Cupping – The Art Of Coffee Tasting

Cupping is an art of observing the tastes and aromas of the brewed coffee and there are people who do it as a profession. They’re called cuppers. These professionals taste coffee as an addendum to professional buying, judging contests, writing reviews and so on. But this doesn’t mean that the joy of sitting before a half-dozen cups of Tanzanian Peaberry, Monsoon Mysore and the rest is limited only to them.

The cupper tastes and smells the coffee for aroma, flavor, body, acidity, finish and a wide variety of more subtle attributes. They may also attempt to predict coffee’s origin, since beans embody telltale flavors from the region where they were grown. If you want to reproduce the professional setting at home you can start with a simple arrangement.

Have an substantial supply of fresh, filtered water. Even the best grounds are spoiled by tainted water. Water can become ’stale’, by absorbing odors from the air, by excessive distasteful minerals such as sulfur or even by the growth of mildew in pipes. Avoid distilled or softened water that retains too much of the softening salts.

Now you’re going to need a tray that can hold a dozen small glasses or cupping bowls. An assortment of measuring scoops, spoons, etc completes the tools. Oh, and don’t forget the coffee!

Boil the water and grind the beans with a burr grinder set to different settings for the number of different trials desired. You’ll be surprised of how much difference the fineness of the grind makes to the final result.

Prepare the coffee, allowing any samples to steep for a few minutes. Filter the coffee or allow to settle and spoon out a sample, then smell. Take the aroma in, running it through the nose and concentrating. Then taste, by running the liquid over the entire tongue. Hold for a few seconds, then spit into a container.

Think about the coffee’s profile. Is it woody or winey? Acidic or smooth? Syrupy or thin? Peppery or floral? It’s astonishing how much variations there are between different coffees but then again, given the wide variety of climates, soil and preparation methods it shouldn’t be too surprising.

Experiment with coffees of different countries – a Kenyan AA (darker, rougher) is quite different from a Colombian (more floral), which is different yet again from a Yemen Mocha (winey).

Try different roasts from light to very dark, cinnamon to Italian. Change the grind from rough to very fine. Even with the same bean, modifying the roast and grind can make a big difference.

Generally you’ll want to have about two tablespoons (10 grams) of coffee for each six fluid ounces (180 ml) of water. Adjust as you experiment. The water should be not very far from 200F (93C), but you can adjust this too as you try different ‘recipes’.

Following are some of the attributes of the profile you should keep in mind when tasting:

Acid – a tartness that tastes somewhat dry, noticeable in a Mexican, softer in a Sumatra brew. Aging can make a big difference here, as does the roast.

Aroma – the sensation produced by vapors, fruity or herb-like. Kona(s) are known for a floral aroma.

Bitter – From caffeine and other compounds, a robusta will generally be more bitter than an arabica. Sense by swishing on the back of the tongue.

Body – Degree of ‘thickness’, a light American roast will contrast sharply with a dark French, for example. In a way, this can be compared to drinking milk – a heavy body is like whole milk and light body is similar to skim milk.

Nuttiness – Created by aldehydes and ketones, creates a sensation like roasted nuts. Usually it’s a sign of poor quality beans.

Sharpness – a sensation from the combination of acids and salts. Pronounced in inexpensive robusta.

Sourness – this refers to excessively sharp, biting and unpleasant flavor (like vinegar).

Astringency – a characteristic of an after-taste sensation consistent with a dry feeling in the mouth, which is undesirable in coffee.

Good luck in experimenting with different blends and brews. One day you just might become a cupper yourself.