The Cool Truth: Why Specialty Coffee Reveals Its Best Flavor When It’s Not Hot
This is worth savoring: The moment specialty coffee reaches its coolest state, it unveils a flavor complexity that hot temperatures obscure. For decades, the industry conditioned us to drink coffee hot, but the truth is, the best coffees only fully express themselves when they cool. The science is clear: as coffee cools, volatile compounds that carry sweetness, fruitiness, and floral notes become detectable, while bitterness and harshness dissipate. This isn’t just about taste—it’s about unlocking the terroir-driven story of each bean. The “drink it hot” mantra was born from necessity, not indulgence. In commercial coffee’s early days, high temperatures masked…










