If you want to find the optimal caffeine intake for yourself while still enjoying coffee for the aroma and taste, you probably should switch from hot brewing, which basically forces you to drink a whole cup with an unknown amount of caffeine because of all the variables before it goes stale, to cold brewing.
As the cold state allows you to drink the beverage in as small quantities as you want over a longer period of time while keeping its taste for up to a few days.
Overall, this means finer control of the caffeine intake until you feel optimally caffeinated.
It’s cool to see scientific evidence, that we really can’t control the exact amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee, but what we for sure can control is our intake of that unknown amount and therefore lower or eliminate the side effects that come from taking in too much caffeine.
What I’d like to see is more research about if we possibly could grow coffee beans without any caffeine in them that provide the taste and aroma we enjoy in coffee, and then adding individual amounts of caffeine to the beverage externally.
Who knows, maybe instead of ordering cup size and aroma modifications from a barista, we also choose how much caffeine is in our cup to go in the future. It would for sure strengthen brand loyalty if I got the same great-tasting coffee with my personal amount of caffeine that’s just right for me every time.
> What I’d like to see is more research about if we possibly could grow coffee beans without any caffeine in them that provide the taste and aroma we enjoy in coffee, and then adding individual amounts of caffeine to the beverage externally.
This ruins the product. It's already happened to jalapeno peppers: most you'll find at a grocery store are closer to an oddly shaped bell pepper, because chain restaurants and food manufacturers want (something vaguely reminiscent of) jalapeno flavor, but with a predictable amount of heat, so they use incredibly mild peppers and then add capsacin oil to the desired heat.
Thank you for sharing that with me. Learned something new today. Very much appreciated.
To be fair, I never tried heirloom jalapeños, the climate I live in doesn’t allow to grow them outdoors so my intake of peppers is dried and whatever is available fresh at the grocery store. Which is probably the version with vaguely reminiscent jalapeño flavor.
If I eat peppers, it’s more the ancho, longer more mild guajillo, and pasillas, which are all below the 2500 SHU of the jalapeño. I know people who love hot sauce, not my cup of tea.
The question seems a bit silly like how much liquid is there in a glass. As much as you put into it I guess. You can tell roughly by how it makes you feel. The one I just had at Ronis Primrose Hill had a pretty good whack. Probably about 200mg comparing it to the Starbucks list. Or maybe 250.
Is coffee just caffeine, or are there more active substances in that cup of coffee? How many more? What effects do they have in humans?
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-026-71264-8
If you mean the actual cup, I would say close to zero
I fear you are suffering from Dunning-Kruger illness (erroneous pedantism)
Interesting paper.
But does it really matter how much caffeine is in a cup of coffee?
The LD50 for coffee is so high you can’t reach it via coffee cup consumption realistically.
https://www.compoundchem.com/2014/07/27/lethaldoses/
If you want to find the optimal caffeine intake for yourself while still enjoying coffee for the aroma and taste, you probably should switch from hot brewing, which basically forces you to drink a whole cup with an unknown amount of caffeine because of all the variables before it goes stale, to cold brewing.
As the cold state allows you to drink the beverage in as small quantities as you want over a longer period of time while keeping its taste for up to a few days.
Overall, this means finer control of the caffeine intake until you feel optimally caffeinated.
It’s cool to see scientific evidence, that we really can’t control the exact amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee, but what we for sure can control is our intake of that unknown amount and therefore lower or eliminate the side effects that come from taking in too much caffeine.
What I’d like to see is more research about if we possibly could grow coffee beans without any caffeine in them that provide the taste and aroma we enjoy in coffee, and then adding individual amounts of caffeine to the beverage externally.
Who knows, maybe instead of ordering cup size and aroma modifications from a barista, we also choose how much caffeine is in our cup to go in the future. It would for sure strengthen brand loyalty if I got the same great-tasting coffee with my personal amount of caffeine that’s just right for me every time.
> What I’d like to see is more research about if we possibly could grow coffee beans without any caffeine in them that provide the taste and aroma we enjoy in coffee, and then adding individual amounts of caffeine to the beverage externally.
This ruins the product. It's already happened to jalapeno peppers: most you'll find at a grocery store are closer to an oddly shaped bell pepper, because chain restaurants and food manufacturers want (something vaguely reminiscent of) jalapeno flavor, but with a predictable amount of heat, so they use incredibly mild peppers and then add capsacin oil to the desired heat.
Thank you for sharing that with me. Learned something new today. Very much appreciated.
To be fair, I never tried heirloom jalapeños, the climate I live in doesn’t allow to grow them outdoors so my intake of peppers is dried and whatever is available fresh at the grocery store. Which is probably the version with vaguely reminiscent jalapeño flavor.
If I eat peppers, it’s more the ancho, longer more mild guajillo, and pasillas, which are all below the 2500 SHU of the jalapeño. I know people who love hot sauce, not my cup of tea.
The question seems a bit silly like how much liquid is there in a glass. As much as you put into it I guess. You can tell roughly by how it makes you feel. The one I just had at Ronis Primrose Hill had a pretty good whack. Probably about 200mg comparing it to the Starbucks list. Or maybe 250.
(https://www.caffeineinformer.com/the-complete-guide-to-starb...)
Related: https://www.caffeineinformer.com provides information on the caffeine content of many coffee brews from various brands.
Never enough