How to Taste Coffee

In the roasting plant, the "Cupping Table" is our altar. It is where physics meets biology. It is where we determine if a container of Green Coffee is worth $4.00 a pound or $40.00 a pound.

Most people drink coffee for the caffeine. Professionals drink it for the data.

When cupping a coffee, don’t just look for "yummy." Look for defect, for potential, and for the specific chemical interaction of organic acids and sugars. But you don’t need a Q-Grader license to unlock these layers. You just need to stop drinking and start tasting.

Here is the definitive guide to sensory analysis, broken down by science, mechanics, and vocabulary.

Part 1: The Physiology

The Nose vs. The Tongue (The 80/20 Rule)

Before you take a sip, you must understand the hardware you are working with. A common misconception is that flavor happens in the mouth. It doesn't.

The Science of Retro-Nasal Olfaction

When you swallow coffee, volatile aromatic compounds rise up the back of your throat (the pharynx) and hit the olfactory bulb from behind. When you say a coffee tastes like "blueberries," your tongue isn't telling you that, your nose is.

Roaster’s Tip: If you pinch your nose while drinking coffee, it will taste like warm, bitter water. Unpinch your nose, and the flavor floods back in. That is the power of retro-nasal breathing.

Part 2: The Setup

Mise en Place (Everything in its Place)

You cannot judge a coffee fairly if your variables are messy. In the lab, consistency is king.

• The Ratio: 8.25 grams of coffee to 150ml of water. (Roughly 1:18 ratio).

• The Grind: Coarser than pour-over, like sea salt or rough sand.

• The Water: 200°F (93°C). Crucial: Use filtered water. If your water tastes like chlorine, your coffee will too.

• The Vessel: Small ceramic bowls or 6oz rocks glasses.

Part 3: The Timeline

The Ritual of Cupping

Coffee reveals different secrets at different temperatures. We do not just brew and sip; we follow a strict choreography.

0:00 — The Dry Fragrance
Grind the coffee. Immediately stick your nose into the vessel. Shake it. Inhale.

• What to look for: This is the most volatile stage. You will smell the gases escaping the cellular structure. Look for potential: Is it nutty? Floral? Spice-heavy?

0:30 — The Pour
Pour the water aggressively to ensure all grounds are saturated. Do not stir.

4:00 — The Break
A "crust" of coffee grounds has formed on top. Take a spoon and push the crust back while inhaling deeply.

• The "Wet Aroma": This is the "face-melter" moment. As the crust breaks, trapped aromatic vapor is released. This is where you detect the heavy notes: chocolate, earth, and deep fruit.

10:00 — The Evaluation (The Slurp)
Skim the foam off the top. Wait for the coffee to reach roughly 160°F. If it’s too hot, your TRP channels (heat receptors) will numb your taste buds.

• The Action: Take a spoonful. Bring it to your lips. Slurp violently.

Part 4: The Analysis

The 4 Pillars of Quality

Once the liquid is in your mouth, stop looking for "flavors" immediately. Instead, evaluate the structure of the coffee using these four pillars.

1. Acidity (The Sparkle)

Do not confuse acidity with sourness. Sourness is a defect (think vinegar). Acidity is a positive attribute; it is the "brightness" or "nerve" of the cup.

• The Citric Snap: Sharp, high-frequency acidity. Think Lemon, Lime, Grapefruit. (Common in Washed Central Americans).

• The Malic Crisp: Round, cooling acidity. Think Green Apple, Pear. (Common in Rwandans).

• The Phosphoric Tingle: Sparkling, aggressive acidity. Think Cola, Currant, Tomato. (Common in Kenyans).

2. Body (The Fabric)

Body is tactile. It is physics, not flavor. I teach my apprentices to think of coffee body in terms of fabric textures.

• Silk: Light, delicate, tea-like, slips off the tongue. (Washed Ethiopia)

• Velvet: Round, soft, coating, moderate weight. (Colombia)

• Denim: Heavy, thick, rugged, lingers on the palate. (Sumatra/Monsooned Malabar)

3. Sweetness (The Peak)

Coffee is the seed of a cherry. It should be sweet. If it is bitter, it is either roasted too dark (carbonization) or the cherry was picked unripe.

• Look for: Brown Sugar, Honey, Molasses, or Fruit Fructose.

4. Aftertaste (The Ghost)

Swallow the coffee. Count to ten. What is left?

• The Good: A lingering sweetness or a pleasant spice sensation.

• The Bad: Astringency (a dry, sandpaper feeling, like eating an unripe banana) or Ashiness.

Part 5: Vocabulary Builders

Translating Sensation to Words

The hardest part of cupping is articulation. We use the SCA Flavor Wheel, but you can simplify it into three "buckets."

Bucket A: Enzymatic (The Fruit/Flower)
These flavors come from the plant itself.

• Descriptors: Jasmine, Lemon, Blueberry, Apple, Melon.

• Origins: Ethiopia, Kenya, Panama Geisha.

Bucket B: Sugar Browning (The Roast)
These flavors come from the Maillard Reaction during roasting.

• Descriptors: Caramel, Toast, Roasted Almond, Hazelnut, Vanilla.

• Origins: Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica.

Bucket C: Dry Distillation (The Earth)
These flavors come from the burning of plant fibers.

• Descriptors: Cedar, Tobacco, Clove, Dark Chocolate, Black Pepper.

• Origins: Sumatra, Sulawesi, Dark Roasts.

Part 6: A Roaster’s Challenge for You

You cannot calibrate your palate in a vacuum. To truly learn, you must Compare and Contrast.

The Weekend Exercise:
Buy two bags of coffee from a local specialty roaster.

1. Bag A: A "Natural" Processed African coffee.

2. Bag B: A "Washed" Latin American coffee.

Brew them side-by-side. Sip Bag A, then immediately sip Bag B. The contrast will be shocking. You will suddenly understand what "Body" means when you feel the heavy Natural against the clean Washed. You will understand "Acidity" when the African coffee zings against the smooth Latin American cup.

Drink less. Taste more.