A Review of Hot Beverage Temperatures—Satisfying Consumer Preference and Safety

Abstract

Hot beverages are served ubiquitously in the food‐service industry as well as at residences and other venues. Coffee and tea beverages, in particular, are brewed at temperatures that are sufficiently high to cause immediate and serious risk for scald injuries. On the other hand, numerous research studies have been performed to identify the preferred consumption temperatures for hot beverages. The outcome of these mutually reinforcing studies is that the preferred drinking temperatures are significantly below the often‐encountered brewing temperatures (∼200 °F). Consequently, there is great need to distinguish brewing temperatures from serving temperatures. Serving consumers beverages at very high temperatures is not only unnecessary (from a preference standpoint) but also unsafe. An appropriate range for service temperatures is (130 to 160 °F). Practical Application Often times, hot beverages are served at temperatures near their brewing temperature; far hotter than preferred by consumers. This practice creates unnecessary risk to the consumer. A more rationale recommended range of service temperatures is 130 to 160 °F. This recommendation balances a range of consumer preferences and safety.

Impact of Beverage Temperature on Consumer Preferences for Black Coffee

“…Because consumers expect their coffee to be hot, but not too hot, coffeehouse operators must make important decisions regarding the serving temperatures for their coffees. Clearly a key consideration is the preferred temperature range expected by consumers, but another important consideration is the risk of scald burns, which can cause tremendous injuries and occasionally result in high-profile litigation (Lee et al 2003;Abraham et al 2016;Abraham & Diller 2019). Accordingly, several groups have investigated consumer preferences for coffee versus serving temperature.…”

Influence of the Brewing Temperature on the Taste of Espresso

“…In order to avoid the risk of injury in the pharynx due to an excessively high temperature, hot beverages should not be consumed until they have cooled down [10]. In several studies, however, it has been observed that hotter consumption temperatures are often preferred [11].…”

“…The consumption temperature of coffee preferred by consumers is 63 • C. The average pain threshold is 67 • C [12]. However, coffee is typically brewed and served at temperatures higher than 65 • C [10,13].…”

Serving Temperatures of Best-Selling Coffees in Two Segments of the Brazilian Food Service Industry Are “Very Hot”

“…The other is a German study published in 2018 on the recorded serving temperatures of 356 coffee beverages in the food service industry and the dispensing temperatures of 110 coffees in private households; the measured temperatures were on average 10 °C above the IARC threshold temperature both in the household and in the food service industry (mean value of all measurements: 75 °C; standard deviation: 5 °C) [ 22 ]. These high serving temperatures are probably related to the commonly recommended temperature of ~93 °C for brewing coffee [ 23 ].…”