Main Difference
Having caffeine and beans in common doesn’t mean that both espresso and coffee stands for the same hot beverage. Both are entirely different from each other on many points. The main difference between espresso and coffee is that coffee is made from coffee beans that are the seeds of berries of the coffea plant while there is no plant that grows the beans of espresso, in fact, it uses the blend of different coffees or any specific type of coffee bean.
What is Espresso?
Espresso also known as expresso is a type of coffee that is made by forcing a small amount of nearly boiling water under pressure via finely ground coffee beans. It is normally thicker as compare to coffee and contains higher concentration of suspended and dissolved solids and has crema on top. It is also used as a base for other drinks like: caffe latte, café mocha, caffe Americano, cappuccino, and café macchiato. It contains more caffeine as compare to most of the coffee beverages. Espresso is both a coffee beverage and a brewing method. It is not a specific bean, bean blend, or roast level. Any bean or roasting level can be used to produce authentic espresso.
What is Coffee?
Coffee is prepared from roasted coffee beans that are seeds of berries of the coffea plant. Coffee plants are being cultivated in over seventy centuries, especially in America, Southeast Asia, India and Africa. The two most commonly grown plants of coffee are the ‘arabica’ and ‘robusta’. Before using in coffee, the beans are roasted to varying degrees, depending on the desired flavor. It is slightly acidic and can have stimulating effect on humans because of presence of caffeine. It is one of the most popular drink across the world. According to experts: “Moderate coffee consumption is benign or mildly beneficial in healthy adults. However, the diterpenes in coffee may increase the risk of heart disease.”
Key Differences
- Coffee is being used since 9th century A.D while espresso is being used since 16th century A.D.
- Coffee is served in large quantity, 8 fluid ounces, as compare to 1 fluid ounce of espresso.
- The origin of coffee is Ethiopia while origin of espresso is Arabian Peninsula.
- Coffee is made of roasted coffee beans while espresso uses the blend of different coffees or any specific type of coffee bean.
- The quantity of caffeine is more in coffee as compare to espresso.
- Coffee can be hot or cold while espresso is always hot.
- Drip coffee, decaf, instant, plunger, filter, decaf brewed, espresso, and brewed are types of consumption of coffee. Milk-based: macchiato, flat white, latte, and water-based: long black, Americano are types of consumption of espresso.
