Coffee Tasting Notes Explained

Tasting notes are the language of coffee flavor. By learning common descriptors and practicing mindful tasting, you can better understand what you enjoy and why.

How to Use Tasting Notes

• Match your preferences:
• Like bright, lively cups? Look for fruity or floral notes (often in African coffees).
• Prefer comfort and sweetness? Choose coffees with chocolate, nut, or caramel notes (common in Latin American origins).
• Enjoy deep, grounding flavors? Try coffees with earthy or spicy notes (frequent in some Asian origins).

Connecting Flavor to Origin

• African coffees

Often described as fruity (berry, citrus, stone fruit) and floral (jasmine, bergamot). These coffees can feel vibrant, tea-like, and aromatic.

• Latin American coffees

Commonly show chocolate, nuts (almond, hazelnut), and caramel. They tend to be balanced, sweet, and approachable.

• Asian coffees

Frequently feature earthy, woody, herbal, or spicy notes (cedar, clove, tobacco). They can feel heavy-bodied and comforting.

Using the SCA Flavor Wheel

Start broad, then get specific:

1. Identify the main taste family:

• Sweet: honey, sugar, ripe fruit
• Acidic: citrus, berry, wine-like brightness
• Bitter: dark chocolate, heavy roast, cocoa
• Salty: mineral, broth-like, savory

1. Narrow down the category:

• If you sense fruit, ask: citrus, berry, or stone fruit?
• If you sense sweetness, ask: sugar, caramel, or chocolate?
• If you sense nuts, ask: almond, hazelnut, peanut, walnut?

The wheel helps you move from a vague impression ("fruity") to a precise descriptor ("blackberry" or "grapefruit").

Simple Palate-Training Routine

Use this step-by-step approach whenever you brew:

1. Smell the dry grounds

• Gently shake the container or bag.
• Ask: Do I get fruit, chocolate, nuts, flowers, spices, or earth?

1. Smell the wet aroma (after adding water)

• Lean in and inhale slowly.
• Compare: What changed from dry to wet? Did new notes appear (e.g., more chocolate, more floral, more spice)?

1. Slurp the coffee

• Take a small spoonful and slurp loudly to spray it across your tongue and up toward your nose.
• Notice: initial flavor, aftertaste, and texture (light, silky, creamy, heavy).

1. Write quick notes

• Use simple words at first: fruity, nutty, chocolatey, floral, earthy, spicy, bright, smooth, bitter, sweet.
• Over time, push yourself to be more specific: lemon vs. orange, milk chocolate vs. dark chocolate, almond vs. hazelnut.

Tips to Improve Faster

• Taste side by side: Brew two different coffees and compare them directly. It’s easier to notice differences than to describe one coffee in isolation.
• Use real foods as references: Smell or taste actual fruits, nuts, chocolates, and spices so you can recognize them in coffee.
• Be patient: Your vocabulary and sensitivity grow with repetition. The more you taste and write, the more subtle nuances you’ll start to notice.

By combining origin knowledge, the SCA flavor wheel, and a simple tasting routine, you’ll steadily build a more confident and precise coffee palate.