How Water Quality Shapes Coffee Flavor at Home and in Coffee Shops
Two-thirds of Americans drink coffee every day—and yet, many overlook one of its essential ingredients: water. While many coffee aficionados are adamant about sourcing the right beans and getting the roast just right, water quality is rarely talked about. And yet, it can make a major difference in the taste of the final product.
Whether you’re brewing a cup at home or picking up a latte on the way to work, the water used to make your favorite cup matters. In this blog, we’ll dig into how water quality makes a difference and how specific contaminants affect the taste of America’s favorite beverage.
Water: Coffee’s Overlooked Ingredient
Coffee is about 98% water, so it’s no wonder that the quality of the water can influence the flavor. Chlorine, which is often added as a disinfectant in city water, is generally considered safe. But even small amounts can add a medicinal or chemical flavor to foods, drinks, and even baked goods. Since there’s so much water in coffee, it’s especially susceptible to this problem.
Water hardness, which essentially refers to the levels of calcium and magnesium in the water, can also affect coffee flavor. When you (or your barista) use hard water to brew your morning cup, it can mask the flavors and dull the aroma, making for a much less enjoyable brew.
It’s worth noting that water quality affects both at-home coffee lovers and café owners. Whether it’s a residential or commercial setting, poor water quality can significantly change how your coffee tastes.
Why Water Quality Matters for Coffee in the Denver–Boulder Metro Area
In the Denver-Boulder area, city water is often found to contain chlorine/chloramines and hard minerals, so for Denver-Boulder metro area homeowners, it’s especially important to ensure your water is tested at home and/or get to know your local coffee shop and whether they are filtering/softening their water properly!
In addition to the taste and aroma issues we’ve already mentioned, hard water can also change the texture of the brew. Mineral buildup can lead to scaling on the coffee or espresso machine, which in turn can create a chalky or filmy feeling to the coffee.
In any case, water filtration and water softening can help combat this issue. For Denver-Boulder metro area homeowners, a whole-home water treatment system can help ensure your morning cup is the best it can be. And for business owners, the same principles apply on a larger scale. Ultimately, ensuring your water quality is up to par keeps your coffee from being brought down a notch by poor-tasting water, and gives your customers the best experience possible.
Chlorine and Chloramine: Small Compounds, Noticeable Effects
So, if chlorine and chloramine affect the taste of the water (and in turn, your coffee), why are they added in the first place? The answer primarily has to do with disinfection. Municipalities add these chemicals (which, again, are generally considered safe) to kill harmful bacteria that comes from surface water, agricultural areas, and industrial runoff. This bacteria can cause illnesses like cholera and dysentery. So while the chlorine and chloramine serve a good purpose, they come with the downside of affecting the taste of the water.
Carbon filtration is the standard approach for filtering chlorine out of water. In both residential and commercial contexts, carbon filters are common for removing chlorine to improve the quality of the water that’s being used for drinking, cooking, and many other daily uses. Many coffee shops, as well as gas stations and convenience stores that serve coffee, rely on carbon filtration. In some cases, RO systems might be included to handle chloramine, as well.
Hardness and Minerals: Striking the Right Balance
The challenging aspect of water softening when it comes to making coffee (and other beverages, such as tea), is finding the sweet spot of mineral presence in the water. While it’s true that hard water can greatly affect the taste, water that’s too soft can also cause problems. Namely, it can cause the coffee to have a thin flavor.
But water hardness is a scale, and finding the perfect balance can not only give you an excellent cup of coffee, but it can also be better for your plumbing, hair and skin health, and more. Our team at Save Home Heat Company uses the following specifications for hardness ranges. These are measured in grains per gallon (gpg), but you may also see measurements when viewing water filtration products that use a “parts per million” (ppm) measurement instead. For your reference: 1 gpg = 17.1 ppm.
The Save Home Heat Company Water Hardness Scale:
- 0 – 1 gpg: Soft water
- 1 – 3.5 gpg: Slightly hard water
- 3.5 – 7 gpg: Moderately hard water
- 7 – 10.5 gpg: Hard water
- 10.5+ gpg: Very hard water
For the best cup of coffee, the ideal range is between 2.3-3.5 gpg (or 40-60 ppm). In the Denver-Boulder metro area, our city water typically exceeds these ideal ranges.
Common Filtration and Treatment Options (for Homes and Coffee Shops)
When it comes to water quality, the same solutions are typically available for both residential and commercial settings. The only difference would be the scale and capacity, since businesses are going to use much more in the way of water on a daily basis than a family home. Options include:
Carbon Filters
Carbon filters are used to effectively filter out chlorine and chloramine. They’re very common for coffee shops and other businesses that serve coffee. While point-of-use products are popular nowadays, our team at Save Home Heat Company generally recommends a whole-house water filter for Denver-Boulder metro area homeowners.
Reverse Osmosis (RO) Systems
RO systems are multi-stage systems in which water is forced through multiple filtration stages to produce great-tasting water with a very pure and consistent flavor. This can be valuable it homes, but it’s also a strong choice for coffee shops because it helps maintain a controlled mineral content—meaning you’ll get the same result every time you make a cup of coffee. At Save Home Heat Company, we often recommend Pentair FreshPont models for their versatility, reliability, and convenience when it comes to regular maintenance.
Water Softeners
Water softeners are dual-purpose systems; they both remove chlorine and soften the water at the same time. But it’s worth keeping in mind that not all water softeners are created equal. “Off the shelf” options are often pretty basic in design, and they also may not be cover your water quality needs or be well-fitted to the capacity of your home. Consult a trusted professional to find the right water softener for your home.
Specialty Options
There are a few different specialty options out there, as well:
- Sediment Pre-Filters: These are typically used as a pre-filtration step to a larger water filtration system, but they might be used as standalone products in certain circumstances. Maybe your water tastes fine but it’s a bit cloudy, or you specifically want to remove sediment for use with appliances.
- UV Disinfection: UV disinfection products can be used to remove contaminants without adding chemicals to the water. These require minimal upkeep and are especially good options for homeowners with a well.
- Specialty Filters for Lead/PFAS: Some water filters may not filter out everything you’re looking for. If your water test has revealed higher levels of contaminants like lead or phthalates, a specialty filter can help address that issue.
Water Testing: The First Step
Our team at Save Home Heat Company always recommends having your water tested before choosing a water filtration system. Not only does this help you address your specific concerns, but it can also save you money! There’s no need to buy a specialty filter for lead if you don’t have lead in your water, for instance.
A basic water test will test levels of chlorine, chloramine, hardness, total dissolved solids, and pH. For Denver-Boulder homeowners, Save Home Heat Company offers complimentary in-home testing. For more advanced testing, there are local labs that will test for other potentially harmful contaminants.
Coffee shops and other businesses can also benefit from testing before investing in filtration systems and water softeners. Finding a product that fits your specific needs is essential, and that starts with knowing exactly what’s in your water.
Maintenance: Keeping Systems Performing Well
Remember: water filters are not set-it-and-forget-it products. Like most things, they require regular maintenance to ensure they continue to work well and last you a long time. Carbon filters require periodic replacement, while RO systems need annual cartridge and membrane changes, as well as tank checks. Water softeners need salt refills and tank cleanings. UV filters will need bulb replacements manually.
Whatever product you choose, there will be some level of maintenance that’s included. This ensures consistent-tasting water and coffee, and it also extends the product lifespan so you get the most use out of it in the long run.
Closing Thoughts for Denver–Boulder Metro Area Homeowners and Coffee Lovers
Whether you’re making a cup of coffee at home or you’re a business owner serving coffee to customers daily, water quality makes a big impact. When you have clean, balanced water, you get better flavor (and equipment that lasts longer). A simple water quality test and a product that’s fitted for your needs and your home or business can make a world of difference in brewing the perfect cup.
For Denver-Boulder metro area homeowners, our team offers complimentary in-home water testing to get you off on the right foot. To learn more, please reach out to our friendly, professional Save Home Heat Company team today.
