Why You Should Consider Low Acid Coffee
Introduction
We all love coffee. It’s a great pick-me-up on those difficult Mondays or late evenings at work. Brewing it has become part of your everyday routine, and no breakfast feels complete without it. Coffee is proven to lower your risk of heart disease and loaded with antioxidants.
But coffee, like most soft drinks, teas and anything with sugar, is acidic. This acid can occasionally be detrimental to your health.
That’s why you should be drinking low-acid coffee, like our many roasts here at Camano Island Coffee Roasters. But where does this coffee acid come from? Why can it be bad for you? And finally, how does Camano Island Coffee Roasters create low-acid coffee?
It’s all about the bean
A coffee’s acidity originates with the beans themselves, but there are several factors that may affect the acidity of a particular roast or brew. Coffee is inherently acidic. That acidity, combined with the caffeine the plant produces, serves as an all-natural defense against insects. If a coffee plant has lower caffeine levels, it will usually have a higher acidity to help combat the insects.
While coffee will always be acidic, how the plants are grown and harvested can also have a major effect on how acidic your cup of Joe tastes. Coffee plants grown at higher altitudes and in direct sunlight will produce beans higher in malic acid, giving your coffee a sour taste. Beans harvested too early can have high concentrations of citric acid, a naturally occurring acid commonly found in lemons, limes and oranges. This concentration typically goes away when the beans are properly matured.
Of course, non-organic beans can occasionally have even higher acidity levels due to unnatural additives and pesticides used during the growing process.
That is why at Camano Island Coffee Roasters we’ve focused on low-acid roasts. We avoid high acidity by only purchasing organic, shade-grown coffee that is properly matured. This shade means the beans are exposed to more consistent growing conditions, and, therefore, the plant feels it needs to produce less acid.
Why it matters to you
Most coffee drinkers love the taste and subtleties of their favorite roasts, but overly acidic coffee can overwhelm the taste you love. Sour and bitter flavors are the results of acid, and can ruin a cup of coffee. Also, as the coffee cools the acid tends to separate from the rest of the drink, resulting in a shimmering film on the top of your coffee. The first sip of cooled coffee can taste especially bitter as a result. Low acid coffee tastes great even as it cools.
Coffee acid isn’t bad for you in reasonable amounts, but it can have some adverse effects on your health in excess. Drinking overly acidic coffee can result in some stomach disruption, leaving you feeling nauseated. Regular coffee drinking can result in more adverse gastrointestinal side effects including acid reflux disease.
The acid in coffee can also damage your smile. Over time, the acid can wear on your dental enamel, causing abrasions that can allow coffee and food to stain your teeth. Drinking Camano Island Coffee Roasters low-acid coffee and following your morning cup with a swig of water to rinse helps mitigate all of these negative side effects.
Try Low-Acid Coffee On Us
Does your morning cup of coffee leave you dissatisfied and with a bitter taste in your mouth? A quality roast of low-acid coffee can make all of the difference, and has some great health benefits in the long run. That’s why we only roast organic, shade-grown and low acid coffee at Camano Island Coffee Roasters.
Want to give it a try? We’re offering a free pound of our low-acid coffee when you join our Coffee Lovers Club. There are plenty of great varieties to choose from, and they’ll be delivered to your door fresh. No more coffee that’s been sitting on store shelves for months. To find out more, click here.