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> Something not roasted to a charred crisp (looking at you, Starbucks). Not everyone is going to like less-roasted beans. Less roasted beans have strong, dist

> Something not roasted to a charred crisp (looking at you, Starbucks). Not everyone is going to like less-roasted beans. Less roasted beans have strong, distinct flavors which might be characterized as "green" or "floral" or "woodsy", and it's true that a lot of the individuality of the bean varieties is obscured by darker roasts. But I for one usually prefer the standard roasts of the mainstream vendors over the light roasts you can seek out at smaller boutique vendors.

jamroom 1y ago
My experience with people who "don't like the taste of coffee" usually has been that they don't like how bitter and strong the taste is, which is almost always tasting the "roast" instead of the bean. Single origin light roast is the way to go if you want a really good non-coffee tasting cup of coffee. My recommendation is central america single origin (Guatamala, Costa Rica, etc) - the beans from this region tend to lean towards caramel / chocolate / hazelnut tastes which goes a long way in getting non-coffee lovers to like a cup of coffee.
- SAI_Peregrinus 1y ago
  I don't like the taste of coffee. I don't like coffee in chocolate (though I don't like chocolate much to begin with), I don't like Tiramisu, I loathe coffee-flavored jelly beans, I've tried light roasts & didn't like them, medium roasts & didn't like them, dark roasts & definitely didn't like them, and several varieties of bean and liked none. I just don't like coffee flavor.
  - junebash 1y ago
    I was in the same boat for many years (as in, my whole 35 year life), and today I still hate “coffee-flavored” stuff. But one day I was really tired and had to get stuff done, and asked for a recommendation for a coffee drink for someone who doesn’t like coffee. The suggestion was a vanilla latte. Fast forward a year and a half, and now I drink coffee almost every day. If you haven’t given that or a caramel macchiato a try, I’d highly recommend it. You might be surprised. I was.
    - SAI_Peregrinus 1y ago
      I have. I can tolerate them. But I still don't like them, and most places that serve coffee also have tea which I can drink without having to add large amounts of something to mask the flavor.
  - PaulDavisThe1st 1y ago
    > though I don't like chocolate much to begin with say what you like about coffee - it's disgusting, bitter, horrible tasting stuff. but chocolate ? I shall beat thee as fine as the dust of the earth, I shall stamp thee as the mire of the street, and cast thee abroad.
    - nkrisc 1y ago
      > say what you like about coffee - it's disgusting, bitter, horrible tasting stuff. And so is chocolate, unless you put an absurd amount of sugar in it. I drink my coffee black, though, no milk or sugar. When I've got a good bean and I prepared it just right, it reminds me of unsweetened chocolate, in a good way. After all, coffee and chocolate both originate with the roasted seeds of a fruit.
  - nkrisc 1y ago
    And that's the other side of the coin, some just don't like it. I think even for many people who do like coffee it is still an acquired taste initially.
  - HeyLaughingBoy 1y ago
    It really is an acquired taste. I used to be the same way. Although I liked the smell of coffee, I absolutely hated the taste. Then I met my wife, who would make a pot of coffee (and not "brown water" either) at 8PM and I guess I just got used to it. Now it's an everyday thing.
- shreezus 1y ago
  I have recently been impressed by the quality of Mexican coffee (currently drinking one grown in Chiapas). Medium roasts tend to play nicely with beans from this region.
Kirby64 1y ago
> Less roasted beans have strong, distinct flavors which might be characterized as "green" or "floral" or "woodsy", Anything that could be called “woodsy” or “grassy”, or possibly “green” depending on what you mean by that is a roast defect. Either under roasted, or not roasted properly. I roast coffee that is frequently on the very end of light roasts and it should never have those flavors. Floral is a flavor note that some coffees have especially at the lighter end, but not all of them.
- rectang 1y ago
  The terminology is subjective, and the idea that something someone somewhere on the internet characterizes as “woodsy” necessarily is defective is going to result in a lot of false rejects.
  - Kirby64 1y ago
    Woodsy, grassy, and floral all have pretty collective meanings in the coffee world. Sure, some random person can claim something is grassy when its not... but if you're asking a coffee professional, it's not that subjective.
    - rectang 1y ago
      Leave it to the experts to make the experience of discussing anything miserable for the amateurs.
      - Kirby64 1y ago
        Miserable? Is it really that miserable to suggest that flavors are not that subjective? I’m not saying they’re absolute, I’m just saying that when you taste a lot of anything (coffee, wine, tea, chocolate, whatever) you get better at identifying flavors. And certain flavors are purely due to roasting a certain way. If you overroast coffee, you get burnt flavors. Now some people might like burnt flavors, just like some people might like grassy flavors. That doesn’t mean they aren’t generally considered to be defects in a roast though.
el_benhameen 1y ago
I’m one of those people. I thought I liked lighter roasts, but the third wave light-light super floral stuff tastes like lemon water to me (including stuff from nice roasters and nice shops). I can understand why people like it! But I’m habituated to the brown caramely middle of the road flavor profile and I’ve stopped trying to change. Starbucks’ lighter roasts are fine with me, much as it pains me to admit my lowbrow taste.
- chii 1y ago
  > lowbrow taste. liking the "brown" chocolatey/caramelly flavour isn't lowbrow - you found a flavour you enjoy and it is valid. The idea that only those people who enjoy the light floral type are "true" coffee enjoyers (and everything else low brow - including sugar laden lattes) needs to stop.
browningstreet 1y ago
Third wave coffee roasters, like Revolution or Counter Culture, always taste distinctly sour. I can't drink those at all. I personally prefer medium to dark roasts.. even when I'm drinking them black. I wish I could find the word that describes the lighter roast taste that I don't like (to me, it's the IPA of coffee) because I have yet to be able to walk into a coffee roaster and ask them, "Is your coffee <term of art>?" so I know not to even bother.
- NoThisIsMe 1y ago
  This! Whenever I mention that to me fancy light roasts taste sour, the response is almost always puzzlement, even from those who prefer dark roasts. Nice to know it's not just me.
  - browningstreet 1y ago
    I don’t know how may of us there are but yes, you’re not alone.
- rectang 1y ago
  Your IPA analogy is apt. (I love IPAs!) As an experiment, try Starbucks Kenya. It’s one of the most aggressively citrus-y among the coffees they serve — that sharp flavor even survives the darkish Starbucks “medium” roast.
  - browningstreet 1y ago
    Thanks for the recommendation. Starbucks and Peet’s and Red Bay and Equator are all good for me. When I was in Europe I didn’t have a single bad espresso. Here I dislike many of them and stick to espressos from classic roast establishments. I wish it was easier to feed my occasional espresso kick.
    - rectang 1y ago
      Just to be clear, my recommendation is more to confirm what it is that you don't like. :) Kenya might be the most IPA-ish thing Starbucks sells.
el_oni 1y ago
There is a difference between dark roasts from a specialty coffee roaster and a dark roast from Starbucks. The specialty dark roast will have notes of cookies, chocolate, nuts. Lots of brown roasty flavour. Starbucks tastes bitter. With very little nuance. (Unless you cold brew it, then you can leave most of the bitter behind)
nkrisc 1y ago
I mean, sure, if you like that then please, go right ahead. I just know a few people who thought they didn't like coffee, but realized they just didn't like heavily roasted beans. I think most prepared coffee you get at places like Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts, that most people will end up trying, is roasted very dark. So they think they don't like coffee. And maybe they don't, or they just don't like very dark roasts which is all you're going to get in most places.

jamroom 1y ago

My experience with people who "don't like the taste of coffee" usually has been that they don't like how bitter and strong the taste is, which is almost always tasting the "roast" instead of the bean. Single origin light roast is the way to go if you want a really good non-coffee tasting cup of coffee. My recommendation is central america single origin (Guatamala, Costa Rica, etc) - the beans from this region tend to lean towards caramel / chocolate / hazelnut tastes which goes a long way in getting non-coffee lovers to like a cup of coffee.

SAI_Peregrinus 1y ago
I don't like the taste of coffee. I don't like coffee in chocolate (though I don't like chocolate much to begin with), I don't like Tiramisu, I loathe coffee-flavored jelly beans, I've tried light roasts & didn't like them, medium roasts & didn't like them, dark roasts & definitely didn't like them, and several varieties of bean and liked none. I just don't like coffee flavor.
- junebash 1y ago
  I was in the same boat for many years (as in, my whole 35 year life), and today I still hate “coffee-flavored” stuff. But one day I was really tired and had to get stuff done, and asked for a recommendation for a coffee drink for someone who doesn’t like coffee. The suggestion was a vanilla latte. Fast forward a year and a half, and now I drink coffee almost every day. If you haven’t given that or a caramel macchiato a try, I’d highly recommend it. You might be surprised. I was.
  - SAI_Peregrinus 1y ago
    I have. I can tolerate them. But I still don't like them, and most places that serve coffee also have tea which I can drink without having to add large amounts of something to mask the flavor.
- PaulDavisThe1st 1y ago
  > though I don't like chocolate much to begin with say what you like about coffee - it's disgusting, bitter, horrible tasting stuff. but chocolate ? I shall beat thee as fine as the dust of the earth, I shall stamp thee as the mire of the street, and cast thee abroad.
  - nkrisc 1y ago
    > say what you like about coffee - it's disgusting, bitter, horrible tasting stuff. And so is chocolate, unless you put an absurd amount of sugar in it. I drink my coffee black, though, no milk or sugar. When I've got a good bean and I prepared it just right, it reminds me of unsweetened chocolate, in a good way. After all, coffee and chocolate both originate with the roasted seeds of a fruit.
- nkrisc 1y ago
  And that's the other side of the coin, some just don't like it. I think even for many people who do like coffee it is still an acquired taste initially.
- HeyLaughingBoy 1y ago
  It really is an acquired taste. I used to be the same way. Although I liked the smell of coffee, I absolutely hated the taste. Then I met my wife, who would make a pot of coffee (and not "brown water" either) at 8PM and I guess I just got used to it. Now it's an everyday thing.
shreezus 1y ago
I have recently been impressed by the quality of Mexican coffee (currently drinking one grown in Chiapas). Medium roasts tend to play nicely with beans from this region.

Kirby64 1y ago

> Less roasted beans have strong, distinct flavors which might be characterized as "green" or "floral" or "woodsy", Anything that could be called “woodsy” or “grassy”, or possibly “green” depending on what you mean by that is a roast defect. Either under roasted, or not roasted properly. I roast coffee that is frequently on the very end of light roasts and it should never have those flavors. Floral is a flavor note that some coffees have especially at the lighter end, but not all of them.

rectang 1y ago
The terminology is subjective, and the idea that something someone somewhere on the internet characterizes as “woodsy” necessarily is defective is going to result in a lot of false rejects.
- Kirby64 1y ago
  Woodsy, grassy, and floral all have pretty collective meanings in the coffee world. Sure, some random person can claim something is grassy when its not... but if you're asking a coffee professional, it's not that subjective.
  - rectang 1y ago
    Leave it to the experts to make the experience of discussing anything miserable for the amateurs.
    - Kirby64 1y ago
      Miserable? Is it really that miserable to suggest that flavors are not that subjective? I’m not saying they’re absolute, I’m just saying that when you taste a lot of anything (coffee, wine, tea, chocolate, whatever) you get better at identifying flavors. And certain flavors are purely due to roasting a certain way. If you overroast coffee, you get burnt flavors. Now some people might like burnt flavors, just like some people might like grassy flavors. That doesn’t mean they aren’t generally considered to be defects in a roast though.

el_benhameen 1y ago

I’m one of those people. I thought I liked lighter roasts, but the third wave light-light super floral stuff tastes like lemon water to me (including stuff from nice roasters and nice shops). I can understand why people like it! But I’m habituated to the brown caramely middle of the road flavor profile and I’ve stopped trying to change. Starbucks’ lighter roasts are fine with me, much as it pains me to admit my lowbrow taste.

chii 1y ago
> lowbrow taste. liking the "brown" chocolatey/caramelly flavour isn't lowbrow - you found a flavour you enjoy and it is valid. The idea that only those people who enjoy the light floral type are "true" coffee enjoyers (and everything else low brow - including sugar laden lattes) needs to stop.

browningstreet 1y ago

Third wave coffee roasters, like Revolution or Counter Culture, always taste distinctly sour. I can't drink those at all. I personally prefer medium to dark roasts.. even when I'm drinking them black. I wish I could find the word that describes the lighter roast taste that I don't like (to me, it's the IPA of coffee) because I have yet to be able to walk into a coffee roaster and ask them, "Is your coffee <term of art>?" so I know not to even bother.

NoThisIsMe 1y ago
This! Whenever I mention that to me fancy light roasts taste sour, the response is almost always puzzlement, even from those who prefer dark roasts. Nice to know it's not just me.
- browningstreet 1y ago
  I don’t know how may of us there are but yes, you’re not alone.
rectang 1y ago
Your IPA analogy is apt. (I love IPAs!) As an experiment, try Starbucks Kenya. It’s one of the most aggressively citrus-y among the coffees they serve — that sharp flavor even survives the darkish Starbucks “medium” roast.
- browningstreet 1y ago
  Thanks for the recommendation. Starbucks and Peet’s and Red Bay and Equator are all good for me. When I was in Europe I didn’t have a single bad espresso. Here I dislike many of them and stick to espressos from classic roast establishments. I wish it was easier to feed my occasional espresso kick.
  - rectang 1y ago
    Just to be clear, my recommendation is more to confirm what it is that you don't like. :) Kenya might be the most IPA-ish thing Starbucks sells.

el_oni 1y ago

There is a difference between dark roasts from a specialty coffee roaster and a dark roast from Starbucks. The specialty dark roast will have notes of cookies, chocolate, nuts. Lots of brown roasty flavour. Starbucks tastes bitter. With very little nuance. (Unless you cold brew it, then you can leave most of the bitter behind)

nkrisc 1y ago

I mean, sure, if you like that then please, go right ahead. I just know a few people who thought they didn't like coffee, but realized they just didn't like heavily roasted beans. I think most prepared coffee you get at places like Starbucks or Dunkin Donuts, that most people will end up trying, is roasted very dark. So they think they don't like coffee. And maybe they don't, or they just don't like very dark roasts which is all you're going to get in most places.