Coffee is one of the most popular beverages in the world and so many of us feel like we couldn’t go without it in day to day life. Good coffee makes everything better, right?

Actually, good coffee is surprisingly hard to find. The quality of coffee beans can be pretty low depending on where you buy from, and a lot of the cheaper beans aren’t really up to scratch.

That’s just the beans, too. This is only one part of a very complex procedure. When you think about it, there is a huge amount of science that goes into your cup of joe, and that means that there is also so much that can go wrong.

What do we mean by “good” coffee? Well, we know that there is a lot of debate on this subject but there are criteria for good coffee, and certain things that mean a coffee is up to standard. Coffee is even graded, so it isn’t totally subjective. Hey, if you like cheap beans that are low grade, that’s fine, but there are such things as “good” coffee beans.

In this guide, we’re exploring why good coffee is so hard to find.

It’s tough to grow

Coffee isn’t actually much of a hardy crop, and it is easy to get things wrong. For coffee farmers there is a delicate balance to consider. 

Location has to be pretty perfect. Coffee only grows in certain conditions and of course, it can change the flavour a lot based on the way that the environment impacts the growth of the plant. This is true for pretty much any crop (think of the way there are so many varieties of wine).

Coffee companies often use lower altitudes if they are producing on bulk, and this makes it pretty easy to grow and process the coffee, but it isn’t the best for the flavour. Often, higher altitudes let the coffee develop and create a more complex flavour partially due to the sugar that develops within.

Bulk and budget coffee companies don’t want to go to the effort of farming on the side of a mountain. Lower altitudes for coffee tend to result in much worse flavours.

This is why it is often worth spending that little bit more and uying single origin coffees and getting them from farms that are family-owned or have been around for generations. This helps you to ensure that the coffee is going to have some character and flavour. Think about whether the company making it really cares or if they just want to make cheap coffee for the masses?

It’s hard to find the variety of flavours

The extra expense that is involved in getting better quality coffee delivered from places with a lot of smaller farms means a lot of companies don’t bother.

Though it is hard to know the exact buying strategies of coffee chains and the companies making coffee beans for supermarkets, it’s pretty clear that a lot of the coffees that aren’t single origin are just bought on the general market and dictated by whatever is cheapest at the time. It’s a problem that comes from people seeing these beans as merely a commodity.

When you buy coffee that is cheaper, it could have a lot of different coffee varieties mixed in. This is bad for quality and bad for flavour.

There’s so much that can go wrong

The process is long. After a long growing process, the coffee beans still have to go through plenty that can impact the flavour including being transported to you, and roasted.

Roasting is hugely influential. Over-roast the coffee beans and you will end up with something that exudes oil and loses a lot of its flavour. A lot of people think that a lot of high-street coffee is over-roasted. This is a way that roasters can at least keep consistency in their coffee beans, but it comes at the expense of coffee beans being less tasty.

After this, there is still the process of actually making the coffee. It can be burned, or even ground incorrectly which can make it under or over extract and ruin the taste. Let’s say you’re making a latte, even if you get the process of the espresso perfectly correct, mix it with milk that you have frothed too much and you might not get the flavour you’re looking for.

Photo: coffeefriend.co.uk

Summary

Coffee is pretty delicate and it is hard to work out exactly how to get the perfect beans. If you’re shopping in the wrong places then your selection might be poor and this includes supermarkets and some high-street coffee shops. 

It’s a good idea to do your research and to buy coffee from a good retailer that has a focus on quality, ensuring you don’t end up with the cheaply batch-made coffee that floods the market today.