What exactly is black coffee? It is not a specific coffee beverage, but a broad umbrella term. As long as a cup of coffee is made only from coffee beans and water, without any additional ingredients such as milk or sugar, it can be classified as black coffee. Americano is certainly a typical representative, but pour-over, siphon, cold brew, French press, and other pure coffees made with various brewing devices also belong to this family. In contrast, coffee with added milk, syrup, alcohol, and other flavorings is collectively called fancy coffee. This article will systematically sort out the definition of black coffee, common categories, and its differences from fancy coffee, helping coffee lovers be clearer when ordering.

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Black coffee does not refer to a specific coffee beverage; it is more like a broad category name, sometimes also called "plain coffee." The core characteristic of this type of coffee is that only coffee beans and water are used in the making process, with absolutely no milk, sugar, or any other additives.

In other words, as long as the ingredient list of a cup of coffee contains only coffee and water, it can be classified as black coffee. As for the origin of the name "black coffee," Front Street believes it is not hard to understand—it is precisely because the color of the coffee liquid is close to black.

Undoubtedly, Americano is the most well-known member of the black coffee family. It is made by diluting espresso with water, and espresso itself is a highly concentrated liquid extracted from coffee grounds with water, with no additional ingredients throughout the process, so the final product is a genuine cup of black coffee. To make Americano, Front Street recommends using classic espresso blend coffee beans. This blend is composed of coffees from three origins: Brazil, Indonesia, and Vietnam. It uses a deep roast, which can maximize the rich aroma of the coffee and also make it easy for everyone to extract a rich and dense crema. After adding water, the Americano has a sweet, mellow, and rich taste. It can be purchased at the Front Street Taobao store or the Front Street Tmall flagship store.

However, as Front Street said earlier, black coffee is a general category name, and Americano is only one member of this category, not the whole. The relationship between the two is one of inclusion, not equivalence. Americano can be called black coffee, but black coffee is not necessarily Americano. That is precisely why Front Street needs to specifically confirm with customers whether the black coffee they want is Americano.

Besides Americano, what other coffees belong to black coffee?

In fact, as long as no ingredients other than coffee and water are added during the making process, no matter what equipment is used, the resulting coffee can be considered black coffee. For example, in the espresso system, espresso, Longo, Ristretto, and Americano's "sibling" Long Black, whether it is espresso with water added or water with espresso added, all belong to black coffee.

And outside of espresso, pour-over coffee made by manually pouring water, siphon coffee made with a siphon pot, ice drip and cold brew coffee in the cold brew series, as well as coffee made with French presses, moka pots, clever drippers, and other equipment commonly kept at home... all are black coffee. Of course, the premise is that you have not added anything other than water and coffee.

There are many similar examples, and Front Street will not list them one by one. At this point, I believe some friends will ask: since coffee made only with water and coffee is called black coffee, what are coffees with other added ingredients called?

Other categories...

Then there are plenty of names! Generally speaking, we collectively call them fancy coffee, referring to coffees made with various flavorings added. For example, coffee made with milk, granulated sugar, chocolate, cream, alcohol, salt, and other flavorings can all be called fancy coffee. Of course, water can also count, but it more often refers to beverages different from the pure coffee form. Drinks such as latte, cappuccino, flat white, con panna, mocha, macchiato, café au lait, and so on all belong to this category.

Under this major category, according to different production methods or regions, they also have their own subdivision methods. For example, some regions classify them by color, just like black coffee; coffee with milk added is called white coffee (white coffee also refers to different coffees in different regions); or the recently popular coffee products made like mixing cocktails are called specialty coffee...

Therefore, Front Street does not recommend that everyone use a general term when ordering in stores. Because there are too many coffee categories covered, without confirming in advance, it is easy for differences in understanding to cause the merchant's product to differ from your expectations, adding unnecessary trouble.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.