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So, you love coffee but despise the acidity that comes with it? Well, what if you learn how to make coffee less acidic?
With these easy steps, you will be able to eliminate the acidic flavor of coffee and enjoy its delicious taste.
Are you among the people who love drinking coffee but hate the sensation it leaves in your mouth?
This sensation is commonly known as “acidic” and it may be caused by the excessive presence of caffeine, which is an ingredient that can be found in coffee.
What Is Acidity In Coffee?
Acidity is the opposite of alkalinity; it is not the same as pH level.
The pH scale measures acidity and alkalinity, with zero being neutral, numbers above seven showing high levels of alkalinity, and numbers below seven showing high levels of acidity.
Whereas alkalinity is measured through pH (how much hydrogen the substance has), the term “acidic” comes from how easily water can be dissolved into a substance.
The reason why people complain about coffee’s acidic taste or sensation is because coffee contains acids, including chlorogenic acid and caffeic acid.
Chlorogenic acid is also present in green coffee beans.
So if you consume too much caffeine, you will feel the unpleasant aftertaste in your mouth the following day.
What Are The Causes Of Acidic Coffee?
Some of the main causes for the acidic taste in coffee are overly hot brewing water; acidic coffee flavorings; and excessive consumption of caffeine.
Water that is overly hot can increase the levels of acids produced by coffee beans.
To avoid an acidic taste in your cup of java, be sure to use water that is between 195-205 F or below percolating temperature.
This is around 6 degrees cooler than boiling temperature. If you are using an electric kettle, consider using one that goes down to 195 F instead of boiling.
Another cause for acidic taste in coffee is when you use acidic coffee flavorings, such as creamers.
These flavors are often made with vanilla extract, but they can also contain other acids that can create an acidic taste in your coffee.
To avoid this problem, stick to unsweetened cream-based coffees.
This will also help to prevent the dissolved coffee oils from becoming trapped in the filter.
You should also avoid extracting your own coffee beans because the acidity will be added back to the brew in your home machines.
If you do this, make sure that your machine will neutralize the acid in your brew after it has finished brewing it; otherwise, the acidity may remain in your finished product for too long.
Finally, if you want to ensure that your coffee will not taste acidic, you should not drink too much caffeine.
Although caffeine has no known side effects when consumed in moderation, it may cause upset stomach or other acid problems when consumed in excess.
For instance, common side effects of caffeinated beverages include restlessness and insomnia.
If you regularly experience the acidity in your coffee brews, consider reducing your consumption of caffeinated drinks and using a water filter to remove any chlorine from your water supply.
How to Make Coffee Less Acidic
Now, let’s find out a few simple ways how to make coffee less acidic:
Use Water That Is Not Too Hot
Too hot water will dissolve the ground coffee bean more quickly.
This will lead to what is known as over-extraction, which can make your coffee bitter.
If you find that your coffee tastes particularly acidic, try using cooler water for your brew.
Use Filtered Water
If you use tap water to brew your coffee, there are chances that some chlorine has been added to it to maintain good hygiene in the home.
Chlorine is an excellent disinfectant but it can also irritate sensitive stomachs and cause nausea and indigestion symptoms.
If you want to reduce the acidic taste in your coffee, limit the use of chlorine in your water.
Brew Your Coffee With Fewer Beans
If you are not into espresso drinks that are strong and rich in flavor, then try decaffeinated or flavored coffees.
You can also brew more than one cup of coffee at a time; this will dilute the acidity if it is too strong for you.
Add A Pinch of Salt
When your coffee tastes acidic, add salt to it to kill off some of the acidity in it.
This will also help to balance the flavor of your drink so that it does not have a strong acidic taste.
Add In A Few Ice Cubes
Some of the most important steps to take in order to avoid acidic aftertaste are to use ice cubes or milk rather than sugar or cream.
The acids are removed from coffee through dilution, so by using either ice cubes or milk, you will not be adding more acidity to your drink since these ingredients already exist in the beverage.
Furthermore, using milk instead of cream will also prevent it from further diluting and concentrating as much as possible.
Consider Using A Coffee Maker That Neutralizes The Acidity
When you brew coffee at home, the acidity of the beans is preserved.
This means that if you prefer to brew your coffee using an espresso maker, you will notice that it may taste more acidic than it usually does since the acidity is not neutralized.
To solve this problem, use a two-way brewer that neutralizes or removes brewed acids/compounds from your drink.
A simple way to do this is by using a filter with activated carbon.
The carbon within the filter will trap any acids and prevent it from returning to your cup of coffee.
Adjust Your Brewing Time
If your coffee produces a strong acidic aftertaste, try brewing it for a shorter duration of time.
There are a number of drip coffee machines that have a pre-brew option so you can quickly adjust the timer on your machine to suit your needs.
Grind Well
When you grind your coffee beans at home, the oils and acids within the batch will be concentrated.
This can lead to an acidic taste in your brew. You can use a mill to reduce the acidity of your brew by simply grinding at a slightly lower rate.
When you do this, you will notice that your coffee generally has less of an acidic aftertaste than normal.
However, if you prefer a stronger flavor in your coffee, then by grinding more than usual and saving some of the ground beans for later consumption, you will get rid of the aftertaste altogether.
Try Cold Brew Method
If you want to brew coffee without using a lot of appliances and it is not your favorite drip method, then place your coffee grounds in a sealed airtight container with water that is as cold as possible.
You can then let it sit for 12 hours or more to dilute the acidity and produce a sweeter coffee with less acidic aftertaste.
Steep Your Beans For Less Time
If your preferred brewing method is the French press, then you will need to stir and steep your beans for around 5 minutes or so before you make the actual Elixir.
This will help with the release of good flavors and leave out those unwanted, strong acidic aftertastes.
Stop Using Burnt Coffee Beans
If you roast your coffee beans at home, then it’s important that your coffee beans do not become too charred or blackened.
If they do, then they can generate a slightly acidic flavor in your finished brew.
You should avoid using burnt, charred or blackened beans because if you continue to use them over and over again.
As a result the flavors might become so strong and acidic that they will overwhelm other subtle flavors, such as the chocolate and nutty notes within the bean itself.
Consider Organic Coffee Beans
If you are particular about the flavors of your brew, then it is best to stick with organic coffees.
These are grown without the use of harmful insecticides and chemical fertilizers, so they contain very little acidity in them.
However, if you must use coffee beans that have ingredients added to them, do so with care.
You can request that your coffee supplier uses beans that don’t have any additives in them to begin with or uses natural additives to help remove the acidity from the beans even further after it has been roasted.
Which Coffee Has Less Acidity?
Arabica beans contain significantly less acid than Robusta beans do.
However, green coffee beans contain even less acid than Arabica and Robusta green-bean roasts do.
Additionally, natural coffees that are grown organically and that are not processed with any artificial or chemical fertilizers tend to have significantly fewer acids within them as well as a sweeter taste and quality compared to those that are grown using pesticides and artificial fertilizers.
Making your coffee without acid may seem like a difficult process at first, but you won’t notice any difference in the end if you simply follow the tips that we have presented to you here.
Remember that by making small adjustments, including some of the tips listed above, you can remove almost all of the need to worry about your coffee tasting too acidic.
Benefits of Drinking A Less Acidic Cup of Coffee
Reducing the acidity in your coffee has many benefits for your overall health. Some of these benefits include:
Reduces Heartburn
The rinse that forms when you drink acidic foods and beverages (coffee especially) can actually cause heartburn or even damage to your esophagus or stomach.
Because you will be consuming less acid in your coffee, you will notice that the heartburn stops after a while.
Less Stomach Problems
Drinking acidic beverages, such as coffee, water and soda, can cause stomach problems because the acids within them can ruin the lining of your digestive tract or even make it more difficult to digest large amounts of food.
If you make the switch to a less acidic type of drink, such as coffee, water and tea, you will notice that you are better able to digest these foods after consuming them.
Blasts Belly Fat
Drinking coffee can increase your risk of obesity because it increases your insulin sensitivity causing it to be metabolized more quickly by your body.
If this is the case, then drinking acidic drinks may also increase the burn rate of body fat because they contain acids that help release fat from your body.
Even though acid is not considered healthy for your health in general, it actually helps burn the calories that are being stored within your body which could be considered one of its benefits.
Decreases Bladder Problems
If you have bladder issues, then you may experience a burning feeling while urinating. In fact, the reason for this is because acids in your urine can irritate your bladder and make it difficult to urinate properly.
However, if you drink less acidic coffee, which should decrease the acidity in your urine as well, you should notice that the burning feeling goes away after a while.
Reduces Soreness
If you suffer from soreness or muscle pain on a regular basis or after a strenuous workout session, then consider drinking acidic beverages such as coffee on a more limited basis.
This can help you to reduce the acidity in your body, which will make it easier for you to recover quickly by strengthening your muscles.
Fights Cancer
If you have cancer, then the nutrients that are found in coffee beans can help reduce its effects on your body.
Studies have shown that drinking coffee may help fight certain types of cancer because it helps protect individuals from various types of cancer-causing agents, such as free radicals.
Coffee also contains bioflavonoids, which are antioxidants that are known for having anti-cancer properties.
Final Thoughts on How To Make Coffee Less Acidic
If you are looking for ways to make your coffee less acidic, or to make it taste like it was made using a different method altogether, then we hope that the tips and recommendations we gave you here will help you.
It is important that you understand that by making small adjustments in how you brew, roast, or consume your coffee, you can reduce the amount of acidity within your brew.
By following the tips provided by this guide, your coffee will taste sweeter and have a flavor profile with more depth to it.
To make your coffee less acidic, we recommend that you brew it at a lower temperature and use a drip machine.
Ordering your coffee with half as much acid as normal also helps.
For those of you who like to grind your own beans at home, we recommend using a machine that has pre-brewed settings to put into place.
We hope that these tips and recommendations will help you make the best coffee possible for you and your family.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Sugar Reduce Acidity In Coffee?
For those of you who are trying to make coffee less acidic, the answer is yes. Adding brown sugar into your cup of joe can actually reduce the acidity which will make it more rich and pleasant to consume.
If you want a neutral-tasting cup of coffee that has a sweeter flavor and no extra acidity, then we recommend that you use a natural sweetener such as stevia or agave instead.
Is Fresh Ground Coffee Less Acidic?
In most cases, fresh-ground coffee is more acidic. The reason for this is that it contains too many acids from the growing process. These acids can get in the way of other flavors in your brew and in your body and cause different health problems in various ways.
If you want to make your coffee less acidic, we recommend that you grind it at a lower temperature and use a drip machine instead.
How Does Proofing Coffee Affect Acidity?
Proofing your coffee is a process that involves letting the coffee sit for a certain amount of time after it is ground. This time period can actually help take care of acidity in many recipes, especially those that are darker roasted.
However, if you are using a lighter roast, then it will not remove any acid from your brew. In fact, this process may even make the brew more acidic if you let it sit for too long.
How Does Aging Coffee Affect Acidity?
Aging coffee can actually make your brew more acidic if you allow it to sit for too long. However, the longer you age the coffee, the more acidic it tastes, but there is a point where you will notice that it begins to taste sweeter over time.
Every coffee has an ideal aging point that should be followed in order to taste its sweetest flavor.
