Coffee Beans vs. Espresso Beans

What’s the Difference?

While browsing the coffee aisle, you might notice some bags are marked as espresso blends or coffee blends. That get’s you thinking: “What’s the difference between coffee and espresso beans?” The truth is, there is no difference between the two beans. A coffee bean is a coffee bean. So, why are bags labeled differently you ask? As it turns out, it's the brew method.

Labeling beans as espresso or coffee is nothing more than a recommended method from the roaster on how to bring out the flavor of the beans. Of course, there are different roasts and coffee beans—two species actually, Arabica and Robusta, as well as varietals bred from these species. However each is still a coffee bean that can be used in a variety of methods.

Let’s quickly dive into how beans and blends create different types of flavors and how the recommended brew methods evolved.

So, how did espresso beans come to be? When espressos first became popular, coffee farmers didn’t have the advancements of cultivating that we see today—and when the lower quality beans were brewed as espressos, it was beyond noticeable. When you put coffee beans under pressure, like you do with espresso, the flavor profiles become more intense. Sort of like the difference between a raspberry tea and a spoonful of raspberry jam. In an effort to create a more consistent flavor profile, roasters would use a darker roast to produce smokey, caramelized sugar notes, like we see in many Italian roasts. This roasting method, however, meant that the nuanced flavors were no longer detectable. Nowadays, roasters source high quality beans to make this method of masking taste not necessary.

Brewed coffee, whether from a standard drip brewer or pour over, tends to produce less intense flavors than an espresso, making it much more forgiving when used to brew a variety of coffee qualities. Many also find that brewed coffee is much easier to control the extraction process and therefore the flavor of the cup you produce is much more consistent. You may find that single origins, beans sourced from one location, are easier to brew in this fashion. Single origins tend to have more delicate flavors, which makes it easy to over or under extract. Because of this, making an espresso is a much tougher task. Kind of like a target, getting a great cup of brewed coffee is just about hitting the board but getting a great cup of espresso is like trying to hit the bullseye. It’s not impossible, but it will take quite a bit more dedication and practice.

We are firm believers that the writing on the bag shouldn’t necessarily influence how you brew. It is just a recommendation meant to guide you, but it’s ultimately up to you to experiment and find your perfect brew. You will also find our “recommended method” in the description of our coffee.