Espresso beans are a bit tough to use when trying them in a standard coffee maker. These beans are roasted much darker, and they're specifically blended for the 9 bars of pressure in an espresso machine. The water gets forced through the tightly packed grounds in just 25 seconds. A drip brewer is different, though, because it relies on gravity to pull the water through the grounds over 5 whole minutes.
The grind size is probably the biggest factor to get right. Using that ultra-fine espresso grind in your drip maker will either clog the filter or get you a coffee that's way too bitter to drink.
The darker roast creates its own set of problems. The caramelized sugars and oils that taste great in espresso can become way too strong when the water sits with the grounds for a few minutes. The same beans that produce rich chocolate flavors in a shot might taste almost burnt in a standard cup. You'll also need to adjust the coffee-to-water ratio because the concentrated flavors come out much faster than lighter roasts do.
Let's talk about how espresso beans can change up your regular drip coffee making!
The Difference Between Coffee and Espresso Beans
Espresso beans are actually just normal coffee beans. But roasters treat them differently. There isn't a particular espresso plant growing somewhere in the world, and there's no special coffee species reserved for espresso. The difference between espresso and normal coffee depends on what the roasters do with the beans and the final flavor profile that they're after.
Italian roasters in the early 1900s found out something pretty interesting about coffee and milk. They realized that if you wanted strong coffee flavors to still come through after adding steamed milk, you needed a much darker roast. Cappuccinos and lattes were becoming very popular at the time. But lighter roasts would just get lost in all that milk. Their answer was to roast beans way darker than what anyone was doing back then.
Most espresso roasts reach temperatures somewhere between 435 degrees F and 445 degrees F during the roasting process. Light roasts usually only get to about 410 degrees F or 425 degrees F max. Those extra 20 degrees make a huge change in the final product. The beans develop visible oils on their surface, and the flavors become much deeper and intense.
Roasters also usually blend beans from multiple countries when they're creating espresso blends. A common blend might include Brazilian beans to add body and richness, along with Ethiopian beans for a bit of brightness and depth. What they're actually after is a well-balanced shot that produces that beautiful gold-colored crema layer on top.
Lots of coffee drinkers believe that espresso beans pack more caffeine than normal coffee beans. But that's actually not true at all. The caffeine content in the bean itself doesn't change regardless of roast level. The factor that determines caffeine content in your cup is the way that you brew it and the ratio of water to coffee grounds.
The darker roast breaks down the internal structure of the bean quite a bit more than lighter roasts. This broken-down structure lets the water extract flavors much more efficiently and quickly. And that's great for espresso since you're pushing hot water through tightly packed grounds in just 25 to 30 seconds.
The Right Grind Size Makes Better Coffee
Yes, you absolutely can use espresso beans in your drip coffee maker, and I've done it a few times myself. You just need to make one important adjustment to the grind size; otherwise, you'll get a bitter mess instead of a decent cup of coffee.
Espresso beans normally get ground down into an extremely fine powder that measures somewhere around 200 to 400 microns. That fine texture is necessary because espresso machines push water through the grounds at 9 bars of pressure, and the resistance from that fine grind is what creates the right extraction. Drip coffee makers work on a different principle, though. Water flows through the grounds purely by gravity, and that means you need a much coarser texture for everything to work right.
When you use espresso beans in a drip machine, you should grind them to around 600 to 800 microns instead. We're talking about a texture like coarse sand or breadcrumbs. At this size, water flows through at just the right speed to pull out the delicious flavors while leaving the harsh and bitter compounds behind. The Specialty Coffee Association has done tons of research on this, and they've determined that optimal extraction rates fall somewhere between 18% and 22%.
Many coffee drinkers run into problems because they grind their beans way too fine for drip brewing. The water then moves through the coffee bed too slowly and starts pulling out the unpleasant bitter compounds that ruin the taste. Even worse, you might actually clog your filter and have a mess to clean up before you've even had your morning coffee.
A blade grinder will technically work if that's all that you have available. The problem is that blade grinders usually create a very uneven mix - you get fine dust and bigger chunks that are all mixed together. That inconsistency makes the extraction unpredictable, and your coffee quality goes down. A burr grinder also gives you much better control over particle size, and you can dial in that perfect medium grind every time.
Dark Roasts in Your Drip Coffee Maker
The darker roasts that most coffee shops use for espresso act very differently in a drip coffee maker than they do in an espresso machine. A drip machine is going to take somewhere between 4 and 6 minutes to extract the coffee. An espresso machine only needs about 25 to 30 seconds to finish its job. Those extra few minutes make a massive difference in what ends up in your cup.
Dark espresso roasts go through pretty significant chemical changes during the roasting process. The heat causes what's called the Maillard reaction, along with caramelization, to happen. These two processes create compounds that dissolve very quickly in water - much more quickly than what you'd find in lighter roasts, actually. Hot water in contact with these beans for a few minutes is going to extract flavors at a pretty fast rate.
Those rich chocolate flavors that taste great in espresso can become quite bitter in drip coffee. The caramel sweetness might taste burnt instead of smooth and pleasant. The reason this happens is that drip machines run water at 195 degrees F to 205 degrees F through the coffee grounds for a few minutes. An espresso machine would never leave the water in contact with the grounds for nearly that long.
Pressure also makes a big difference. Without the 9 bars of pressure from an espresso machine, some of the oils just won't extract properly. These are the oils that create that signature creamy texture in espresso. Your coffee is going to feel thinner in your mouth, even if the flavor itself remains pretty strong.
I've talked to plenty of customers who actually love this strong intensity, though - especially the ones who have recently switched from French press to drip coffee. They find that espresso beans give them just the strong flavor profile that they're after. Drip machines run slightly hotter than espresso machines do. Most espresso is brewed between 190 degrees F and 196 degrees F. The higher temperature in drip machines pulls out different roasted sugar flavors that can be quite pleasant if strong coffee is what you're after.
Better Coffee with the Right Measurements
When we translate this into measurements, the numbers do matter. Many home brewers pour about 60 to 65 grams of coffee into their 10-cup coffee maker every morning. With the espresso beans, though, you should dial it back to somewhere between 50 and 55 grams. Yes, that's less coffee than you'd normally use. The nice part is that espresso beans are so intensely flavored that the smaller amount actually works just fine.
There's another factor at play here that hardly anyone ever thinks about. The dark roast beans actually weigh less than medium roast beans because they've been roasted longer and have lost more density. A full tablespoon of dark espresso beans is going to weigh noticeably less than that same tablespoon filled with medium roast coffee. A kitchen scale beats a measuring cup every time when you want your coffee to taste the same each morning.
The coffee industry has obsessed over these ratios for decades. Way back in the 1950s, a researcher named E.E. Lockhart created what became known as the coffee brewing control chart. Baristas and coffee experts still pull it out and reference it all of the time because it also maps out where the coffee tastes best in terms of strength and extraction.
One Coffee That Works for Everything
The coffee world has changed in a big way over the past few years, and it's one that could make your morning coffee a whole lot easier. Omni-roast coffee beans are excellent products that work well for espresso and drip coffee. Professional roasters create them with extremely precise temperature control during the entire roasting process. Most of them bring the beans to somewhere around 420 degrees F to 425 degrees F and put them right in that perfect zone between light roasts and dark roasts.
This whole concept originally came from Nordic coffee culture, where quality is the absolute priority above everything else. Roasters like Tim Wendelboe have found a way to preserve the distinct flavors from each coffee origin and still develop the beans enough for espresso. The end result is a coffee with depth when you brew it as drip and enough body to pull a legitimate espresso shot.
Most specialty coffee shops now carry at least one omni-roast on their shelves. Some places call it their house blend, and others label it as all-use coffee. The name doesn't matter because the concept is always the same. These roasters want to keep their inventory simpler and still give tons of flexibility for customers who brew at home.
Omni-roast works for a simple reason. You can use the exact same beans in your espresso machine and your drip maker without having to buy two different bags. They taste great either way because the roaster has developed them to work great in either brewing method. Professional roasters have actually figured out the exact way to optimize these beans for maximum flexibility.
You can also stock just one coffee in your kitchen that works for your morning espresso and afternoon pour-over with equal success. I see customers all of the time who are relieved when they discover that they don't need separate bags anymore!
Keep It All Natural
Coffee labels can mislead you, and those strict categories that are printed on bags everywhere are suggestions at best. I've tested enough beans and brew methods to know that these categories are just starting points. Nothing more. The real strategy comes from the small adjustments you make to your brewing process. A coarser grind tends to work well for darker beans. Water ratios need careful adjustment until the flavor hits just the way you want it. These small changes turn an ordinary cup into something that's actually worth remembering every morning.
Your whole morning process gets much easier. You don't have to stress about whether you bought the "right" beans for your coffee maker anymore. And you don't need three different bags open on your counter for different brewing methods, either. Some coffee drinkers switch to darker roasted beans in their drip machines because they want that extra-strong flavor in the morning. Others use the exact same bag of beans for their espresso shots during the week and their drip coffee on weekends. It all works if you know what you're doing.
Experimentation with your coffee habits gives you back control, and the feeling is great. Start by brewing just half a pot as you play around with different grind sizes and measurements. You can also walk into any store and pick up whatever beans look interesting, and you'll already know how to make them taste great with the brewing setup at home. No more trial and error, no more wasted coffee and no more disappointing cups in the morning.
At Bella All Natural, we want you to have that same flexibility and control over your wellness, too. Our Skinny Iced Coffees are designed to give your metabolism a natural lift throughout the day. Our Detox Kit helps reset your system whenever your body could use a fresh start. And our Constipation Relief Kit gives you gentle relief without any harsh chemicals you'd find in other products. Every product we make contains natural ingredients that you trust. We develop each one carefully so you can reach your health goals, and it doesn't make compromises. Visit Bella All Natural and learn how the right natural products can become part of your everyday life, just like that perfect cup of coffee.
