What is coffee? We have compiled 30 questions that we are asked time and time again. The answers should help you gain a comprehensive understanding of coffee, its history and future, the coffee plant, different machine types, as well as preparation and the most common mistakes, its history and origin, and the enjoyment of it.
History and Distribution
1. What is coffee?
The term “coffee” often means different things: On one hand, coffee is a caffeinated stimulant, and on the other, it is a plant genus that includes more than 120 species. Depending on who you ask in the coffee supply chain, you will get a different explanation of what coffee is. In terms of cultivation, coffee is a fruit that is picked when ripe. In processing, known as preparation, coffee is technically a seed that is dried to a residual moisture content of 10-12%. In trade, coffee is a commodity, a raw material, a trading good that is shipped from one port to the next. For roasteries, the still-green raw coffee is the raw material that releases its pre-existing aroma precursors during the roasting process. And for consumers, coffee can be the reason for a meeting, a ritual, an experience, or even an addictive substance.
2. Where does coffee come from and how was it discovered?
Coffee comes from the region south of the Sahara, which is today associated with Ethiopia and South Sudan. The catchment area extends as far as the Congo Basin. Coffee originally grew in forests and is accustomed to the proximity of trees.
Where coffee originally comes from: between the Congo Basin and modern-day Ethiopia, one can still find the highest genetic diversity of coffee species today.
It was only later, when coffee was planted for economic use, that cultivation moved to intensive planting in densely packed plots. The conversion from mixed to monoculture encouraged the spread of plant diseases, such as the infamous coffee leaf rust, or roya. Many myths surround the discovery of coffee — whether it was goats that first ate coffee cherries and danced afterwards, or a monk, a prophet, or someone else will never be definitively proven. Most legends agree on the region where coffee was discovered.
More on Roya, the devastating coffee disease: to the blog
3. Distribution of the coffee plant
Today, coffee is produced in more than 60 countries around the globe in the so-called Coffee Belt (approx. 23 degrees latitude north and south of the equator). Until a few years ago, the Coffee Belt had a relatively stable, subtropical climate that the sensitive coffee plant needs. In all countries except present-day Ethiopia and South Sudan, coffee was originally not a native plant but was imported by administrators and missionaries of the colonial powers. Coffee therefore did not spread by itself, but was actively transported by the colonial powers through the “New World.” The economic exploitation of coffee was the primary goal. Accompanying this was the botanical exploration of the coffee plant, which was foreign to the European colonial powers. Primarily scientists from Great Britain, Holland, and France analyzed and categorized the coffee plant.
More on the distribution and colonial history of coffee: to the blog
Botany and Agronomy
4. How much coffee is produced worldwide?
In 2022, 171 million 60kg bags of coffee were produced worldwide (ICO.org). Of this, 58% is Arabica and 42% is Robusta (Canephora). Since coffee grows in both the northern and southern hemispheres, it is subject to different growth cycles.
While coffee in Mexico, for example, is just starting to bloom, it is already being harvested in Peru, and vice versa. We see that some countries like Brazil, Vietnam, or Honduras produce more coffee annually, while other countries are gradually producing less. The reasons are socio-demographic and climatic. In Nicaragua, for example, more and more young people are leaving the country to seek their fortune in the USA. Since coffee—except in Brazil—is hand-picked, but the labor force will be missing in the medium term, there will be less and less coffee in many parts of the world.
5. What is the difference between Arabica and Robusta?
Arabica and Robusta (botanically more correctly: Canephora) are the two best-known and most widely planted coffee species. As of 2021, 124 different coffee species have been cataloged. Coffea Arabica and Coffea Canephora are just two of them, but they are the ones found globally today and together account for more than 99% of global coffee stock. Both species are further subdivided into varieties—for example, Coffea Arabica var. Caturra, or Coffea Canephora var. Robusta.
“Robusta” is therefore a variety of the species Canephora—when we say Arabica and Robusta, we are actually comparing apples and oranges. However, the naming has become firmly established in daily parlance. “Robusta,” as the name suggests, is significantly more robust against diseases, has twice as much caffeine, and a different aromatic profile than Arabica. Arabica grows in a cooler climate, develops lighter and more floral aromas, and is more susceptible to diseases and pests.
More about the coffee plant and taxonomy: here
Cultivation and Processing
6. Where is coffee grown?
Today, coffee is grown and processed in about 60 countries. However, the five largest producing countries (Brazil, Vietnam, Colombia, Indonesia, and Ethiopia) produce more than 75% of global coffee stock, which results in a highly consolidated coffee production. The majority of producing countries export coffee, but as a rule, they export the highest qualities. The lower qualities often remain on the farm or in local markets. Meanwhile, the demand for high-quality coffee is also rising in the producing countries, which often goes hand in hand with a country’s economic development and changing consumption patterns. Climate change has an enormous impact on coffee-growing regions—Brazil and Central America will be hit hard by 2050: in some places, it will be much hotter, and in others, drier or wetter.
More on the future of coffee: here
7. How is coffee grown?
Coffee is primarily grown in three different systems: without shade, in partial shade, and in shade. Shade in this case implies the presence of trees. In Brazil, for example, production takes place largely without shade. Based on the concept of sun-grown coffee, its own industry has developed: coffee is planted in precise rows so that it can be harvested mechanically. Shade trees “interfere” here. In mixed systems, trees provide shade and thus lower the metabolism of the plants, which causes less stress and requires fewer inputs (fertilizer). The soil is less exposed to UV rays and is more covered by organic material that falls from the trees.
Coffee in partial shade cultivation, Honduras
In the agroforestry system, i.e., planting coffee plants in forests, the coffee plants benefit from high biodiversity, natural barriers against diseases, and a high humus content. In this full-shade system, harvesting is done exclusively by hand.
8. How is coffee harvested?
In the system described above without shade, which is practiced in Brazil, machines can be used. Both the cutting of branches, the application of fertilizers and pesticides, and the harvest can be mechanized using specially designed harvesting machines. This increases efficiency and lowers production costs. Wherever coffee is hand-picked, production costs are higher. Manual harvesting is the only method for picking coffee in hilly topography and in forest-mixed systems. Pickers are close to the plant, quickly see what a plant needs, and can judge the point of best ripeness visually and individually for each tree.
Which red is the right red?
Both harvesting systems have their advantages. For uniform ripeness of the cherries, you either need a perfectly planned and uniform ripening stage of the trees that can be harvested by machine, or trained pickers who can judge the color of the cherries.
9. How is coffee processed?
As soon as the coffee cherries are picked, the clock starts ticking. By detaching the coffee fruit from the tree, the metabolic activity in the coffee seed, the later bean, increases. The coffee must now be processed quickly so that no off-notes occur. We distinguish roughly between two fundamentally different types of processing: either the fruit pulp remains on the seed and is dried in this way. This method is known as dry processing or as natural. If the pulp along with the pectin-containing mucilage (mucilage or miel) is removed by friction using a depulping machine, we are talking about depulped coffees.
A depulping machine at Santa Rita, Nicaragua
Between these two poles—leaving all the pulp on, or removing all the pulp—there are now hundreds of different intermediate stages that work with more or less fermentation and thus create aromas that were not previously present.
Coffee, Climate, Sustainability
10. Climate change and coffee
Coffee is subject to climate change. It is difficult to say exactly where and how it can be grown in the future. A study from 2022 by the ZHaW shows where climate patterns are shifting further and further.
The crux of the matter: Coffee relies on stable weather patterns so that the plants are not confused and can simultaneously nourish fruits and develop new flowers. Coffee trees planted today will face increasingly adverse conditions in the future. Producers are already facing the decision of whether growing coffee makes sense in the long term, or whether they should abandon their farms. In terms of taste, too, the general coffee flavor will shift—on one hand, there will be more Robusta because it copes better with high temperatures. On the other hand, it will become increasingly daring in terms of flavor because new fermentation techniques allow aromas to be introduced into the coffee that would not otherwise be present.
More about the coffee of the future in this video
11. What is sustainable coffee?
The probably simpler question would be: which coffee is not sustainable? Those are coffees that are sold much too cheaply. If you think something is too cheap, then it probably isn’t sustainable, because someone else has to bear the costs. But if we assume that sustainable coffee should create a long-term livelihood for everyone involved, including the environment, the soil, and the actors in the chain, then we can ask coffee roasteries the following: where does the coffee come from exactly? How was it grown? Were the prices set by the producers themselves? But at the preparation level, we can also ask ourselves: am I boiling exactly the right amount of water for my filter coffee, or way too much? Do I let my espresso machine heat up for 30 minutes for one espresso in the morning? Sustainable coffee has many faces—by looking critically at our own actions, we can constantly question ourselves.
12. How can I consume coffee sustainably?
As a rule of thumb, we like to say: anyone who buys double-certified coffee, i.e., FairTrade and Organic (FTO), hardly does anything wrong. More and more roasteries are purchasing double-certified coffee; it is also now available in supermarkets. The cooperatives that offer such coffees are checked by two different auditing bodies. In the case of double-certified coffees, good intentions are at least pursued. There are always flaws in the system, such as the illegal excesses of so-called combos, where Fairtrade coffee is sold too cheaply. It is even more sustainable, however, when buyers—i.e., traders and roasteries—take responsibility themselves and address individual challenges in the respective coffee countries. It is therefore worth it for consumers to ask coffee roasteries exactly where the coffee comes from, how the price was determined, and whether the coffee was grown in a natural way.
Coffee and Quality
13. How is the quality of coffee judged?
Coffees are checked sensorially using the infusion method, known as cupping. They are rated on a scale of 0-100. The rating system dates back to 1984 and will be replaced by a new system on October 1, 2025. We have discussed and analyzed the Coffee Value Assessment, or CVA for short, in detail here.
The hundred points are divided into 70 points for positive qualitative characteristics and 30 points for the intensity of sweetness, uniformity, and a clean, clearly structured cup profile. The attributes examined are aroma, flavor, aftertaste, acidity, body, and the balance of the various attributes. It is also checked whether a coffee is free from sensory errors, the defects. A bean with a strong defect, such as phenol, can make a liter of coffee undrinkable.
More on the topic of tasting and specialty coffee: to the article
14. What is good coffee?
Short answer: the coffee that tastes good to you is good. In a somewhat longer answer, we have to look at three different perspectives: that of the producers, that of the trade, and that of the roasteries. From the producers’ point of view, it looks like defect-free coffees and those with a good balance of sweetness and acidity are rated better by buyers and thus rewarded more highly. From the trade’s point of view, higher-quality coffees sell with the so-called differential and are priced higher—a special aromatic profile and the uniformity of the coffee are highlighted. Roasteries, in turn, often choose between quantity or quality. Anyone wanting quality buys these coffees that producers, quality labs, exporters, and importers have labeled as good coffee. The roasting language of the respective roastery underscores the character of the coffee or adjusts it so that it pleases their own clientele. And in the end, they decide what is good—even if everyone before them has done their best.
One thing is decisive for us: good coffee is not just sensorially good, but also includes the people and the environment.
Read more about how we understand sustainability here.
15. Do coffee varieties from different regions differ?
Yes. But: there are no “best coffee beans from the best growing regions in the world”—as with any food, there is both good and less-than-good coffee everywhere at the same time. The decisive factors are cultivation, uniform ripeness, clean and detailed processing, and then the sorting of the coffee. If these factors are given, you have a solid coffee to begin with. Then it’s about the subtleties.
Drying coffee at BridAzul in Ocotal, Nicaragua
And the more little puzzle pieces like varieties, local growing conditions like altitude, temperature, and shade, post-harvest processes like targeted fermentation, and then slow and monitored drying play together, the more complex the coffee becomes. In addition, one can—somewhat cautiously—speak of general flavor profiles. Nadja Schwarz keeps a record of coffees from different countries here. In her blog articles, she also covers the respective flavor profiles.
Trade
16. How is coffee traded?
The buying and selling of raw coffee is for the most part handled via the coffee exchange, where exporters, importers, and trading houses enter into business via futures contracts. The reference price in this trading system is the coffee exchange price, the Coffee C Futures, which primarily brings supply and demand into a relationship. The exchange price is further influenced by harvest outlooks and currency fluctuations, especially with the US dollar and the Brazilian real. Speculation, in which more coffee than necessary is bought or sold, is the third effect for the formation of coffee prices on the exchange. These “reference prices” do not reflect production costs and therefore remain fictitious, but are binding for more than 90% of coffee producers unless they can build their own sales channels and partnerships.
17. Coffee and Fair Trade
In 1994, the first raw coffees were imported under the TansFair seal. Other seals and organizations were to follow; in 2022, 17 organizations agreed on a common logo. Fairtrade has since guaranteed a minimum price, which increased from 140 cents per pound to 180 cents per pound in March 2023. Previously, the 140 cents per pound had been valid for Arabica coffee since 2011. For a long time, these 140 cents were considered production costs—however, even this price did not factor in real living costs and inflation. At the same time, the minimum price postulated a slightly higher income from coffee because the coffee exchange price was lower, with few exceptions (price increase due to frost or Roya outbreak). Unfortunately, however, the Fairtrade seal does not guarantee 100% protection that the Fairtrade price was actually paid. Time and again, combos occur, a reprehensible practice by buyers who negotiate down the price of Fairtrade coffees. Moreover, the market for Fairtrade-certified coffee is still much too small: in Germany in 2021, only 5% of total coffee consumption was Fairtrade-certified coffee, although the communicated awareness of the problem is apparently high.
Roasting
18. How is coffee roasted?
A green coffee bean, or raw coffee, is the dried seed of the coffee cherry. Depending on the origin and regulations, the coffee arrives at the roastery with 9–12% residual moisture.
Juan Boillat from the roasting team
The raw coffee is heated in a roaster—the temperatures in the roaster generally range from 200 to 450 degrees. The residual moisture in the coffee bean transfers the heat to the inside of the bean. During the roasting process, chemical and physical reactions take place: the bean turns brown due to the so-called browning reactions, it grows by at least 100% in size, loses weight (water loss), and the aroma precursors are converted into aromas by the Maillard reactions, which we can then recognize in the drink. Shorter roasts (+/- 10 minutes) emphasize above all the origin character of the coffee. Longer roasts of 15 minutes and more give the coffee more roast notes. The signature and the intention of a roastery can be read from the selection of raw coffees and the roasting style.
19. What is a gentle long-term roast?
The gentle long-term roast is primarily a marketing gimmick. The expression is a symbol of a counter-reaction to days gone by, when large roasteries roasted large quantities in a very short time. These raw coffees were of mediocre quality and the often-too-fast roasting could add nothing positive to the final product. So, those who roast slower, in smaller batches, and thus “more gently” would do many things better than the large roasteries.
To this day, this David vs. Goliath interpretation sometimes persists that smaller roasteries have a qualitative advantage. But there is much that speaks against this.
Roasting for a longer time than the often-scorned “industrial roasts” of the early days makes sense in theory, but in practice, we equalize the coffees with long roasts. We thereby reduce harsh chlorogenic acids, but the texture, sweetness, and balancing acidity also suffer. Economically and ecologically, long-term roasts are also to be questioned, since more coffee could be roasted in the same amount of time.
20. Roasting coffee at home
Since coffee roasting is not an art but a craft, you can also achieve good and not just drinkable results at home. Roasting coffee at home is a little adventure: it cracks, a lot of smoke is produced, and you should ventilate the kitchen well. The basis for a good roasted coffee is good raw coffee.
We have a small selection in our webshop, where you can purchase our raw coffees. As a roasting machine, popcorn pans, stove-top roasters, bread-baking machines, or really small home roasting machines work well. In this blog, we summarize that it is primarily about time and energy when roasting. Over a certain time, we add a certain amount of energy to the raw coffee. It is important that the coffee always stays in motion, otherwise, regardless of the roasting system, it will burn on one side. Instructions, tips, and plenty of motivation are available here.
Drinks
21. What is the difference between an espresso, a long coffee, and a filter coffee?
The size of the cup and the volume of the drink seem obvious. What is less obvious is what is inside the brewed coffee. And since Nespresso redefined the espresso—5.3g of coffee powder to 40ml of water—different interpretation patterns exist as to what exactly is an espresso and what is a long coffee. We define espresso as a coffee drink in which we set a ratio of 1 part coffee powder to 2 to 2.5 parts brew volume in the cup.
An overview of coffee drinks and their strength
For example, we take 18g of finely ground coffee powder, which we compress with the tamper and prepare in the portafilter machine. We measure the drink in the cup with a gram scale. For an intense espresso, we stop the extraction when we have 36g of coffee in the cup. 1:2.5 would then be 45g of brew volume and slightly milder. For a long coffee, we take 12g of coffee as a standard and brew it to 120ml brew volume in the cup, which corresponds to a ratio of 1:10. We often brew filter coffees in a ratio of 1:16—we pour 290ml of water over 18g of coffee powder to get a balanced drink.
22. How much caffeine does a cup of coffee contain?
Arabica beans consist of approx. 1.2% caffeine, while it is 2.2% caffeine in Canephora/Robusta beans. Anyone who wants to drink as much caffeine as possible would therefore brew a large pot of filter coffee from 100% Robusta beans. However, it is not about the type of drink here—espresso and filter coffee have almost the same amount of caffeine, as it is very easily soluble and ends up in the coffee during extraction. The decisive factor is the amount of powder used. Anyone who brews a coffee capsule with 5.4g of coffee, a double espresso with 18g, or a filter coffee with 40g of powder consumes different amounts of coffee. Conversely, it can be calculated like this:
three coffee capsules of 6g powder each (=18g powder) have the same caffeine content as a double espresso, which was also brewed with 18g of coffee powder.
And anyone who brews a filter coffee with 18g will also find a similar caffeine content there.
23. Do dark roasts and strong coffees have more caffeine?
No. Caffeine only breaks down minimally during roasting. The coffee beans themselves, whether they are roasted light or dark, have the same caffeine content. However, darker roasts come about when the final temperature in the roaster is high and the bean is already in the slight burning process. Matter is burned and the bean loses weight. If we now want to pull an espresso with 18g of powder, we need more dark beans to reach the desired 18g of coffee. Lighter roasts pyrolyze less during roasting; we therefore burn less matter, the coffee retains more of its original weight. Thus, we need fewer light coffee beans to reach the desired 18g of coffee powder. Darker roasts therefore have more caffeine in the coffee drink because more coffee beans are required for the brewing.
24. Is coffee healthy?
In manageable amounts, coffee is harmless to the human body. We will let Chahan Yeretzian, the coffee professor from ZHaW Wädenswil, explain it himself.
Coffee at home
25. How and where to store coffee?
At room temperature, not in the sun, in the original packaging, and sealed. We recommend not storing coffee in the refrigerator. In this video, Michel gives clear information about where
26. What are the most important tips for preparing the perfect coffee at home?
Making good coffee is like putting together a 100-piece puzzle. The more pieces that are in the correct place, the more of a comprehensive picture there is of what the coffee can actually do. There are some puzzle pieces that you can determine yourself at home. It is important above all to determine for which purpose the coffee beans (not ground) are intended. Is it filter coffee, fully automatic, or espresso coffee? Here we advise checking the websites of the roasteries to see which coffee is recommended for which type of preparation. If the coffee is roasted dark, it makes for a strong espresso, but not a balanced filter coffee, and vice versa. In order to gain control over the preparation, we recommend always working with a gram scale. Soft water helps to show the aromatic profile of the coffee. Hard water makes the coffee dull.
Info on the right amount of coffee powder: Blog
To the article for the perfect coffee water: Article
27. What are the most common mistakes in coffee preparation?
The best way to prepare good coffee is to follow a recipe. Anything else would be left to chance—which is what is often done. “One to two spoons of ground coffee” would not be a precise recipe for a filter coffee. “18g of polenta-fine ground, light-roasted coffee” is already more precise.
If we follow the brewing of coffee according to a simple recipe, just like we bake a cake, we get much more consistency in the quality of the drink.
Without a recipe, no consistency. Just the use of a scale for measuring the coffee and for measuring the extraction amount helps a lot. The right water temperature (for example from a kettle with temperature settings) as well as a coffee grinder that delivers a homogeneous grind do the rest. In doing so, the goal is to always change only one parameter of the recipe so that we are not juggling multiple moving targets.
28. How does coffee from different coffee machines taste?
It feels like a new machine is launched monthly that can brew even better coffee. Basically, in each of the processes, hot water is pressed or passed through ground coffee. Sometimes with more, sometimes with less pressure and more or less temperature, with a coarser or finer grind—what sounds like nuances results, however, in a completely different drink.
A lot of crema from a freshly roasted coffee from a portafilter machine
Coffee pad machines are primarily intended for longer coffees, as the ground powder is quite coarse. Fully automatic coffee machines can brew short and long coffees, although their strength is clearly in longer extractions. Portafilter machines can theoretically do everything well, but only if all other parameters are tuned—there is a lot of potential for error here. Filter coffee machines exist in every price range. The better machines distinguish themselves by the fact that they drizzle water of a constant temperature evenly and onto different places of the coffee bed. Capsule machines deliver significantly better short drinks than long ones—this is primarily because the amount of powder in the capsule is limited to rarely more than 6g. The espresso maker or Moka pot is for many the epitome of coffee or even espresso—in high concentration, the drink results in a dense texture and high intensity, but has little to do with an espresso from a portafilter machine. Hand-brewing methods allow us to play with coffee and try out different recipes. The vast majority of these methods are intended for filter coffee; some can also do a decent job—if a bit elaborate—of making espresso, also for on the go.
29. Which coffee beans for fully automatic machines are the best?
As a coffee roastery, we differentiate and give recommendations as to which types of coffee we use for which purpose.
Fully automatic coffee machines are extremely different in their construction—the grind is different from machine to machine. The brewing units are not the same, the brewing temperature is set differently, the path from the thermoblock to the brewing unit is a different length. These are all factors that the specific coffee roast must be able to cope with.
So, an all-purpose weapon coffee is needed that can still show more aromatic character than roast notes. Here it is worth taking a closer look at roasteries to see exactly which coffee is recommended. We recommend lighter roasts for longer cups, darker roasts for shorter extractions. Fruity coffees are enjoyed in the longer coffees from the automatic machine, nuttier and chocolatier coffees more as an espresso. We have also set out to develop a specialty coffee for the automatic machine, but see for yourself in the video.
30. How can you enjoy coffee while traveling?
Sure, good coffee can also be brewed on the go. However, it requires the right equipment. A hand grinder is the prerequisite if you don’t want to do without good coffee on the road. Benjamin has made a video about this, in which he has found his three top methods while traveling.
