The world of coffee is constantly evolving, making it an exciting place to be both for baristas and sophisticated coffee drinkers alike. For the less geeky out there though, it can be hard to keep-up with what’s hot and what’s not. Let us help you, with our breakdown of today’s Top Five Coffee Trends.

Here they are:

1. Turn down the heat

Summer may be long gone, but cold brew is here to stay. More refreshing than your usual cup of coffee, this sweeter, less acidic beverage has quickly become a popular ingredient for cocktails – particularly in the USA where you’re unlikely to find a decent cafe without a cold brew tap (or two) at the bar. If you haven’t already, then try a Cold Brew Tonic – a pleasing concoction of cold brew, tonic water and ice. Heaven.

2. Sign here

‘ The usual please,’ is a phrase you’ll hear less and less, as coffee aficionados continue to step out of their comfort zone and order baristas’ signature drinks instead of their go-to coffee. Often the result of a successful experiment, a signature drink is the barista’s own recipe, that aims to highlight the flavour of the coffee rather than disguise it with whipped cream, syrups, chocolate sauce and so on –  a habit adopted by many high-street chains. Don’t bother if you’re in a hurry though; signature drinks take time to perfect, but are nearly always worth the wait.
 

3. Water water everywhere

If you really, really care about the quality of your coffee, then you’ll be passionate about the water that’s used to brew it too. Top baristas across the world have been fighting hard to ensure that cafes use only the best water on offer. And it’s been a rather successful campaign – almost all good cafes now house sophisticated water filters, and this year even saw the publication of Maxwell Colonna Dashwood and Christopher H Hendon’s book, ‘Water for Coffee.’
 

4. Bitter sweet  

Since forever, coffee has been served with foods of the sweet variety – biscotti, macaroon, and apple pie of course. But as our knowledge of coffee evolves and we’re able to produce less bitter flavours we’re increasingly pairing coffee with savoury rather than sweet dishes. Oysters coupled with chilled espresso? Delicious. Bacon-wrapped scallops washed down with a bold brew? Scrumptious. Heston Blumenthal eat your heart out...

5.  In with the old

Hear the words ‘climate change’ and you don’t necesarily think of coffee – until now. Thanks to our ever-changing landscape, some of the more sensitive coffee plants have been struggling to survive, meaning farmers have been forced to re-think their selection process. Once forgotten varieties are being re-discovered, opening the door to a whole new world. Every cloud and all that.