Let’s not beat around the bush. I know it, you know it, and the numbers show it: medium roast coffee is the most popular coffee roast level in the UK.
Here are the numbers: a study by Appinio shows that 52% of the general population and 60% of coffee lovers in the UK lean towards medium-roasted coffee.
Unsurprising?
If you already know that your favourite coffee roast type is a medium-roasted coffee bean, it doesn’t mean you can’t still explore different flavours within the medium-roast coffee category, does it?
Note: Use the below SKIP LINKS to navigate to the section majority of the 2000 readers focus on.
Lucky for you, this is where my decade-long experience in the coffee industry comes in! I have first-hand coffee industry experience and can tell which coffee is worth your bucks and which is, well, meh.
You can also read my article on the best light roast coffee beans UK and the best dark roast coffee beans UK to discover more options.
I’ve done all the work for you. And oh, you’re so welcome.
So are you ready for my list of the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK? Let’s jump right into it!
Where To Buy Medium Roast Coffee At A Glance
I bet you already know that thousands of medium-roast coffee beans exist in the market.
It’s a staggering number I know, but since it’s the most popular roast type, it kind of makes sense right?
with a wide-ranging spectrum of flavours to enjoy from chocolate, nuts and fruits it is tough to argue.
However, flavours are hardly the only deciding factor when picking the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK.
So to help you pick the right one, I went into geek mode and decided to create a table to ensure my research and analysis were spot on, so you don’t waste your time or money drinking a bad medium roast coffee.
The table below contain criteria or factors I used to grade the each mediuum roast coffee on this list: Let's dive in, shall we?
| Analysis Factor | How I Judged The Factor |
|---|---|
| Freshness of The Coffee | Roast date and size of the roasting batches |
| Healthy or Unhealthy Coffee | Tested and screened for nasties like mycotoxins, mould and pesticides |
| Traceability | High-quality sourcing and traceability of the supply chain |
| Flavour Profile (of course!) | Tasting notes and flavours |
| Brand credibility and reputation | Customer reviews |
| Value for money | The price and quality mix |
Using the criteria above, these 3 brands made it to the top of list because of FAST delivery, coffee FRESHNESS and great FLAVOUR.
Limited Time Offer: Brand like Balance Coffee even took it a step further by offering a £5 discount on its medium roast Stability Blend to first time customers to enjoy a smooth rich cup of coffee daily. Don't miss out!
| Product | Benefits | where to buy |
|---|---|---|
Stability Blend |
|
Save £5 Today |
Day-Break Blend |
|
Shop Now |
THREE SISTERS |
|
Shop Now |
Let me break it down for you.
1. The Stability Blend by Balance Coffee UK
There are quite a few reasons why the Stability Blend made it to the top of the list. For starters, it is optimised for your health so if you care about what ingredients you put into your body, this one could be for you.
What this means is that our coffee is screened and tested for all the nasties present in commodity-grade coffee, like mycotoxins, mould and pesticides.
It is by far one of the best coffee beans in the UK with a lot of benefits focused on your health.
If you want to deep-dive, check out our detailed research study that explains everything you need to know about choosing a healthy coffee and avoiding unhealthy coffee.
The Stability Blend, like all other coffee at Balance, is speciality-grade and made from 100% premium Arabica.
What’s more? The coffee has delicious flavours of milk chocolate, hazelnut and fig.
This medium roast blend is delicious, premium quality, fresh, and comes packed with antioxidants.
Trust me; there is nothing better than mouth-watering and fresh coffee packed with health benefits, all at the same time!
And this is how the Stability Blend has earned itself the first spot on the list.
Now use the "Shop Stability Blend & Save £5" button below to get up to 20% discount as a first timer now!
2. Day Break Blend by Routon Coffee
If you know even a fair amount about coffee brands, then I’m sure you must have come across Routon Coffee
The Day Break Blend is one of the best medium roast coffee UK and is an award winner.
This is because this coffee is made from 100% Arabica beans and has notes of dark, rich chocolate and treacle flavours.
Routon Coffee has also made it a point to roast coffee beans fresh as the orders come in.
At the end of the bean-to-cup journey, you have an incredible taste, premium quality, and freshly roasted coffee beans.
Many customers who’ve enjoyed the Day Break Blend can’t stop raving about how utterly good this medium roast is.
It’s no wonder this was an easy pick for the premium spot on our list of the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK.
3. Kicking Horse Coffee Three Sisters
The three sisters' medium roast coffee by Kicking Horse is smooth, savoury and somewhat addictive!
It comes in both whole beans and ground coffee forms and is incredible in both, to be honest. The tasting notes are well-rounded and complex, which isn’t easy to find when it comes to medium roasts.
It is also one of the best medium roast coffee for pour-over and makes for a spectacular cup of joe every morning.
The quality for its price (£ 9.95) is just exceptional, which is precisely why this is the best choice for excellent value!
What is Medium Roast Coffee?
Medium roast coffee is coffee roasted just before the second crack, usually at about 410º–440º. Think of it this way; medium roast coffee is the funky, well-balanced middle child of coffee roasts.
It also combines the best of both worlds (i.e. light and dark roasted coffee and it can be single origin or blends). I have written extensively about the best single origin coffee beans here. worth reading.
Medium roast coffees are medium-brown in colour, with no oil on the bean surface.
Lighter roasts are more fruity while medium roasts are more chocolatey and balanced. Medium roast coffee has become so famous because it lets you taste the natural characteristics of coffee without the burnt taste of dark roast coffee.
When it comes to the tasting notes of medium roast coffee, you’ll be able to enjoy chocolate as the prominent tasting note, with sweet, nutty and fruity flavours.
But if you’re struggling to understand roast levels and want to pick the best one for yourself, here is a handy guide by the National Association of Coffee:
10 Medium Roast Coffee Beans Brands In The UK
Sipping on a medium-roasted coffee is a rewarding experience but only if you pick the beans from the right brand. But not all coffee beans by top medium-roast coffee brands are equal, so let me share my top 10 picks.
Again, my top ten picks for the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK are based on careful analysis and the grading criteria I shared earlier.
So without further ado, let me jump right into it
1. Balance Stability Blend
My vision to bring speciality-grade and healthy coffee to consumers in the UK is in full swing.
The Stability Blend is not only a top seller here at Balance, but is also one of the best medium roast coffee because it's utterly healthy, of premium quality and healthy.
With a 30-day money-back guarantee, there’s no reason for you not to sample it to find out if it's your new favourite healthy coffee.
We have 80% of customers coming back to subscribe to our subscription and we’re fortunate enough to receive just 1 or 2 return requests for every 300 orders placed because the coffee simply wasn’t to their liking.
Coffee is subjective after all, so we can’t please everyone :)
Let's get into some details:
- It is optimised for health and free from the nasties (it's important for me to emphasise this again because around 95% of the coffee available globally contains mould, mycotoxins and pesticides that can harm your health)
- It contains 1000+ antioxidants which are essential for your daily dose of wellbeing, helping to protect from diseases. Our coffee is 100% Arabica and speciality-grade (obviously!)
- We carefully roast the coffee in small batches to keep it seriously fresh
Last, but certainly not least, the Stability Blend offers an incredible taste. These medium-roasted coffee beans have lingering notes of milk chocolate and hazelnut paired with fig.
And the 30-day money-back guarantee makes this a riskless purchase!
So click the "Shop Stability Blend & Save £5" button below to get up to 20% discount as a first timer now!
2. Daybreak Blend by Routon Coffee
Looking for a delightful medium roast coffee perfect for mid-day coffee breaks? Then the Daybreak Blend is ideal for you!
But you don’t have to take my word for it. This medium roast blend is an award winner and has won two gold stars in the Great Taste Award in 2020.
And here’s what makes this coffee a healthier option than the rest; it has no artificial colours, flavours or fat content! It also uses 100% Arabica to ensure that you get premium quality.
The blend combines 50% Cochalan from Peru and 50% Finca Rabanales from Guatemala.
Lastly, this blend is packed with incredible tasting notes of dark chocolate, fruit and treacle. The taste makes the coffee an all-rounder and puts Routon on the map for the best medium roast coffee brands.
3. Kicking Horse Three Sisters
Kicking Horse started as a small roaster in the heart of the Canadian Rocks. Fast forward to today, and their success has earned them multi-million-pound success.
However, the best part is that Kicking Horse remains true to its roots, even today. They are the pioneers of providing affordable and balanced coffee blends using fair trade practices.
The Three Sisters blend is their leading medium roast coffee and has earned itself a spot on the best medium roast coffee grounds. But if you’d like, you can get the blend in whole bean form.
It's a premium coffee blend and is sourced from Indonesia, Central and South America.
Lastly, its delicious cocoa and stone fruit tasting notes packed with a tropical aroma of coconut and dried fruit pretty much seal the deal for me!
4. Taylors of Harrogate Rich Italian Coffee Beans
Taylors of Harrogate is a family-owned, independent company and they are coffee connoisseurs!
Their Rich Italian Coffee Beans make for the perfect, medium-roasted mug of goodness, especially on days that are harried.
Once you sip on this coffee, you’ll instantly feel the rich flavours flood through your system.
Additionally, this blend has my stamp of approval because they use 100% premium Arabica beans.
This blend makes for one of the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK, with its rich and refined taste reminiscent of Northern Italy.
Taylors of Harrogate uses its traditional roastery to ensure that the blend is freshly roasted in small batches. Lastly, it's hard not to savour this blend's dark, rich chocolate and almond flavours.
5. Cherry Storm No. 17 Blend Coffee Beans
Some regular coffee drinkers will tell you that the Cherry Storm No.17 Blend Coffee is one of the best medium roast coffee whole beans out there.
And well, they aren’t wrong. After sampling this medium roast, I knew I had to add it!
The blend is made from 100% Arabica beans of Brazilian, Peruvian, and Honduran varieties. But what makes this medium roast stand out is the lingering notes of chocolate and praline!
The coffee also conveniently lacks a bitter aftertaste, making them one of the best medium roast coffee beans for espresso!
Since it’s roasted in the UK, you’ll get them freshly roasted when you order. However, this blend might be too light for some coffee drinkers who love a strong kick!
6. Union Hand-Roasted Coffee Beans Yayu Wild Forest
When I started my coffee journey sampling different roasts and flavour profiles, I became particularly intrigued by blends and single-origin coffee from Ethiopia.
Not only is Ethiopia coffee’s official birthplace, but its beans are also just exquisite! And this is also one of the reasons why I just had to put this blend on the list.
Like most Ethiopian coffee I have sampled, the Union Hand-Roasted Coffee Beans Yayu Wild Forest are just something else.
They are 100% Arabica beans that come from the Yayu Forest in Ethiopia and of course, are medium-roasted.
The coffee is also hand-roasted in smaller batches in the UK, so you’ll find that these beans are fresher than most of the ones offered by big brands.
It has mild chocolate and marzipan flavours, making it more suitable for light coffee drinkers.
7. Coffee Masters Mountain Water Decaf Coffee Beans
On some lazy evenings, you just crave a cup of coffee but without the caffeine kick. And on those evenings, nothing sounds better than decaf coffee!
So not only is Coffee Masters Mountain Water Decaf Coffee Beans ideal for a decaf coffee experience, they are also one of the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK.
But you should know that this is not entirely decaffeinated! Around 97% of the stimulant gets removed, but about 3% remains.
The coffee cherries are handpicked to ensure that they stay fresh and healthy for you. They are then sent to the UK for roasting in small batches.
These medium-roast coffee beans are suitable for espressos, cappuccinos, and brewed coffee.
8. Out Of The Grey Costa Rica La Minita
If you like your coffee slightly on the darker end of the spectrum, this medium to dark roast is perfect for you.
These medium roast coffee beans by Out of the Grey are sourced from Costa Rica and have tasting notes of citrus, caramelised sugar and creamy chocolate.
You can easily make a sweet and creamy brew using this medium-roasted coffee.
But what makes this one of the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK is that it is pretty versatile.
It can be brewed perfectly in a coffee maker as a crisp pour-over or made into a rich espresso shot, whatever you prefer!
Out of the Grey claims that this blend is uniquely grown in a microclimate that results in a balanced and flavour-packed brew, and I couldn’t agree more!
9. Lifeboost Coffee Medium Roast
LifeBoost’s Medium Roast coffee is their hot seller, and it isn’t hard to see why! It has a smooth, and easy-going drinking feel with low acidity.
What I love about this medium roast coffee is that it is a single-origin medium roast yet so balanced that you’d think it is a blend!
In addition to its incredible balance and mouthfeel, you can taste lingering and delicious notes of milk chocolate, brown sugar and ripe fruit.
In fact, this is the kind of coffee you’d like to drink daily. Also, it's 100% Arabica and speciality-grade, some must-haves in my grading criteria!
And what I love about LifeBoost coffee is that it is healthy and tested by a third party for mould, mycotoxins and pesticides!
Lastly, LifeBoost is certified organic and fairtrade, so it's good for you and the coffee-growing environment! No wonder it's on my list of the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK!
10. Volcanica Coffee Kenya AA
So, I have saved one of the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK for the last!
During my journey with coffee, I discovered that Kenya produces some of the world’s finest Arabica coffee. The taste is exquisite, and if you get the right quality, it can be a healthy treat for your taste buds!
Kenya AA is the country's highest grade of coffee bean quality, and Volcanica Coffee has captured it beautifully in this coffee. Volcanica Coffee has also made quite the name for itself in the coffee space.
It is a light to medium roast that preserves the caramel sweetness of Kenyan beans but has a full body.
Actually, in addition to its sweetness, you can taste fruity flavours like raspberry and cranberry, making this medium roast powerful and unique.
It offers a mouthwatering taste and is also shade grown and certified by the Rainforest Alliance. This shows Volcanica Coffee’s commitment to the sustainability of the coffee industry as well.
The Best Way To Brew Medium Roast Coffee
It took me a little over ten years to learn this about brewing coffee, but I’m going to give it to you straight; you have flexibility! This means that no one particular method for brewing coffee is the absolute best.
In my opinion, the best ways to brew medium-roast coffee are the espresso and filter brewing methods. It ultimately comes down to what type of coffee you prefer to drink, whether that’s filter coffee, or espresso based drinks such as lattes and flat whites however, If you’re into chocolatey notes with some sweetness, I suggest you stick to espresso brewing.
And if you cherish a medium body of coffee as a clean, less intense way to enjoy coffee, and enjoy texture and mouthfeel, you can also opt for filter brewing methods.
See? There are tons of flexibility, and it all boils down to your personal preference.
That said, you must pay attention to the following basics to coax your medium-roast coffee beans into deliciousness.
Grind Size
You need to select the right grind size for your chosen brewing method. You can read our coffee brewing guides to discover the best way to do this at home.
Water Temperature
Medium roast coffee can be successfully brewed at various temperatures, but 93-95 degrees is ideal for most brewing methods.
Contact Time / Extraction Time
The length of time that you brew medium roast coffee beans affects the coffee extraction and changes the flavour. As a general rule of thumb, the darker the roast, the faster you want to brew it to avoid pulling out the bitterness.
For the espresso machine brewing method, you’ll want to aim for 25-30 seconds for extraction time.
The Freshness of the Coffee Beans
I have already shared the complete list of the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK, so that’s an excellent place for you to start. The fresher your beans, the better your brew will be!
Also, if you’re gravitating towards espresso brewing, make sure you opt for the best coffee beans for espresso.
Things You Need To Brew Medium Roast Coffee
Before brewing your perfect mug of coffee, you must ensure you have stocked up on the essential equipment.
The equipment you need will depend on the brewing method you choose.
But here is a list of the things you need:
Kitchen scale:
This will help you accurately measure bean weight and take the guesswork out of your brewing process (it's not recommended to use the teaspoon of coffee per x oz of water method) because it’s just not as accurate as weighing scales - and trust me, this makes one of the biggest differences when it comes to flavour.
Coffee grinder
Once you purchase the freshest and best medium roast coffee beans in the UK, you’ll need to grind them at home. For that, I recommend purchasing either burr grinders or electric ones.
Our full range of coffee grinders can be found here.
Hot water kettle
You’ll need this to measure the exact volume and temperature of the water. Here’s a quick tip: if you have a regular kettle without a temperature probe, wait 30 seconds after the kettle boils before pouring over your coffee grounds, this will help reduce burning the coffee which produces bitter flavours.
Brew method of choice
Lastly, you’ll need coffee tools depending on your brew method of choice. Some of the things you might need include Aeropress, Chemex, French Press or Pour Over.
How To Brew Medium Roast Coffee?
Okay, so you already know there are multiple ways to brew your medium-roasted beans. But here, I will go over one of my favourite brewing methods - the espresso method!
So first things first. Below is a quick list of the equipment that you’ll be needing (I already covered this in the last section, but here’s a recap for you):
Tools and Equipment To Get Started:
- Espresso machine (I recommend our range of Sage Espresso Machines as a starter choice for great results.)
- Coffee Grinder (For our top list of recommendations, read the best coffee grinders for espresso UK)
- Digital Scales
- Coffee Beans
- Water
Step by Step Brewing Method:
- Make sure that your espresso machine is clean from the last time you used it. Gently clean the coffee basket with a dry cloth until no coffee oils are remaining.
- Use your coffee grinder to grind your medium-roast beans to a fine setting.
- Weigh your coffee using a digital scale; I recommend using 18 oz of ground coffee.
- Put 18g of ground coffee in your machine’s basket and tap it to ensure it is spread out evenly.
- Finally, lock your portafilter in place, put your favourite coffee mug under it and brew your espresso for 25-30 seconds.
Lastly, don’t forget to take a long sip, soak in the aroma and enjoy!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs):
Have some burning questions? I will answer every single one that crosses your mind.
Let's get right in, shall we?
Is Medium roast coffee the strongest?
Medium roast coffee is not the strongest and falls in the middle of the spectrum. Caffeine content does not concentrate or increase after roasting, unlike coffee beans flavour, aroma, and colour. Darker roasts have slightly less caffeine than lighter roasts.however, extraction plays a big part. '
Why do people like Medium roast coffee?
Medium roast coffee is a crowd-pleaser; people like it because it has a well-rounded flavour profile and balanced body. It is less acidic and fruity than light roast but not as rich or robust as a dark roast. Another reason people like it is because it has delicious tasting notes of chocolate and is mellow and smooth.
Is Medium roast coffee healthier?
Yes, medium-roast coffee is considered to be more beneficial. This is because medium roasts have the highest polyphenol chlorogenic acid (CGA) concentration, a potent antioxidant that offers health benefits. CGA supports everything from inflammation reduction to cell repair, cholesterol reduction, and skin improvement.
Is Medium roast weak coffee?
No, medium roast coffee is neither too strong nor weak. It falls somewhere in the middle. Lighter roasts have a lighter body with a floral taste and a higher acidity. Dark roasts are powerful, with cocoa and caramel taste notes and very low acidity, while medium roasts are full-bodied with balanced flavour and a delicate sweetness.
Conclusion
It’s hard not to fall in love with medium-roasted coffee. From a smooth finish and balanced body to outstanding lingering notes of chocolate, it gives you a rewarding experience!
But to get the most out of your medium roasts, you must make sure that you settle on nothing less than the best medium roast coffee beans in the UK! And I’ve already used my experience and knowledge to put together the ultimate list for you.
Lastly, if you want to start your medium roast coffee journey, I suggest you head to my official store and try your hand with the number one choice - the Rotate Espresso.
