Americano vs. Coffee

You’ve most likely seen thousands of Instagram latte art posts before even rolling out of bed this morning. Even if you haven’t read our comparison of cappuccinos vs. lattes you likely have a general grasp of what goes into that espresso drink. But one menu item that can trip up casual coffee consumers is the Americano.

As an Americano seems to just be, you know, coffee, some people avoid ordering this delightful espresso beverage. We’re here to outline the differences between brewed coffee and an Americano to give the drink it’s much-deserved spot in the limelight.

What’s the Difference Between an Americano and Brewed Coffee?

The main difference between an Americano and a cup of brewed coffee is the ingredients — to the naked eye they often appear identical.

• An Americano contains espresso and hot water. Espresso being the operative word, which uses a quick extraction method.
• Brewed coffee is ground coffee grinds and hot water that is slowly filtered..

What Is an Americano Coffee?

First, let’s clear up a common misconception: an Americano is actually an espresso drink, not purely a cup of coffee (though it may look like one). We provide a more in-depth breakdown on our blog covering the difference between espresso and coffee if you’d like to learn more about how espresso and coffee intersect.

A Café Americano, or what we just call an Americano, combines freshly pulled shots of espresso with hot water to achieve the size of a standard cup of brewed coffee. Americanos were supposedly made popular in Europe during World War II, as the American soldiers wanted something resembling their tried-and-true cups of drip coffee. At The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf® our Americanos can be combined with our signature powders like hazelnut, white chocolate, and mocha for a bold, unique flavor.

What Is Brewed Coffee?

There are many ways to make a cup of brewed coffee, from the drip method to using a French Press or using the pour-over method. These methods involve hot water being infused with coffee grinds using a specific amount of time. It’s not a quick method of brewing unlike making the espresso in an Americano.  At The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf® you can order one of our light, medium, dark, or decaffeinated varieties of brewed coffee made from the top 1% of Arabica beans in the world. Not too shabby!

Which Has More Caffeine: an Americano or Brewed Coffee?

This one is tricky. Espresso shots have a higher concentration of caffeine in each ounce than an ounce of brewed coffee. However, due to the larger serving size brewed coffee often has more overall caffeine.

Try to make your own Americano from the comfort of your kitchen with our Espresso Roast Coffee. Head to The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf® in your neighborhood to sample our coffee and our trademark Americano to decide which boost of energy and flavor you prefer.