For most of us, morning coffee is a wake-up ritual that gives us the caffeine boost we need for the day. And while many variables can affect the taste of your morning brew, did you know that the way you brew your coffee can affect the amount of caffeine in your cup?
Let's take a look at the most popular coffee extraction methods and the degree to which each of them is capable of extracting caffeine.
French press
80 to 100 milligrams per cup
This is the brewing process that extracts the most caffeine. The French press, for example, achieves 80-100 mg of caffeine in an average cup of coffee. This is due to the pressure the coffee experiences as the press plunger slowly descends, as well as the time the ground coffee is immersed in hot water.
Be careful though, although you can overdo it with the amount of ground coffee to get a stronger drink, it can taste bitter. If that doesn't bother you – a French press will be your best friend.
Filter coffee
60 to 100 milligrams per cup
The caffeine in filter coffee ranges from 60 to 100 mg per cup, as this method slowly extracts the coffee over a longer period of time. The general rule is that the finer the ground coffee used in the filter, the more caffeine will be extracted – so keep this in mind when choosing how to brew it.
Aeropress
50 to 70 milligrams per cup
In third place is the AeroPress, which gives you between 50 and 70 mg of caffeine per cup. The AeroPress works in a similar way to a French press, using air pressure to push water through the coffee grounds and filter. If you let your coffee brew longer than the recommended 30 seconds, you'll end up with a more concentrated brew.
Espresso
30 to 50 milligrams per cup
Wow – we know – who would have thought? Espresso comes in last on the list. Of course, this may come as a surprise, perhaps even a shock, given the fame that espresso has for itself as the ultimate wake-up call. But remember – it was invented to be 30 ml. So if you want a little more coffee in your cup – why not go for a double?!
An interesting fact is that in espresso prepared from a capsule, the caffeine content is even lower - from 25 to 40 mg. This way you get a great espresso with a thick crema and a rich aroma. The recommended maximum amount of caffeine per day is 400 milligrams, so you can safely drink up to 10 capsules per day.
So, these are the basic coffee brewing methods you need depending on your caffeine intake preference. Each has its own application and we love them all equally!
You know what else we love? Experimenting with everything coffee-related! If you want to stay informed and up to date with the latest discoveries we've made – subscribe to our latest coffee news here.