Have you noticed that many coffee shop menus now include a "switch to SOE" option, and some offer several different styles of SOE, such as SOE Huakui, SOE Geisha, SOE Yirgacheffe, and so on? They usually come with special flavor descriptions, can be made into common coffee types like americano, latte, and flat white, and are priced somewhat higher than the regular options. Why is that? In this article, Qianjie will summarize exactly how SOE differs from the coffee we commonly see.

What does SOE mean?

S=single  O=original  E=espresso. As the name suggests, SOE refers to espresso made from coffee beans of a single origin. An "origin" can be a producing country, region, cooperative, estate, or farm, and coffee harvested from the same batch all counts as single-origin coffee. For example, the dozens of coffees from different origins listed on the small blackboard on the left side of the Qianjie bar are all single-origin, and Qianjie generally serves them as pour-over. Single-origin coffee is proposed based on the concept of specialty coffee, with the aim of emphasizing origin flavors, so single-origin coffee is a type of specialty coffee. In coffee shops it is often served as pour-over, and in recent years the concept of single-origin coffee has become very popular, with more and more single-origin coffees being applied to espresso extraction.

Friends who often drink americano and latte should know that the coffee is all extracted from an espresso machine, and a barista can usually make it in two or three minutes, much faster than pour-over. Because espresso is rapidly extracted under fine grinding, high water temperature, and high pressure, the concentrate brings together multiple tastes, and various flavor compounds hit our tongues exponentially, so it is generally drunk with added ingredients such as ice water and milk.

The opposite of SOE is espresso blend, which combines coffee beans from more than two origins and generally uses a medium-dark roast, giving the coffee a balanced, rich aroma. Both SOE and blends are terms within the category of espresso coffee; a coffee shop that offers SOE has simply switched the coffee beans to single-origin beans, such as Ethiopia's Yirgacheffe or Huakui. On the market, to distinguish them from traditional blend beans, a slightly lighter roast is used to highlight the coffee's acidity and fruity flavors, and this is emphasized more when ordering, which makes people want to switch to SOE.

Which coffee beans are suitable for making SOE?

To bring out the distinctive character of an SOE, every step matters: quality coffee beans, an appropriate roast level, matching grinding parameters, and proper extraction. Adjusting espresso extraction requires accounting for subtle fluctuating factors such as ambient humidity, extraction time, grind size, dose, and brew ratio, which makes consistent output even harder. In Front Street's view, choosing a coffee bean suited to SOE extraction not only makes it easy to pull a delicious espresso, but also means the Americano or latte made by adding water or milk will come together effortlessly.

If we want to make an SOE at home, Front Street recommends using a medium-dark roast or a flavor-forward single origin coffee bean, so as to avoid the intense, harsh mouthfeel brought on by roasting factors. Take Front Street's Brazil Queen's Estate coffee beans, for example: roasted to a medium-dark level, the extracted SOE shows chocolate, roasted hazelnut, cream, and a clean sugarcane-like sweet finish; while when Front Street makes an SOE with Costa Rica Mozart coffee beans, it carries dried fruit, tropical fruit and a light floral aroma. If you like a fresh, bright berry-like sweet acidity, Front Street suggests choosing medium-roast Huakui SOE coffee beans; they not only make it easy to pull a delicious espresso, but also mean the Americano or latte made by adding water or milk will come together effortlessly.

Extraction Parameters for SOE Huakui Espresso

Coffee beans: Ethiopia Huakui 8.0

Dose: 20g

Yield: 40g

Dose-to-yield ratio: 1:2

Extraction time:  26-32 seconds  

Grind setting: Galileo 2.0

The coffee machine used at Qianjie has a double-shot basket capacity, so each time 20 grams of coffee grounds are needed, and the extraction dose-to-yield ratio is 1:2, meaning 40 grams of espresso are yielded within a reasonable time. The extraction time is related to the flow rate of the coffee grounds; generally a single extraction is controlled between 20 and 35 seconds. If it is less than 20 seconds the coffee tends to taste thin and weak, while more than 35 seconds tends to over-extract and cause a burnt, bitter taste, so Qianjie controls the espresso time within the range of 26-32 seconds.

Before extraction, we need to first wipe the portafilter basket dry, turn on the grinder, and grind a double shot of coffee grounds, place them on a digital scale to measure and adjust until there is enough for a 20 g weight. Then use a distribution tool to level the coffee grounds, and use a tamper to press straight down with force, tamping the coffee puck firmly to ensure more stable coffee extraction.

Then turn on the extraction switch to release water for 1 to 2 seconds to moisten the group head, and at the same time it can wash away the coffee grounds stuck on it. Place a digital scale under the cup that will catch the Espresso, and reset the weight to 0; during extraction, place it together under the group head.

Gently and slowly lock the portafilter onto the group head, and start by flipping down the extraction switch. Observe the changes in the extracted liquid; when the digital scale shows 40 g of extracted coffee liquid, at about 30 seconds, pull down the extraction switch. The brewing parameters will change subtly according to the daily air humidity and the condition of the coffee beans, so it is necessary to adjust the amount of coffee grounds, the grind setting, and the extraction yield of coffee liquid up or down.

The extracted Huakui SOE can be drunk directly; remember to pair it with a glass of clear water to rinse your mouth, and you can taste the dense crema foam and the rich tropical fruit aroma of the coffee liquid underneath. If you cannot accept the intense bitterness of espresso, then of course you can also, according to your own preference, add 160 g of ice water or warm water at a 1:4 ratio to make a refreshing SOE Huakui Americano, or add 240 g of steamed whole milk at a 1:6 ratio to soften the mouthfeel, and it becomes a delicious cup of SOE Huakui Latte.

No matter how you extract a coffee bean, Qianjie believes freshness is crucial. If you use coffee beans roasted more than a month ago, some of the aroma may already have been lost, and an unpleasant woody taste may have developed. Qianjie hopes that every customer who places an order will taste the coffee's aroma at its optimal flavor period, so it ensures that only beans freshly roasted within 5 days are shipped. If you want the SOE coffee you make to have better flavor, Qianjie recommends choosing freshly roasted single origin coffee beans.

Best value everyday pour-over coffee beans recommendation: Qianjie Ethiopia Yirgacheffe Gutingting, Qianjie Panama Hacienda La Esmeralda Green Label Geisha coffee beans

Espresso coffee beans recommendation: Qianjie Classic Blend, Qianjie Strawberry Candy Espresso Blend

You can now purchase the above coffee beans at Tmall "Qianjie Flagship Store", where you can also find 60 kinds of single origin pour-over coffee beans and espresso coffee beans from around the world. Qianjie coffee beans are freshly roasted and shipped within 24 hours.

Tmall Qianjie Flagship Store link: https://qianjieshipin.tmall.com

Or you can search "Qianjie Flagship Store" directly on Taobao

Qianjie Coffee store address: No. 315 Donghuadong Road, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou