By Troy Ivan
ibc@ichibancrafter.com
Crafting and using espresso extractions in everything I could over the past few years has been fun! I’ve been enjoying the journey of combining three of my great interests: extraction, experimentation, and bold espresso flavors. If you’re a real bean lover, this might be right up your alley. The extraction will replicate the smell and taste of your bean with a real caffeine buzz punch. The advantage to using ethanol extraction is that it’s highly efficient, keeps the extraction amazingly accurate in flavor and aroma, and the alcohol base can give it an extended shelf-life.
“Alcohol Extraction” or “Ethanol Extraction” can sound intimidating, but it shouldn’t. It’s really not that difficult. It’s a new level of flavor, aroma, scenting, apothecary, and medicinal botanical oil management. I’m consistently blown away by the things I make with ethanol extraction; this espresso extraction is no different.
ESPRESSO EXTRACTION STEPS
I. Use High Quality, Freshly Ground Beans
Fill a pint-size canning jar about ¾ full with ground espresso beans. This is about 90 grams of ground beans. Using a rougher grind will make filtering easier later.
II. Add 95% Food-Grade Ethanol
Add 95% (190-proof) or higher food-grade (non-denatured) ethanol until the material is saturated and the jar is full, close with lid secure, shake, and allow to soak at room temperature for 1 hour or more, shaking once in a while.
Ethanol is simply alcohol made from grain, sugar cane, fruit, or whatever plant material fermentation. The most widely known brand is Everclear, but many other sellers on the internet include 420 Extractor, which is my go-to.
III. Filter
Filter the coffee bean solids from the liquid. High-quality filtering will ensure the cleanest possible extract. The resulting filtered liquid is the primary extraction “tincture” or “wash.” Using a regular coffee filter is okay, but small particles will pass through and become a higher percentage of the end product as the extraction reduces. Using a Buchner funnel as an advanced, secondary filtering step with the Source Turbo for the vacuum assist will clean it up and take it to the next level.
IV. Perform Ethanol Recovery to Complete the Extraction
With the proper equipment, it doesn’t take long to process a room-temperature tincture, recover the ethanol, and isolate the espresso extraction. For an idea of how to put together a simple system for ethanol recovery, check out these two posts: DIY Vacuum Still (Part 1): Components and Process and DIY Vacuum Still (Part 2): Putting Together and Operation.
V. When to Stop the Extraction Process
The process has finished when the desired viscosity and concentration are achieved. If you stop the process earlier, there will be residual ethanol in the concentrate, or you can run it a bit longer for a tighter consistency. Neither choice is “right” or “better” for all applications. When to stop is more of a preference developed by working with the extraction a bit or necessity determined by specific recipe requirements. I usually prefer to stop it early in a more liquid form with plenty of ethanol to keep it loose and easy to manage. Like the vanilla extract in your cupboard, it’s around 35% alcohol by volume. From the 90 g of ground espresso beans I started with, the yield was about 7 ml of espresso extraction.
VI. Decide How You Will Use the Extract.
You can use it alone or combine it with complementary flavors like vanilla. Combine the extract into sugars, creams, butter, or whatever suits your fancy. I’ve used it to make espresso cotton candy, espresso lava cakes with espresso-infused sugar sprinkled on top, vanilla-espresso-cannabis caramels, and more. You’re in charge of this flavor-crafting odyssey, so take it wherever your imagination leads you!
That’s It! Super Easy, Now Your Turn!
I hope this was helpful. If you have any questions, please drop them in the comment section below, and I’ll be happy to answer. For more ideas or information about other techniques or extraction processes, peruse my home page at www.extractcrafter.com. Most importantly, please stay positive and stay lifted! Now, get out there and do some crafting!
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I’ve spent the better part of the day combing through your posts, they are like a Muse to me.
Have you toyed with tine inclusion of small amounts of Cannabis-adjacent infusions to bring in terpenes and other ingredients that could provide interesting effects?
The espresso bean is known to have a lot of health benefits, and the boost of Caffeine could help with the body lock some patients feel from edibles. And in low doses it removes the concerns of memory impairment with co-consumption (based on the 2012 rat study). While I’d never advocate for the commercial production of that product, I could see a lot of use personally.