After much curiosity and some reading on the internet, I finally decided to try some white coffee. What I learned before diving in is that white coffee is basically a very light roast. It is still comprised of arabica beans like any good coffee, but they are roasted barely beyond green, I don't believe even until the first crack. You see, green coffee beans have a sheath around them, and during the roast the beans expand in size until the sheath explodes, making a cracking sound, not unlike popcorn popping. If roasted for long enough, the beans will crack a second time as the beans themselves break apart.
With the roasting basics out of the way, it's time to talk about what's really important: how it brews. For starters, white coffee doesn't smell like traditional coffee, it has a mild aroma of peanut butter. After brewing, the peanut smell remains but it also has an earthy scent - kind of grassy. The shots are quite different than a traditional espresso shot too, a light caramel color with a high degree of transparency.
But how does it taste, you ask? It should come as no surprise that along with a mild aroma and mild color, it also has a mild flavor. And like the aroma, it also has a nutty, earthy flavor. I would say similar to green tea with a hint of peanuts. Based on the caramel coloring, I decided to make my first drink a caramel macchiato. It turned out ok, but because of the mild flavor it lacked the rich fullness of traditional espresso roast. I also made a mocha and again, it was too mild. The benefit for those who want a good buzz but don't care for coffee is that white coffee has a higher caffeine content. Two drinks got me fairly wired. I could see it catching on with the folks who add copious amounts of flavored syrups and sugar to mask the coffee flavor. I don't think it will ever sway those who love the rich, deliciousness of dark roasted coffee, however.
With the roasting basics out of the way, it's time to talk about what's really important: how it brews. For starters, white coffee doesn't smell like traditional coffee, it has a mild aroma of peanut butter. After brewing, the peanut smell remains but it also has an earthy scent - kind of grassy. The shots are quite different than a traditional espresso shot too, a light caramel color with a high degree of transparency.
But how does it taste, you ask? It should come as no surprise that along with a mild aroma and mild color, it also has a mild flavor. And like the aroma, it also has a nutty, earthy flavor. I would say similar to green tea with a hint of peanuts. Based on the caramel coloring, I decided to make my first drink a caramel macchiato. It turned out ok, but because of the mild flavor it lacked the rich fullness of traditional espresso roast. I also made a mocha and again, it was too mild. The benefit for those who want a good buzz but don't care for coffee is that white coffee has a higher caffeine content. Two drinks got me fairly wired. I could see it catching on with the folks who add copious amounts of flavored syrups and sugar to mask the coffee flavor. I don't think it will ever sway those who love the rich, deliciousness of dark roasted coffee, however.
No comments:
Post a Comment