Coffee Glossary

Direct answer. This is a plain-English list of 50 coffee terms you will see on bags, menus and brewing guides, from acidity to yield. Each one takes a sentence or two. Where a word means something specific on one of our bags, I have said so.

A to Z

Acidity. The bright, lively quality in coffee, like the tang in a citrus fruit or a green apple. It is a flavor, not a pH reading, and good acidity tastes clean rather than sour.

Altitude (masl). The height of the farm in meters above sea level. Higher farms are cooler, which slows the cherry's growth and tends to produce denser, more complex beans.

Anaerobic. A processing method where the coffee ferments in a sealed, oxygen-free tank before drying. It can add fruity and wine-like flavors.

Arabica. The main species of coffee grown for specialty coffee. It has more complex flavor and less caffeine than robusta.

Aroma. The smell of coffee, dry, wet or brewed. Much of what we call flavor is smell.

Blend. A coffee made from more than one origin or lot, combined for balance or consistency.

Bloom. The puff of gas as hot water first hits fresh grounds, which release trapped carbon dioxide. A short pause for the bloom helps even extraction.

Body. How heavy or light the coffee feels in the mouth, such as tea-like versus syrupy.

Bourbon. A coffee variety (a type of arabica) known for sweetness and a rounded cup.

Burr grinder. A grinder that crushes beans between two burrs, giving a more even grind than a blade.

Caturra. A variety of arabica, a natural mutation of Bourbon, with a smaller plant and bright acidity.

Cherry. The fruit of the coffee plant. The bean is the seed inside.

Co-op. Short for cooperative, a group of farmers who pool resources to process, sell and market their coffee together.

Crema. The golden foam on top of an espresso shot, formed by pressure and carbon dioxide.

Cupping. The standard method for tasting coffee, with ground coffee steeped in cups and slurped from a spoon to evaluate flavor.

Decaf. Coffee with most of its caffeine removed from the green bean before roasting. In the US, at least 97 percent is generally expected to be removed.

Defect. An imperfection in green coffee, such as insect damage or a black bean, that hurts the cup. Specialty grade has very few.

Degassing. The release of carbon dioxide from coffee after roasting. It is why fresh coffee blooms.

Dose. The weight of ground coffee you use for a brew.

Drip. Brewing by letting hot water pass through a bed of grounds under gravity, as in an automatic machine.

Espresso. A small, concentrated shot made by forcing hot water through finely ground coffee at about 9 bar. It is a method, not a bean or a roast.

Extraction. Dissolving flavor out of the grounds into the water. Too little tastes sour, too much tastes bitter.

Fines. Very small particles of ground coffee. Too many cause bitterness and muddy cups.

Finish. The taste that lingers after you swallow.

French press. A brewer that steeps coarse grounds in hot water and then presses them down with a metal mesh plunger.

Giling basah (wet-hulled). A processing method used mostly in Indonesia in which the parchment is removed while the bean is still wet. It often gives a heavy body and earthy flavors.

Green coffee. Raw, unroasted coffee beans.

Honey process. A method in which the cherry skin is removed but some of the sticky fruit is left on the bean as it dries. It tends to give sweetness and body. No honey is involved.

Immersion. Brewing where the grounds sit in the water, as in a French press or cold brew.

Microlot. A small, separately processed batch of coffee, often from a single part of a farm.

Mouthfeel. The texture of coffee in the mouth, such as smooth, silky or rough.

Natural process. A method in which the whole cherry is dried before the fruit is removed. It tends to taste fruity and sweet.

Over-extraction. Pulling too much from the grounds, which leads to bitter, harsh coffee.

Peaberry. A single round bean in a cherry, instead of the usual two flat-sided beans.

Pour-over. Brewing by pouring hot water by hand over grounds in a filter cone.

Ratio. The weight of coffee compared to the weight of water. Most brewing lands between 1:15 and 1:18.

Roast date. The day the coffee was roasted. Flavor is usually best from a few days to a few weeks after.

Roast level. How far the beans were roasted, from light to dark. Darker roasts taste more of the roast and lighter ones taste more of the bean.

Robusta. The second major species of coffee. It has more caffeine and a stronger, harsher flavor than arabica.

SCA. The Specialty Coffee Association, which sets standards and the 100-point cupping scale.

Single origin. Coffee from one place, such as a single farm, region or co-op.

Specialty grade. Green coffee scoring 80 or more on the SCA's 100-point scale and with very few defects. Every coffee we sell is specialty grade.

Sweetness. The natural sugary taste in coffee, from caramel to fruit, and one of the things cuppers look for.

Tasting notes. The flavors you may taste in a coffee, such as chocolate, lemon or berry. They are descriptions, not added flavorings.

Typica. One of the oldest coffee varieties, known for a clean, sweet cup.

Under-extraction. Not pulling enough from the grounds, which leads to sour, thin coffee.

Varietal. The variety of coffee plant, such as Bourbon, Typica or Caturra.

Washed process. A method in which the fruit is removed from the bean with water before drying. It gives a clean, bright cup.

Water process (decaf). A way of removing caffeine from green coffee with water and activated carbon, without chemical solvents. Our decaf is made this way.

Yield (output). The weight of brewed coffee you end up with, which is especially important in espresso.

FAQ

What does "specialty grade" mean?

It means the green coffee scores 80 or higher out of 100 on the SCA scale. Every coffee we sell is specialty grade.

What is the difference between a variety and a process?

The variety is the plant, such as Bourbon. The process is what happens to the cherry after picking, such as washed or natural.

Is arabica better than robusta?

Arabica is generally preferred for specialty coffee for its flavor, while robusta has more caffeine and a harsher taste.

What is a roast date?

The day the coffee was roasted. Fresh coffee tastes best in the weeks that follow. There's no roast date printed on our bags; orders are roasted in the order received, usually within 48 hours, and arrive about 7 days from roast.

Next: put the words to work. Read a coffee label, then pick a coffee. Shipping is free on every website order.