What to know when you taste a coffee
In this quick guide to coffee tasting, you'll learn how to better sharpen your palate, but also how to fully savor your cup and all its subtleties!
The 4 factors that influence the taste of your cup
1. Geography
The coffee plant is a capricious plant; its cultivation requires a very specific climate and depends on nutrient-rich soil. Coffee cultivation is therefore generally limited to regions of the world linked by the Tropics of Capricorn and Cancer, in a band commonly known as the coffee belt.
Coffees grown at high altitudes are said to be more acidic and have more complex aromas. Altitude also plays a role in the size and density of the bean, as well as the maturation time before harvesting.
Altitude is directly linked to taste differences, since it often influences producers' choice of plant types: we are talking here about the famous Arabica, which tends to be planted more at altitude since it prefers to grow with cooler air and slight temperature variations.
2. Variety
Among the many variables that affect the taste and quality of your cup, the botanical lineage and genetic heritage of the coffee plant (coffee tree) play a most important role.
Caturra, Catuai, and Bourbon are just a few of the thousands of coffee varieties found worldwide. Some are cultivated for their specific properties and performance—in terms of quality or yield—in a particular region or terroir, while others are grown for their resistance to specific diseases. Understanding these names can also be helpful for you, as a coffee drinker, to appreciate the unique attributes that distinguish each variety.
3. Process
Coffee processing is simply the method used to remove the beans from the coffee cherry. Various methods and new innovations exist worldwide, but coffee is generally processed using either the natural or washed method.
The processing method makes a difference in flavor and aroma because the pulp sugars left on the natural beans or processed with honey undergo metabolic changes that significantly alter the chemical composition of green coffee. Here are the main processing methods:
Washed
The coffee cherries enter a flotation tank to be sorted before being pulped by hand or machine. The beans soak in water for 24 to 48 hours, during which fermentation breaks down the mucilage. The soaking time varies depending on the outside temperature and the nights, which influence the fermentation process. The next step is to wash the coffee to remove any remaining residue before transferring it to drying beds to dry in the sun.
Honey
The fruit skins are removed within 24 hours of harvesting; the mucilage (the clear, sweet part of the coffee cherry located directly under the fruit's skin) is left to dry on the coffee beans. The amount of mucilage left on the bean depends on the producer's specific recipe and varies according to the type of "Honey" coffee desired, whether White, Yellow, Red, or Black.
Natural
This is the least water-intensive process and is often the typical method for extremely dry climates. The ripe coffee cherries are dried completely, including the beans.
4. Roasting
When we roast coffee, we develop 800 to 1000 different aromatic compounds. Roast profiling allows us to influence the presence of these aromatic compounds in the coffee and determine its flavor profile.
The SCAA aroma and flavor wheel
The Specialty Coffee Association of America has developed a coffee aroma and flavor wheel that can help you describe the taste of your cup. This chart can be an excellent reference when practicing the art of cupping.
USEFUL BASICS FOR COFFEE TASTING
Aroma: The smell emitted by freshly ground coffee.
Balance: Characteristic of a cup that is proportionally sweet, bitter, and sour.
Body: The sensation of weight and texture felt when drinking coffee. It's something we feel, rather than something we taste.
Finish in the mouth: Also known as the aftertaste, this is the taste of coffee after it has been swallowed.
Full-bodied: Robust, rich and intense taste or aroma. Not to be confused with bitterness.
TASTING CATEGORIES 
Vegetal: Taste or aroma associated with fresh grass, vegetables, or unripe fruit.
Tangy: Sweet with a slight zing reminiscent of lemon. May also have an astringent quality.
Bitterness: Desirable to a certain extent, especially in a dark roast. However, bitterness can also be a telltale sign of over-extracted, over-roasted, or generally defective coffee.
Earthy: Slightly sweet and persistent, associated with vegetation as well as dark, moist soil.
Fruity: A sweet, floral, sugary and aromatic blend of a variety of ripe fruits.
Floral: Sweet, light and lightly scented, reminiscent of fresh flowers.
Sweet: A taste or aroma similar to honey, candied, or saccharin.
Nutty: Flavor or aroma reminiscent of roasted nuts, peanuts, hazelnuts, etc.
Chocolatey: A flavor or aroma reminiscent of chocolate.
Spicy: Not to be confused with hot or salty. It refers to the taste or aroma of spices such as cloves, anise, cinnamon, or nutmeg.
FLAVORS THAT SIGNAL DEFECTS
Acrid: The sharp, pungent, bitter, and acidic aromas associated with excessively roasted products.
Ashy: The dry, dusty, smoky aroma associated with the residue of burnt products.
Baggy : This flavor can be a characteristic of coffee that was improperly stored in a burlap sack. The coffee has absorbed the flavor of the sack and may have mold problems.
Paper: Describes a coffee that lacks freshness.
Medicinal: A smell or taste reminiscent of medicine; likely a result of cherries that dried on the plant.
Quaker : If a kernel hasn't developed the right compounds when split in half, it may resemble an unroasted peanut. This could indicate that unripe or underdeveloped cherries were processed.
Burnt: A strong, bitter, or even sour flavor that results from coffee that is over-roasted or burnt.
Tobacco: There may be pleasant, slightly sweet and pungent tobacco notes associated with dried tobacco, but defective notes reveal tastes of burnt tobacco or tobacco ash.
In practice!
The best way to learn how to taste coffee is to practice - practice - practice! A good coffee tasting session, also called Cupping, deepens your understanding and appreciation of the subtleties and nuances of your cup.
Discover all the steps in our video on the subject.
