Oily characteristics in beans good or bad?

[Essexman]

Hi all,
Can someone please explain how oily characteristics effect espresso ? The shop i get my beans from produces the same blend but roasted slightly lighter or darker. The darker is the more oily but there is very little in the taste so which would be better for my grinder/lever? i'm guessing the less oily ones or doesn't it matter?

[jmvdigital]

It depends entirely on your taste preferences. The darker a bean is roasted, the more of its oils rise to the surface of the bean. An oily vs. a non-oily bean is not necessarily a sign of quality or whether one is "better" than the other; it's all about taste. The more oily bean will probably have a darker, more bittersweet taste, while the less oily (i.e., lighter roast) bean will probably be a little more lively and acidy. West-coast US roasters tend toward the darker heavier roasting, where as traditional Northern Italian roasters go for something a bit lighter. Also, a darker heavier tasting bean will probably carry itself better when used in milk drinks (latte, capp, etc.).

This all assumes the blend is an espresso blend, not something roasted for drip coffee. Drip/press coffee is a different animal.

-J

[Randy G.]

Oil on beans is not, in and of itself, a sign of anything bad. Some blends benefit on roasting until somewhat oily.

On the other hand, you stated that the oily beans have very little taste, and are better when more lightly roasted. This may be an effect of your brewing method or personal tastes-- You didn't mention your experience or equipment. On the other hand, the oily beans may be older and not actually roasted darker... I don't know. I haven't tasted it. In my experience I have been served coffee made from stale beans in shops. Many customers don't know the difference so a shop will serve down to the last bean to avoid waste. An example:

I was in a local shop and got a drinkable straight espresso (it was more like a press pot coffee). The next time I went in I ordered a cappuccino. It had a burnt taste to it which can indicate stale beans. I walked over to the grinder and peeked at the beans. The first time I was there it was a very nice and even roast. This time it was a 50/50 blend of that coffee along with dark, oily beans. I didn't ask, but I assumed that the oily beans were older, leftover, stale beans from the previous shipment that should have been trashed. it happens.

[Kuban111]

It depends entirely on your taste preferences. -J

Oil on beans is not, in and of itself, a sign of anything bad. Some blends benefit on roasting until somewhat oily.

Surprised to see this, I feel like dark roasted espresso is a bad 4 letter word. All ways hear about lighter roast.


Great post, Great question, Great answers.

Ok, I'm not an expert and I don't play one on tv.

I normally go for the dark roasted espresso blend or SO.
But because of here and there I've been lately opening up and trying out lighter roast.
Surprisingly to my taste buds, I kind of like it.

H-B even got me trying lower dose levels (but that's a different post).

So this post is kind of refreshing to read.
I do have some questions regarding the oil factor.

If a bean is roasted dark (2nd crack +) and oil is on the outside surface, am I off in thinking that the oil will dry up in the bean faster b/c it's expose to air. Causing the flavor of the bean or the whole bean to stale faster than vs a bean roasted on the lighter side and the oil still inside & not exposed. mmmmmmm

This is in respect to storing both roasted coffee in mason lid.

Thank's

Michael