Glossary of Coffee Terms
Acidity is a good thing when it comes to coffee. It’s the sweet, tart snap you experience when you take that first sip. The higher acidity reflects freshness and quality of the cup.
Aroma is the “nose” of the coffee. This depends on the roast and the freshness of the coffee. Before you even take your first sip, breathe in and experience aromatic notes such as floral or citrus.
Blends are a fusion of two or more origin coffees or varietals. This is where the complexities of a blend allow for more flavor sensations.
Body describes how the coffee “feels” in your mouth. A coffee can actually taste “heavy”. Is it heavy? Rich? Swish it around your mouth and judge for yourself.
“Coffee Arabica” is the original coffee plant and is the bean of choice used by the specialty coffee trade. The other type of coffee plant is “Robusta,” which is used predominantly in commercial brands.
Espresso is a fine grind for use in a special machine where boiling water and steam are pressed through the coffee under high pressure to produce espresso's distinctive taste and aroma.
Fair Trade is a commitment to our growers to pay a fair price for their beans and meet the needs of these small farms even when the world market is below that price.
Finish describes the aftertaste that lingers on the palate after you take your first sip. Pay attention. It reflects the overall body of the coffee.
Flavor descriptions can be quite vague since acidity, body, aroma and finish all have to be considered when describing the flavor of the cup in hand. You can describe the flavor of the coffee by using words such as rich, balanced or complex.
Organic coffee must be certified by an international agency as having been grown without synthetic chemical fertilizers, pesticides, or herbicides.
Roast basically describes the temperature level at which the beans are roasted. The chef or “Master Roaster” fine tunes their roast depending on which qualities they would like to bring out. Given a good-quality bean, roasting is probably the single most important factor influencing the taste of coffee.
Shade Grown Coffee Read our blog article about the ins and outs of Shade Grown Coffee.
Swiss Water Process Decaf (SWP) is a decaffeination process using water only instead of chemical solvents that leaves the flavor intact.
Varietal (or "Single-Origin") is the term used for the coffee that comes from a single geographical region.
