Most people are casual coffee drinkers. As such, they barely understand the idea of different coffee types and even roasts. Even with brands advertising their coffee as dark roast, medium roast or light roast, for most people, coffee is just coffee. So, why the difference in taste, you may wonder? The difference in coffee is due to the level of roast. With a medium roast, the taste of the coffee will be stronger than a light roast. Also, a dark roast will give a different aroma and taste compared to the light and medium roast. Let’s discuss the differences between dark and medium coffee roast. 

What is Dark Roast Coffee?

This is coffee obtained from coffee beans that have been roasted for the longest period. It has a dark brown colour similar to that of dark chocolate. Since dark roast coffee loses a lot of moisture during roasting, it attains a smoky or bitter taste. Also, it does not have any oil on the surface of the beans. 

The caffeine content also decreases. While the original coffee taste is lost due to prolonged roasting, the coffee attains more flavour. 

The ideal temperature for roasting dark coffee beans is 430-450 Fahrenheit.

What is Medium Roast Coffee?

This is coffee obtained from coffee beans that have been roasted to a medium level. It has a brown color. However, the brown is lighter than the colour of a light roast. Medium roast coffee also has an oily surface on the beans. It also has medium acidity. 

The aroma, flavour and acidity of medium roast coffee are more balanced compared to the light or dark roast. Most roasters opt to have the medium-dark roast which is achieved by roasting the medium roast a little longer. 

The ideal temperature for roasting medium coffee beans is 400-430 Fahrenheit. 

Similarities between Dark roast coffee and medium roast coffee

• Both are coffee roasting methods

Differences between Dark roast coffee and medium roast coffee

Definition

Dark roast coffee refers to coffee obtained from coffee beans that have been roasted for the longest period. On the other hand, medium roast coffee refers to coffee obtained from coffee beans that have been roasted to a medium level. 

Color

While dark roast coffee has a dark brown colour, medium roast coffee has a brown color. 

Taste

Dark roast coffee loses the original coffee taste due to prolonged roasting but attains more roasting flavour. On the other hand, medium roast coffee loses some of the original coffee flavours and picks some roasting flavour. 

Caffeine content

Dark roast coffee has the least caffeine content. On the other hand, the medium roast has less caffeine content. 

Ideal roasting temperature

The ideal temperature for roasting dark coffee beans is 430-450 Fahrenheit. On the other hand, the ideal temperature for roasting medium coffee beans is 400-430 Fahrenheit.

Dark roast coffee vs. Medium roast coffee

Summary of Dark roast coffee vs. Medium roast coffee

Dark roast coffee refers to coffee obtained from coffee beans that have been roasted for the longest period. It has a dark brown colour and the least caffeine content. On the other hand, medium roast coffee refers to coffee obtained from coffee beans that have been roasted to a medium level. It has a brown color and less caffeine content compared to light roast. 

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