Can You Reheat Pour-Over Coffee? What Really Happens When Coffee Gets Cold
A good cup of coffee should always be enjoyed hot — that’s when you can truly experience its full range of aromas and flavors. This is one of those little mantras I often repeat to my friends. Yet here I am, still wearing short sleeves as autumn slowly creeps in. The air indoors is already getting chilly, and a freshly brewed cup of pour-over coffee cools down far too quickly. Before I know it, the rich aroma fades, the taste dulls, and what was once pure pleasure becomes something “too bland to enjoy, too precious to throw away.” Naturally, the thrifty part of me wonders: can I just reheat it? What Happens When Hot Coffee Cools Down? When coffee is first brewed, hot water extracts a variety of flavor compounds and sets them in motion. We enjoy coffee because we not only smell its aromatic compounds released into the air, but also taste the balance of acidity, sweetness, and bitterness on our tongues. However, as coffee transitions from hot to cold, those sensations change dr...