it is often
the reverse! As the coffee bean is taken to a higher temperature the
essential oils are driven off which also includes the caffeine content!
Stronger coffee is achieved by the wetted surface of the bean i.e.
a finer ground coffee will produce a stronger coffee. This is
taken to the ultimate with very fine ground Turkish coffee!
A general rule of thumb is more coffee used makes stronger
coffee – it’s that simple
A taste for higher roasted coffee should only be a matter of taste
and not strength!
The roaster produces an Dark profile coffee as an after dinner
coffee, to be drunk in the evening, this will generally have
less caffeine in and can be enjoyed at this time of day!
High Caffeine coffees that are ‘Arabica’ would be medium
roasted to preserve the caffeine content, possibly made
as a slow drip coffee!
One note of caution Lowland coffee ‘Robusta’ has more
caffeine than High grown ‘Arabica’
Jonathan – Coffee roaster
