Not all the coffee you drink is good, and one of the most popular among the Portuguese is far from being so. The Spanish coffee tasting champion, Marisa Baqué, harshly criticized the way in which so-called torrefacto coffee continues to be sold and consumed on a large scale, arguing that this type of roasting “should be banned”.
In an interview with the Spanish newspaper ABC, the expert explained that torrefacto, coffee roasted with sugar, results in a low quality product, which deceives the consumer and harms the flavor.
“I don’t understand how roasted coffee isn’t banned. It’s not just because it has sugar, but because that sugar is burned. Sugar doesn’t add anything to the coffee. If you put a roasted coffee bean in cold water, you’ll see what happens: it only gives it color. Because the taste is horrible. What happens is that this has become a consumption habit,” he told the same source.
A tradition that resists, but without quality
According to the Spanish publication, torrefacto coffee emerged more than a century ago, at a time when coffee was a luxury item. The addition of sugar during roasting made it possible to increase the weight of the product and disguise defects in the grain, making it more profitable for producers.
“They say that roasting was invented when coffee was expensive, to offset the cost of the raw material. Others believe that sugar helped preserve the beans. But the result is the same: a poor quality product, sold as if it were superior”, explained the expert.
Although the origins date back to times of scarcity, the tradition remained in countries such as Portugal and Spain, where many consumers continue to associate the intense flavor of torrefacto with the idea of “strong” coffee. However, according to Marisa Baqué, this is an illusion: “The consumer believes that it is of better quality, and that is not true.”
What distinguishes a good coffee
The expert also highlighted that the higher price of some coffees is directly related to sustainability and care in production. “Specialty coffees are more sustainable in all aspects: ecological, economic and social”, he said.
According to the same source, these coffees are harvested at the exact point of maturation, undergo a controlled fermentation process and are subject to rigorous selection. “All of this is paid for”, highlighted Baqué, reinforcing that quality requires time, investment and respect for the product.
In contrast, the cheapest coffees tend to come from large mechanized plantations, where quality control is reduced.
“In quality coffee we notice fruity or floral notes, which are always very pleasant. In others, immature or poorly fermented beans are included, which makes the flavor astringent and earthy, and sometimes even reminiscent of olives: a clear sign of poor fermentation”, he explained.
A call to change habits
With decades of experience in the industry, Marisa Baqué argues that coffee should be seen as a food of natural origin, and not as a simple stimulating drink.
“It is essential to value quality coffee and rethink consumption habits that no longer make sense. Roasting should be banned”, he concluded to .
Also read:
