Destan Episode 20 in Urdu Subtitle by Discovery Urdu

Destan Episode 20 in Urdu Subtitle by Discovery Urdu

Coffee – a bean with many possibilities.

A great choice is how to prepare it: espresso, filter, plunger, percolator, instant and more.

Each method has unique requirements for equipment, time, temperature, pressure, and coffee and water grinds.

Our choices of coping mechanisms may be cultural, social, or practical.

But what effect do they really have on your cup?

What is the strongest compound?
It depends. If we focus on the concentration of caffeine, based on a milligram per milliliter (mg/ml), espresso methods tend to be the most concentrated, capable of providing up to 4.2 mg/ml. This is about three times higher than other methods, such as a moka pot (a type of boiling percolator) and cold drink at about 1.25 mg/ml.

Drip and plunger methods (including French and Aero Press) are half of that.

Espresso methods extract the most caffeine for a number of reasons. A finer grind means there is more contact between the coffee and the water.

While other methods take longer to develop, this one has no effect on caffeine. This is because caffeine is water-soluble and easy to extract, so it is quickly released during brewing.

Destan Episode 20 in Urdu Subtitle by Discovery Urdu
Destan Episode 20 in Urdu Subtitle by Discovery Urdu

But these comparisons are made based on typical extraction conditions, not typical consumption conditions.

So although espresso gives you the most concentrated product, it is delivered in a small volume (only 18-30ml) compared to the much larger amounts of other methods.

Of course, these volumes vary by manufacturer, but a recent Italian study defined a typical final serving of filter, percolator, and cold beers as 120 ml.

Based on this math, cold brew actually has the highest dose of caffeine per serving at around 150mg, even more than the 42-122mg found in brewed espresso.

Although cold brew uses cold water and a larger grind size, it is brewed with a higher coffee-to-water ratio, requiring additional beans in the mix.

Of course, the “standard serving” is a concept, not a reality: you can multiply and make larger servings of any coffee drink!

With the cost of coffee rising, you may also be interested in extraction efficiency – how much caffeine you get for each gram of coffee input.

Interestingly, most of the methods are quite similar.

Espresso methods vary, but average 10.5 milligrams per gram (mg/g), compared to 9.7 to 10.2 mg/g for most other methods.

The French press is the only outlier, with just 6.9 mg/g of caffeine.

‘Energy’ is more than just caffeine.
The caffeine content only explains a small part of the coffee’s strength.

They each have their own ejection pattern and can interact with each other to prevent or enhance effects.

The oil responsible for crema, the brown ‘foam’ at the top of the mix, is also more easily extracted with higher temperature and pressure and a finer grind (another potential gain for espresso and mocha).

These methods also provide higher levels of dissolved solids, which means lower water consistency, but again, it all depends on how the final product is served and diluted.

To further complicate matters, the receptors that detect caffeine and other bitter compounds are highly variable between individuals due to genetics and training from our routine exposure.

This means that samples of the same coffee can evoke different perceptions of its bitterness and strength in different people.
So what we are looking for in a cup and what we get from it depends on our own unique biology.

Is there a healthy mix?
Depending on the headline or the day, coffee can be presented as a healthy option or an unhealthy option.

This is partly explained by our optimism (of course we want coffee to be good for us!), but it may also be due to the difficulty of studying products such as coffee, where consumption practices and the complexity of other variables are difficult to grasp.

Some studies have suggested that the health effects of coffee are specific to the type of alcohol. For example, filtered coffee has been linked to more positive cardiovascular outcomes in the elderly.

This link may be coincidental based on other coexisting habits, but there is some evidence that filter coffee is healthier because it contains more diterpenes (a chemical found in coffee that can raise blood levels).